Payne air conditioners

imported_John Smith · 05-12-2007, 04:51 PM

Had an AC tech service my unit today and we were talking about equipment. He told me that Payne air conditioners are worse than Goodman. I have read several threads on IN and on the HVAC sites always bashing Goodman. I thought this might be a grudge against Goodman for having cheap equipment. The tech was very knowledgable and believable. Anyone else hear bad things about Payne?

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**Jerry Peck** · 05-12-2007, 05:03 PM

I thought Payne, Goodman, and Day Night were all equal bottom end units from CAC (Carrier).

Maybe one of the HVAC techs can clear that up for?

Joe Nernberg · 05-12-2007, 09:50 PM

Carrier is also Day & Night, Bryant and Payne. I took a 40-hour course at their tech school many years ago. I think it is a superior product. I believe Goodman and Janitrol are of the same manufacturer and regarded as the "builder's choice" because of the "competitive" pricing. American Standard and Trane are one of the same (also reputable). I recall that Lennox products were troublesome to repair because most of their parts were proprietary.

**DavidR** · 05-13-2007, 04:48 AM

Payne is the builders model for both Carrier & Bryant, no bells & whistles just a box with the basics.

There is quite a bit of it installed in this area & I see no more issues out of it than I do the other brands.
Installation procedures being followed usually determine the dependability of the equipment more than the name on the box.

Here recently I have been having more trouble out of Rheem products due to a vendor they use for certain products.

**Scott Patterson** · 05-13-2007, 07:44 AM

Small thread drift...

I have never been a fan of Goodman equipment, but I have to be honest now. The home I purchased last summer has a Goodman 16 SEER unit and I have no complaints. The systems cools the house and it heats it as well, what more can you ask for. With my wife and her hot flashes our house stays COLD(66f) year round!

I have seen many homes in my area with Goodman units that are doing just fine. Could it be that the Goodman as we know them from the 1980's and 1990's has changed and that they are now producing a fairly good system?

**Jerry Peck** · 05-13-2007, 08:55 AM

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

I thought Payne, Goodman, and Day Night were all equal bottom end units from CAC (Carrier).

Thank you Joe and DavidR for correcting my sticking 'Goodman' in there, As soon as you guys posted 'Bryant', the bells and whistles went off 'Oh, yeah, Bryant, not Goodman!'

Jeez, forgetting things is getting to be a pain.

**Eric Van De Ven** · 05-13-2007, 11:05 AM

Originally Posted by Scott Patterson

Small thread drift...

I have never been a fan of Goodman equipment, but I have to be honest now. The home I purchased last summer has a Goodman 16 SEER unit and I have no complaints. The systems cools the house and it heats it as well, what more can you ask for. With my wife and her hot flashes our house stays COLD(66f) year round!

I have seen many homes in my area with Goodman units that are doing just fine. Could it be that the Goodman as we know them from the 1980's and 1990's has changed and that they are now producing a fairly good system?

No, Scott, they aren't getting better. At least not here.
I just did a house that was three years old and had three Goodman systems plus one for the guest house. The one for the guest house went the day the guy listed the house! It also took the breaker with it.

The other two were noisy, which, every Goodman/Janitrol air handler I have ever inspected is.

I personally think that American Standard is the best. I have had mine for nine years now with out a problem. I cleaned the coils myself once, someone got a little lazy with the filter changes, but that was it.

Then again, maybe it is just my house. When we moved in, it had the original "Singer" air handler. It was 27 years old!
It also had all of the orignal appliances!

**Mike Schulz** · 05-13-2007, 12:11 PM

My house has a Goodman and was installed in 93. Has worked perfectly since day one.

**DavidR** · 05-13-2007, 12:44 PM

Guys who used to be Trane & American Standard dealers in this area are jumping ship fast due to the numerous compressor & TXV failures.

This equipment is not what it used to be from the statements I am hearing.

Brian E Kelly · 05-13-2007, 01:56 PM

This seems like a familiar talk about who is better. My option is as diverse as everyone else as I have my favorite and also a list of what is crap. Todays equipment is pretty much equal with a exceptions with the low end products ( which most manufactures have one). Each and every manufacturer has had problems at one time or another and it seems that the Trane family seems to be having there time. I was in the HVAC trade for over 25 years and have sold most major brands (York, Carrier, Gibson, Janitrol, Bryant, Rheem, ect), and have found that the main reason anyone chooses to sell any one brand seems to boil down to wholesale house services both before and after the sale. Everyone one of the different brands that I have sold in the past have some good parts and some not so good parts about them it was the service from the wholesaler that made the difference.
For the home owner and what is brand is better for them all depends on the service both before and after the sale that makes all the difference in the world. I have seen some very high end equipment installed in the worst way that made the homeowner think the equipment is the worst on the marked. It all depends on the installation and service. That is what we should be discussing and not trying to determine who has the better equipment.

**DavidR** · 05-13-2007, 04:47 PM

Originally Posted by Brian E Kelly

That is what we should be discussing and not trying to determine who has the better equipment.

One thing I think people forget is that the equipment is only a component of the total HVAC system built by the contractor.
The equipment is not the system as most manufacturers mislabel it to brainwash the buying public & contractors.

That being said we have always made it a point to focus on our company & the specialized services we offer.
We don't advertise which box we sell on our vans only what we do.

When was the last time you saw a homebuilder riding around with the name brand of windows he sold plastered all over his truck?