Opinion of Propane Furnaces

[Gebo]

I have an old Lennox Pulse Furnace from 1994 that is still running like a charm. 23 years is absolutely fantastic. The only maintenance done on it was when I replace that little round filter ever 7 years. It got really cold last week and I started wondering what I would do for a replacement. What is your opinion? I only use it for backup heat from 35 degrees and lower. HP for 35 degrees and up.

Are all propane brands about the same? Or is there a "leader" so to speak? I don't think I want the newest technology. Heck, would I be better off with electric heat strips and just eliminate the propane furnace once it dies?

 

[Donald]

The house I bought in DE went from A/C with gas furnace to HP with electric booster coils. I can view history and the booster coils are not on much.

 

[Donald]

Newer propane furnaces and boilers are modulating and condensing. All propane gas is the same. Tank rental/ownership is one issue. Get a propane generator since you have propane.

 

[WyrTwister]

My impression is propane furnaces are very close to being the same as a natural gas furnace . Just with different jetting ?

We have a Goodman 90% or 92& condensing natural gas furnace bought some time in the early 1990's . It has a 2 stage gas valve . Only time it goes into high flame is when I set back the tstat while we are out of town . When we return & I reset the tstat , it goes into high flame and warms up the house pretty quickly .

Probably the last thing I would do is go to electric resistance heat .

I think the newest , top of the line Mini Split HP's will operate down to close to 0F .

If you replace the propane furnace , continue with a condensing furnace ( high efficiency ) .

Also get a tank large enough to fill in the summer , when propane prices are down & last all / most of the winter .

 

[dnewton3]

I first lived with natural gas (NG) for many years. Then my wife and I moved and lived with a propane condensing furnace for 15 years; there was no natural gas where I lived at the time. The propane furnace was fantastic. We moved yet again, and now back on natural gas. Still great.

Why? Because generally other than the burner orifices and regulator, furnaces (and most other gaseous fuel appliances) are the same. We first were on NG when we got a new gas dryer. Then we moved outside the city and I bought an OEM kit to convert it over to LPG and did it myself. Then, when we moved back into NG supply area, I converted the dryer back again. Furnaces can be done the same way; the orifices are changed out and the pressure regulator is modified (typically by a spring set kit).

Unless otherwise stated, my all appliances are sold as "NG" units. Some companies will sell LPG units at the consumer level (such as blue flame wall heaters, water heaters, clothes dryers). Other appliances are larger and simply converted upon installation (like whole-house furnaces).

My point is that regardless of the fuel supply, if the unit is a good performer, it will do so either way, if set up properly.

Brand loyalty? That's no difference than oils, guns and girlfriends. Some have it; some don't. You decide.

 

[AZjeff]

If you use it very little in your climate I'd consider replacing the propane furnace with an electric one when the time comes. The reason I'd consider it is because we moved to an all electric house in 2005 and were leery of it, but our utility bills have been perfectly acceptable, lower usually than most anyone we compare with when they ask about the electric heat. Could you get heat strips installed in your HP exchanger plenum? What is your stove & water heater?

 

[LeakySeals]

My house is 18 years old, approx 3k sf. Heat and hot water is propane. Forced hot air. Propane Generac outside. The fill ups are scary +-$800. Everything runs good. Can't tell the diff from when I had natural gas in the last house.

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted By: AZjeff
If you use it very little in your climate I'd consider replacing the propane furnace with an electric one when the time comes. The reason I'd consider it is because we moved to an all electric house in 2005 and were leery of it, but our utility bills have been perfectly acceptable, lower usually than most anyone we compare with when they ask about the electric heat. Could you get heat strips installed in your HP exchanger plenum? What is your stove & water heater?


Stove electric, water heater propane

 

[Gebo]

Thanks for your input. I was hoping you could recommend or steer me clear of certain brands. Maybe in today's market, they are all the "same"?

I was reading consumer reports or some such magazine and was amazed at how many HP have the same "guts" but are being put in a different shell. I've about decided a Goodman propane furnace would be perfectly fine...

