Gas-fired horizontal furnaces commonly called NOx rod furnaces
CPSC Recall #01-189 — July 8, 2001
Recall Summary
| Recall Number | 01-189 |
| Recall Date | July 8, 2001 |
| Remedy Type | No Remedy Available |
Where It Was Sold
| Home |
| hardware and specialty stores |
| and independent contractors sold these furnaces in California from January 1983 through December 1992 for about $2 |
| 000. |
Product
Gas-fired horizontal furnaces commonly called NOx rod furnaces
Description
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is announcing a recall of about 30,000 furnaces sold in California. Seven firms are offering to repair or replace certain furnaces, which were sold under their own labels, but were manufactured by Consolidated Industries Inc. The units involved are gas-fired horizontal furnaces equipped with steel "NOx" rods installed above the burners and are commonly called NOx rod furnaces. These furnaces pose a substantial risk of fire. CPSC has received 50 reports of fires associated with the 140,000 horizontal furnaces manufactured by Consolidated Industries Inc. No injuries have been reported. All the furnaces can be identified by the steel rods installed above the burners. The firms participating in this recall are Amana Company, L.P., of Amana, Iowa; Bard Manufacturing, of Bryan, Ohio; Carrier Corporation, of Syracuse, N.Y.; Goettl Air Conditioning Inc., of Phoenix, Ariz.; Goodman Manufacturing Company L.P., of Houston, Texas; Heat Controller Inc., of Jackson, Mich.; and The Trane Company, a division of American Standard Inc., of Tyler, Texas. Private labelers sold these furnaces in California under the following brand names and model numbers, which are written on a label on an outside panel of the furnace. COMPANY NAME TRADE NAME MODEL Amana Company Amana GSE50DN3X GSE75DN3X GSE100DN5X Bard Manufacturing Bard ESG040D36B ESG050D36B ESG060D36B ESG060D48B ESG080D60B ESG100D60B ESG120D60B ESG140D60B ESG050D36D ESG060D48D ESG075D48D ESG080D60D ESG100D60D ISG060D36AX ISG080D48AX ISG100D60AX ISG120D60AX Carrier Corporation Sunburst by Carrier Southern California HAC 040N(D,E, or F)3RXC HAC 050N(D,E, or F)5RXC HAC 050ND3RXD HAC 060N(D,E, or F)4RXC HAC 075N(D,E, or F)4RXC HAC 080N(D,E, or F)5RXC HAC 100N(D,E, or F)5RXC Goettl Air Conditioning Inc. American Best Goettl HAC 040N(D,E, or F)3RCX HAC 050N(D,E, or F)3RCX HAC 040N(D,E, or F)3RXD HAC 050N(D,E, or F)3RXD HAC 040N(D,E, or F)3RXC HAC 050N(D,E, or F)3RXC HAC 060N(D,E, or F)4RXC HAC 075N(D,E, or F)4RXC HAC 080N(D,E, or F)5RXC HAC 100N(D,E, or F)5RXC HCC 040N(D,E, or F)3RX HCC 050N(D,E, or F)3RX HCC 060N(D,E, or F)4RX HCC 075N(D,E, or F)4RX HCC 100N(D,E, or F)5RX HBA 040N(D,E, or F)3RX HBA 060N(D,E, or F)3RX HBA 080N(D,E, or F)4RX HBA 100N(D,E, or F)5RX HBA 120N(D,E, or F)5RX Goodman Manufacturing Company Franklin Electric Goodman GMC Hamilton Electric Janitrol Johnstone Liberty HBA 040 ND 3(X, RX, XC or RXC) HBA 060 ND 3(X, RX, XC or RXC) HBA 080 ND 4(X, RX, XC or RXC) HBA 100 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) HBA 120 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCA 040 ND 3(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCA 060 ND 3(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCA 080 ND 4(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCA 100 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCA 120 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCA 140 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCC 040 ND 3(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCC 050 ND 3(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCC 060 ND 4(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCC 075 ND 4(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCC 080 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) HCC 100 ND 5(X, RX, XC or RXC) Heat Controller Inc. Comfort-Aire GSH40-T3N-X GSH50-T3N-X GSH60-T4N-X GSH75-T4N-X GSH80-T5N-X GSH100-T5N-X The Trane Company Trane American Standard THN050A936A THN060A948A THN075A948A THN100A960A CPSC issued a safety alert warning about these furnaces in September 2000. Consolidated Industries (formerly Premier Furnace Co.), which was liquidated under Chapter 7 bankruptcy laws, manufactured approximately 140,000 of these furnaces for sale in California between 1983 and 1994 under many different brand names. About 