American standard freedom 95 comfort R - water gurgling sound

anthony_24

I had 2 American standard freedom 95 comfort R gas furnaces installed June 2010.

Yesterday was the first time I called for heat, the furnace would not work. It would make a water gurgling sound from power vent motor and would then lock out. I blew into a drain hose from  bottom of power vent motor into drain line a few times. I finally got it going  and a nice stream of water came out from drain line while it was running but want to know what service should I do to prevent this or is the install incorrect? The other unit did not make that gurgling sound. Thank you in advance for any help or advice.

Tim McElwain

Keep that hose clear

as it is not unusual for condensation from flue gases to accumulate. Does the hose end up dumping into some kind of a condensate pump? Without a picture it is hard to be sure what exactly you are dealing with.



When a system sits all summer the hoses build up gunk and they need to be serviced before the heating season. That along with a combustion test and cleaning should be done. The secondary heat exchanger also needs to be inspected and the underside cleaned.

anthony_24

reply

Thanks for your reply Tim. The units  are in a crawl space with a slab floor that has 2 holes punched in cement  for each unit to allow condensate to drain into the sand below.

Shouldn't the drain hose stay clear with the ac condensate running through it from the summer? Also the unit's draw air from the crawl space, wouldn't  it be better to pipe in air from outside?

Tim McElwain

Condensate can't go into

the ground without being neutralized. Also the AC condensate and condensate from the condensing side of the furnace can't be connected together.



As for air for combustion most crawl spaces are very damp and moldy so not a good choice for air. I would look for bringing air from outside.



Any pictures of this installation? I have a feeling it may not be the best install, just guessing however without pictures can't tell.

anthony_24

pictures

Hi Tim,

Sorry for taking so long to get pictures posted.

The 2 units were installed June 2010 in a crawl space that is 40" at it's highest by Nat Grid recommended installer.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your help.

Tim McElwain

I do not know what

your local code requires but I would definitely have the two condensate lines separated. I would have the condensate from the gas unit go through a neutralizer and then into a condensate pump to be then sent to a sewer drain system.



As for the air intake I would have it run to directly outdoors to insure a good clean air for combustion. It will probably work okay as it is but I do not like the possibility of moldy damp wet air being used for combustion.

anthony_24

neutralizer and then into a condensate pump

Thanks for your reply Tim.

I will definitely separate the 2 lines.

I have a septic system and think that might be bad for  the tank.  Could I just dig out more sand from ground and place a container in there with lime pellets to neutralize condensate?

Tim McElwain

Do you also have a well?

If so you may not want to dump it into the ground.



As far as what to do that is up to you. I am giving you what is typically required by most jurisdictions today. You might check with your local inspector.

VictoriaEnergy

Read The instructions

Most new furnaces can be installed upflow, downflow or horizontaly.  The instructions require the installer to change the connection and routing of the internal drain piping when the furnace is installed in the different positions.  When installers fail to do this, water may accumulate in the heat exchanger or venter housing.  The furnace will work fine the first time it's started, but won't run again once some of the trapped condensate restricts it too much.



The furnace should be set up with a proper condensate pump, including connection of the float switch.



The furnace has a connection on it to run a seccond PVC pipe for sealed combustion outside air.  Have this done as per the instructions.  It will make the furnace safer and slightly more efficient.

anthony_24

blocked drain

Hi

Thanks for your reply. I like Tim's 





suggestion of separating condensing lines. So I will do that and bring in fresh air for furnace's. I know where connections go on the  unit's. I can't see using  a condensing pump because I think it might  be a problem for my septic system if I dump into it. Besides it would go into ground anyway. Soil here on eastern Long Island is sand so drainage should be good. As far as moving drain on furnace it appears that the drains were moved for a horizontal set up.(see picture) The only question that I have is were is the best place to clear any drain blockages on the furnace?

VictoriaEnergy

I'll try this again

Please read the instructions.



See attached instructions, your unit may be different.

anthony_24

I'll try this again

Thanks for info. I see the instructions call for using the trap supplied by manufacturer only. My installer used supplied  trap and tied it into another one which is used for ac. I will separate them as per Tim's suggestion. My question is  what is required to clean and service unit.