Best Gas Furnace Brands – High-Efficiency Furnaces
Last week I had to shop for a new furnace for my house. It’s been on its last legs for a while, but after the snow in Austin, I was motivated. I tried to be thorough in my research, so I thought I share it here. A furnace is one of the important appliances that need to be installed in a house for giving comfort especially when you live in an area that has a cold climate. A furnace commonly uses gas as a fuel source, but some units also use fuel oil, liquefied petroleum gas or also known as LPG, fuel oil, coal, and even wood. Since we talk about long term usage, it is important to choose the best furnace that will meet your needs.
When we talk about gas furnaces, there are many brands available in the market and it could make it confusing for the homeowners to choose which best furnace brands that are right for them. Since there are lots of varieties for the gas furnace brands offering a different kind of durability, efficiency, reliability, and performance, we provide in this article, the guideline of four top brands and budget brand gas furnaces for your reference.
Characteristics of Best Furnace Brands
To know if one brand is better than others, there are four qualifications that you will need to check before deciding to buy a gas furnace. First is the Quality components. Consumers need to understand the basic information about the brands and manufacturer. Some brands have a higher price because the quality of the components are better than others. One brand has several tier series which is usually basic, mid, and top lines. Compare the features in each series to get a better idea.
Second, since a furnace is expected to be installed and run in a great performance for a long period. We don’t talk five years but could be even more than twenty years of durability. Therefore, it is important that the consumer to check if the brand has excellent durability. You can check the consumer reviews and reports from a reputable testing company to know if there are many problems that occurred during the furnace’s lifetime.
Therefore, instead of getting the cheaper gas furnace and wasting more cost and time to repair it when it’s broken down, it is recommended that the consumers invest in a reliable and high-quality gas furnace with long durability.
Third, the consumer needs to compare the warranties that the manufacturer offers. Usually, reliable brands will offer a lifetime warranty since the manufacturer is sure that the unit is built with high-quality components. On a cheaper brand, the warranty could be only five years only.
Consumers also need to check in detail about the lifetime warranty that the brands offer since in certain cases, the consumer will get a prorated limited lifetime warranty or if some parts only get a 5 to 10 years warranty. Consumers also need to check if it is easy to claim for warranty if there are parts that are broken.
Therefore, consumers could do some research on other consumers’ reviews before buying a certain brand.
The last qualification is to check the performance of the unit. When it comes to a premium brand, it usually comes with premium performance, long-lasting materials, and durability. You also can check with a professional HVAC technician which brands that they recommend.
A professional HVAC technician will recommend the brands that they know will have a great performance, high quality, and easy to maintain. A professional technician will rarely recommend brands that they don’t know the quality.
Best Gas Furnace List
Here are the four best gas furnace brands with their unique features for your reference. Please note that the list is based on their top-line models.
1. American Standard Platinum & Trane XC
Trane XC & American Standard are two brands produced by Ingersoll Rand & they are identically the same. These brands are known for their high-quality components including primary heat exchangers that are made from aluminized steel and secondary heat exchanger are made from stainless steel. The cabinets are made from heavy gauge steel.
The blowers use a technology called variable speed ECM blower which is more efficient than the standard model. These brands also have reliable heating and offer high efficiency due to multi docks for in-shot burners in their products. For ComfortLink II, the unit has an advanced communicating system that will help to diagnose the problems to make it easy to repair.
Trane XC & American Standard have a lifetime warranty for the heat exchangers and 10 years warranty for general parts. However, most reviews mention that these brands will last around 25 years and even more with the right maintenance.
2. Heil QuietComfort Deluxe
Heil is made by ICP. ICP has produced other brands such as Comfortmaker, Tempstar, Arcoaire, Day & Night, and KeepRite. Most of these brands have a similar product series. ICP itself belongs to United Technology Company which produces other high-quality brands such as Bryant & Carrier.
Heil QuietComfort Deluxe Gas Furnace uses high-quality components such as a secondary heat exchanger which is made from stainless steel and hot surface ignition which is made from silicon nitride. This unit also has a speed blowers variable and communication system which make it easier to diagnose if there are any issues.
Heil QuietComfort Deluxe Gas Furnace offers a warranty that the consumers cannot resist. It has no hassle 10-year replacement guarantee. It means if there are issues with heat exchange in this 10-year warranty period, the consumers will get the brand-new furnace. Furthermore, the heat exchangers have a lifetime warranty and general parts have a 10-year warranty.
3. Bryant Evolution & Carrier Infinity
Carrier and Bryant are the premium brands made by UnitedTechnology, a leading HVAC company that is well known in developing its brands with innovation. These two brands are the higher efficiency technology called variable-capacity heat pump and gas furnaces.
These brands are famous for the quietest furnaces in the market thanks to their insulated cabinet feature. They are using aluminized steel for primary heat exchangers and stainless steel for the secondary heat exchangers.
With its technology called Greenspeed, Carrier Infinity Series perform in high efficiency up to 98.5%. Similar to other premium brands, Carrier Infinity & Bryant Evolution Gas Furnaces offers a lifetime warranty for heat exchangers and 10 years warranty for general parts.
4. Dave Lennox Signature Series
Dave Lennox Signature Series are known for their highest efficiency which is up to 98.7%. Furthermore, the homeowners could install an iComfort thermostat that is Wi-Fi enabled and can help to save more heating expenses up to 15%.
What makes Lennox different from other brands, the manufacturer produced replacement parts for their products which can make the consumers not worry about the quality.
Best Budget Brands
The above list is based on the top lines products from each brand which make the price is higher compared to other lineup product. Therefore, if you are not going to stay in a long period from your house or if you are looking for a good quality brand but at an affordable price, take a look at Goodman GMVC & GMVM Gas Furnaces.
Goodman GMVM & GMVC Gas Furnaces
Goodman brand is produced by Daikin, a Japanese company that already sold its products around the world. The unit has sound-insulated cabinets made from high-quality material. The heat exchanger is made from stainless steel, so it prevents the material to be corroded.
Goodman GMVM & GMVC Gas Furnaces have a ComfortNet communication system, it also has a self-board that could automatically diagnose any issues that occur.
Goodman has a 10-year replacement warranty, but it’s only applied to the original owner. Please note that the lifetime heat exchanger warranty is only applicable when the consumers registered it not more than 60 days after product installation.
How not to Damage a Quality Gas Furnace
Installation is the most important part to make sure that the gas furnace performs excellent and has long durability. Choosing wrong and the inexperienced contractor could make the premium brands furnace doesn’t perform efficiently and has many issues then it’s supposed to be.
Therefore, before choosing the contractor for installing a gas furnace, make sure that you check first about several factors such as if the technicians are certified, if they are trained with the brand that you are going to use, have experienced three years in gas furnace installation at least and if the HVAC company is reliable, insured and licensed.
It is recommended for you to have several quotations before choosing the contractors. Do not hesitate to ask them your questions concerning on above factors that will affect your decision. Do not be tempted with the cheaper price of installation before you check all details and consumers’ reviews. You also could use a company that will give you the recommendation of HVAC contractors that are available in your area.
Finding the best gas furnace brand that meets your needs and the experienced contractors could be an exhausting process. However, it is better than wasting your time and more money on repair and replacement.
