Pricing is not allowed.
Has the tech found out why the repeat failures?

 

10 years, and 3 inducers replaced? wow. to be clear... that is the original, plus 3 replacements? total of 4 inducers in 10 years?

either your furnace is WAAAY undersized, and runs non stop... or you have a serious design flaw in the furnace somewhere... can you take some pictures of the furnace/install?

 

Just to clarify, you are one over. I am installing the third inducer today, so the original plus two replacements for a total of three in 10 years.

IMO it's still too much. I know these are in a pretty hot environment and the grease probably burns off, etc. Still, you'd think they could engineer them a little better.

P.S. The furnace is not undersized and does not run continuously. I do know the Honeywell thermostat cycles more often than normal. They call it Comfort Control or something like that, and it does not do the normal "wait for temp to drop 1 degree below setpoint then heat up to 1 above setpoint" cycling, but rather keeps the heat to within 1/2 degree of setpoint at all times. This leads to a lot more on/off cycling than standard thermostats, but not sure if this would be the cause of premature failure or not.

 

How often does it cycle at design condations?

 

Depends on outside temps, but worst case (outside ambient in the teens) it'll be maybe ON for 7-8 minutes, then OFF for 10-12 minutes, then repeat. If it's warmer outside the duty cycle is obviously lower.

 

I've considered digging into the UM to see if that "feature" can be disabled and it can do the standard +/- 1 degree cycles, but like so many things in life I never got around to it.

 

I would blame outside causes much sooner then the motor itself.
They don't get that hot while running, and normally isn't a large failure point.

 

Grossly over sized furnace.

No, your thermostat doesn't have the ability to do differential. Its CPH only.

 

Wait a minute, edit on what I just posted......
Is this an old ICP with the inducer in the bottom of the compartment where the motors mounter vertical?

 

Yeah, I just found the UM and the temp control is "Precise Comfort Control" only - no option to disable it.

The inducer is mounted vertically, in the top half of the compartment. The burners are literally less than 6" away.

When I pulled the original inducer apart after replacing it years back I was surprised to note that the core for the motor - which was made out of an off-white plastic - looked noticeably burned. Not melted per se, but had dark-brown streaks like it was in a very high-temp environment.

 

Why do you think the prices are inflated?

Where are you getting the parts?

Unless you are doing this outside of normal business hours, the cost should be the same throughout the year.

 

I can find plenty of places (including out-of-state brick and mortar HVAC shops, not just Amazon) that sell the part for $ or more less than I pay for it buying from a local vendor. Unfortunately I cannot wait days for a shipment in the dead of winter, so I pay the extra to get it "now."

Well, it's done. I picked up the part and completed the work yesterday afternoon and my furnace is running like a champ again. Now I have two old inducers, and I plan on seeing about getting the motors rebuilt sometime next summer and keeping them as spares.

 

So am I understanding, YOU are changing this, not a local company? That may be where the extra charge is coming in, some companies charge extra for OTC parts sales, just thinking outside the box. I would certainly want to know why they are failing. I have several, not ICP, that have inducers over 15 years old.

 

That furnace is absolutely oversized, and is most likely the issue your having.

As far as rebuilding parts, there is not 1 part on a residential furnace i would try and rebuild.

We'll see you in a year or two for another inducer, or more realistically:
"why did my heat exchanger rings pop?"

Get that thing checked.

 

If they haven't already.

 

Your not focusing your attention in the correct areas. Instead of continuously replacing inducers, why not find out what's killing they.
You've already noticed signs of overheating inside the housing.
Those little motors are disposable, and are not cost effective to repair.

 

I am going to strongly recommend you have a combustion analysis performed with a printed out results sheet. Most techs do not have this quite costly tool, and a lot of them that do, do not know how to use it. Be sure to ask for this specific tool and a qualified tech will rise from the crowd. When you get the right tech out to diagnose the problem, have them perform a load calc on the house, and determine what size furnace it really needs.

 

not to sure about this inducer but most have oil port front and back of motor and need to be oiled each year. If not the bearings tighten up and will cause the motor to over heat and burn the windings. If yours needs to be oiled and you are not doing it then you will get about three seasons out of it. If it is sealed bearings then you have other issues and need to have it looked into. The rings on the HX need to be checked also

 

It's been a long time since I've seen a motor on a piece of resi equipment with oil or grease ports. They're all sealed nowadays.

 

With a furnace with that short of a run cycle, betting borrowed money that the furnace is not only over sized, but also has low air circulation and crazy flue temps...

This is likely "cooking" the draft inducer.

Call a pro, have the system analyzed, get a quote on the repair, and while you are at it, a replacement quote for a properly sized machine and potentially have an energy efficiency analysis done. You will likely see that there is energy to be saved that could offset the replacement costs a little and there is always the potential for a rebate from either your utility or the state. It wont be free, but what your doing now seems futile.

And "working" and "working like a champ" are two different things entirely...

GT