 

[LeakySeals]

Here are my 2. American Standard Freedom 90 on the left for the house and the "weather king" installed a few years ago for a finished basement.

 

[zzyzzx]

Originally Posted By: Gebo
I only use it for backup heat from 35 degrees and lower. HP for 35 degrees and up.


That's your problem right there! Newer high efficiency heat pumps still work good at way less than 35 degrees. Even during the recent cold snap that just ended the HP was running.

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Originally Posted By: Gebo
I only use it for backup heat from 35 degrees and lower. HP for 35 degrees and up.


That's your problem right there! Newer high efficiency heat pumps still work good at way less than 35 degrees. Even during the recent cold snap that just ended the HP was running.


What? Where is my problem? My propane furnace has lasted 24 years and I'm on my second HP. Seems to me things have really worked well????

 

[zzyzzx]

I was just saying that if you had a better heat pump, you wouldn't be using electric heat even in the recent cold snap. Hence making the propane furnace useless and redundant.

 

[SHOZ]

If getting a new furnace only for back up I would shy away from the really efficient condensing ones as they are more complicated. Ideally you would only need it in extreme cold.

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
I was just saying that if you had a better heat pump, you wouldn't be using electric heat even in the recent cold snap. Hence making the propane furnace useless and redundant.


Understood.

But what I want is for HOT AIR to come out of my ducts when it gets really cold outside. I want that HOT air that feels warm to the touch. You get older and your body really likes that HOT air. LOL!

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted By: SHOZ
If getting a new furnace only for back up I would shy away from the really efficient condensing ones as they are more complicated. Ideally you would only need it in extreme cold.


Agreed. 35 and below.

 

[dirtymudder]

I just converted from propane to NG. I had my furnace replaced 5 years ago. It's a 2 stage and it always runs on the lower stage. With us loosing power here I would rather have the gas furnace than electric heating elements because I can run the furnace on a small generator. I also have a ventless heater in the basement that can run with no electricity and keep the house at around 60 degrees in 10 degree weather. Whats funny is that since I've converted to NG it seems the heat coming out of the furnace is warmer than the propane was.

 

[Crispysea]

NG/propane hands down. Heat pumps are useless anywhere north of Florida or Louisiana. My parents had one when I was a kid. It never got warm enough, and broke down often. Back then, parts were hard to find. Luckily, we still had a wood stove, or we would have frozen! My mother in law had one too, and it kept breaking. Her bill was about $200 a month for a one bedroom house! I put in a window AC and a propane heater. Her monthly bill rarely ever goes over $100 now.

 

[HonorAndHonesty]

Natural gas is the way to go if you have it available, but many in the country dont. The thing about propane is the prices are so volatile. I remember a few winters ago there was a propane shortage in Indiana. The price was over 4.00 a gallon and the max you could get was 200 gallons. Electricity is much less volatile. After seeing people deal with that nonsense, I was completely turned off propane. I have had it before and the prices can vary so much.

Heat pumps are not useless in colder climates. We have a 2009 Bryant heat pump and it runs down to -10 and still provides heat. Now it will run constantly with the strips kicking on some, but it only uses 3 kwh an hour when the temperature is that low. The strips use 3kwh in 9 minutes when they kick on.

It easily heats our house down to 20-25 degrees with no heat strips turning on.

Now I have hears alot of bad things about heat pumps that were older. I think with R-410a and the higher pressures run with it, you get more efficient heating/cooling.

Now when the heatpump is running and it 15 degrees outside the vent outlet temperature is only 10 degrees warmer than room air so it feels "cold" but it keeps our house comfy.

 

[Donald]

Heat pump have come a long way in 10 or 20 years. They are efficient at lower temps. Good farther north than Florida. Maybe not Maine however.

However the electric coils may come on for defrost rather than heating.

I can see runtime history and can tell when is heating (number of hours/day) and when booster coils are on (number of hours/day).