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No conversion kit on 6 month old furnace

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HVACproblems
HVACproblems Member Posts: 1
edited December 2020 in THE MAIN WALL
Hello,
This is a bit of a long story but I will try to make it to the point for you all.
Months ago we had a full installation of an HVAC unit that took months to complete. The AC was operable but excuse after excuse came up for months regarding why they could not complete the heating element of the unit. Finally a crew came out and the heating was finished. Heat was not needed for a couple months so we believed everything to be fine. We happened to have a propane inspection with our propane company shortly after who discovered that there was no conversion kit label placed on the unit and when he turned on the heat our CO detector came on. He suggested we call the HVAC company and have someone come out to verify that a conversion kit was actually installed. We did. They came out and did a short exterior inspection of unit, which is fully enclosed with PVC piping as an outlet, due to spray foam insolation throughout our attic. He printed off a piece of paper which states only "PROPANE ONLY" and taped it to the side of the unit and assured me that it would be fine. As the nights got colder we noticed that the unit was running all night long to keep our house at 64 degrees with an exterior temp of 35 degrees and it was constantly turning itself off and on all night. We again had a suspicion that something was wrong and had two other HVAC companies come out to check the unit. They found multiple code violations with the unit as well as the fact that the unit had never been converted to LP as I was told.
Frankly I do not want this company ever working in my house again and I do not trust that they will fix this appropriately so I have a meeting with the owner of the company to be refunded for work done and we will find another reputable and reliable company to fix the mistakes made by this other company.
Please tell me, with a closed system was this still a health risk to my family? Is the unit operable still given that it was used for months without a conversion kit? It is a Lennox system. I'm concerned that any cheap "fix" or installation of a conversion kit now will void warranty and/or be a mess of a problem in the future due to soot build-up, etc.
I'm not very knowledgeable on HVAC units so I would love professional opinions.
Thank you!

Comments

  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 15,525
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    I would be more than a little concerned with a natural gas furnace that was fired on propane and this is the reason why.

    For a given size furnace the natural gas orifice in the burners is much larger that a propane orifice because propane runs at a higher pressure. The means you furnace may have been "overfired" which could cause soot, Co and a damaged heat exchanger if when they started it up they adjusted the burner manifold pressure to what it should be on propane.

    But I suspect the opposite is true. I think they started it up and never set the burner manifold pressure. This would cause the burners to use less gas and probably accounts for why the furnace wouldn't heat the house.

    I would not let the original contractor back in the house. I would call the local building/plumbing/heating inspector about him after he refunds your money.

    I would like your new contractor to inspect the furnace before you let #1 off the hook and before you call the building dept and see what he says.

    Is it worth calling a lawyer? Depends on how bad the system is I can't say.

    If your contractor says the furnace is ok and it costs you $$$$ to fix things.....consider yourself lucky. If it's $$$$$$ then you may want a lawyer.

    We can't talk price here

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