110,000 of these furnaces were manufactured and distributed under the Premier/Consolidated labels. They include the brand names Consolidated, Premier, Addison, and Weatherking. They are not covered by this recall program. After Consolidated filed for bankruptcy, class action was pursued, and a settlement was ultimately reached in early 2002. However, claimants were required to file a claim by January 13, 2003. Potential claimants who missed the deadline have no remedy available. Even though no remedy is available, CPSC staff believes that the Consolidated, Premier, Addison, and Weatherking furnaces are defective and should be replaced or repaired. These furnaces are normally installed in attics, although some may be installed in crawl spaces. The great majority of these furnaces were installed in homes in California. Some, however, were installed in home in Nevada, near the California border. The Commission is warning consumers to have their gas-fired furnaces inspected by a licensed heating contractor to determine whether the furnaces are subject to this safety alert. The contractor also should determine whether the burners and/or heat exchangers of units are damaged, or whether wood under or near the furnaces shows signs of damage, such as charring or blackening. If this is the case, the furnace should be replaced immediately or repaired. Consolidated or Premier furnaces with model numbers starting "HAC", "HBA", "HCA", or "HCC" and ending with an "X" in the last three characters (e.g. X, RX, RXC, RXD) and Addison Products Company Addison and Weatherking furnaces models beginning with "GHC" and ending in either "CC" or "DX" are included in this safety alert.
Hazard
These furnaces pose a substantial risk of fire.
Incidents & Injuries
CPSC has received 50 reports of fires associated with the 140,000 horizontal furnaces manufactured by Consolidated Industries Inc. No injuries have been reported.
Remedy Instructions
This recall remedy is no longer available. The firm that announced the recall is out of business.
What Should You Do?
Stop using this product immediately. Contact the manufacturer for a No Remedy Available at no charge. If you experienced an injury, report it at SaferProducts.gov.
Frequently Asked Questions
Follow the consumer action instructions in the recall notice above. Most recalls require you to stop using the product and contact the manufacturer directly — either by calling the toll-free number listed in the official CPSC notice or by visiting the manufacturer's website. You generally do not need a receipt or original packaging to claim a remedy. The manufacturer is legally required to provide the remedy (No Remedy Available) at no cost to you.
If the product caused a fire or burn injury, document the incident with photos and preserve the product if it is safe to do so. Report the incident to the CPSC at SaferProducts.gov and to your local fire department. Contact the manufacturer to inform them of the incident — they are required to track and report injuries to CPSC. You may also want to consult a personal injury attorney, as fire and burn injuries caused by defective products can be grounds for a product liability claim against the manufacturer.
In most cases, no. CPSC-coordinated recall remedies are designed to be accessible without proof of purchase. Manufacturers typically ask consumers to self-certify ownership and may ask for photos of the product or its serial number. Some manufacturers request that you mail in a portion of the product (such as a cut cord or removed component) as proof of disposal. Check the specific remedy instructions for this recall for exact requirements. If you registered your product at the time of purchase, the process is usually even simpler.
If the original manufacturer has gone out of business, the recall remedy may no longer be available through them. In this case, contact CPSC directly at 1-800-638-2772 or cpsc.gov for guidance. If the brand was acquired by another company, the acquiring company may have assumed recall obligations. In some cases where a remedy is unavailable, CPSC advises consumers to safely dispose of the product. If you were injured by the product of a defunct company, consult a product liability attorney — parent companies, distributors, and retailers may still bear liability in some circumstances.