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Amana, Trane, American Standard Brand Package Terminal Air Conditioners/Heat Pumps

October 1, 2004
About 875,000 package terminal air conditioners/heat pumps are being recalled because of a fire hazard. The commercial-grade units carry the Amana, Trane and American Standard brands.

The chain of events that potentially leads to a fire is: filter becomes clogged due to lack of maintenance, severely restricting airflow and resulting in elevated internal temperature; this may cause two safety switches to stop working during the product’s expected life; if the blower wheel then stops when the product is operated in the heating mode, a fire hazard can develop.

Goodman Company, the manufacturer, received 29 confirmed reports of units overheating, including eight instances where the PTAC ignited and, in some cases, caused minor property damage. No injuries have been reported.

These PTACs are owned mainly by commercial and institutional organizations and are used in the lodging industry, apartments, hospitals, nursing homes and assisted living facilities, schools, and government buildings. A small number of the recalled units are owned by individual homeowners.

The PTACs are beige in color and are intended for through-the-wall installation. Goodman manufactured all of the recalled units, which were sold under the Amana, Trane, and American Standard brand names. Goodman and Trane/American Standard are separate, unrelated entities.

The recalled PTACs consist of Amana brand units manufactured from January 1996 through March 2003, and Trane and American Standard brand units manufactured from January 1996 through August 2002, that use electric heaters rated at 3.5 kilowatts (kW) or greater.

The serial and model numbers are below the operating controls under the front cover assembly. To check the serial and model numbers, remove the front cover by pulling it from the bottom straight out until the clips release, then lifting it up. For some units, it is first necessary to remove two ¼” screws (in the filter compartment) that secure the front cover.

Amana, Trane, and American Standard representatives sold the PTACs to hotels/motels, hospitals, assisted living facilities, schools, and apartment complexes. Heating, ventilation and air conditioning distributors and resellers sold the units to commercial customers and, in some cases, homeowners. The recalled units were sold throughout the U.S. and parts of Canada between January 1996 and March 2003.

Remedy: Free thermal safety limit switch. Commercial and institutional owners will install the replacement switch themselves. Individual homeowners can get a free repair. Contact the Goodman Hotline to receive the free replacement thermal safety switch. Inspect and clean the air conditioner/heat pump filters immediately to remove any imminent hazard. Continue to clean these filters every 30 days in accordance with manufacturer’s recommendations which can be found at www.regcen.com/PTAC.

Owner Contact: Call the Goodman Hotline at (800) 729-6122 between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. CT Monday through Friday. Owners can submit a PTAC Recall Information Form at Goodman’s Web site www.regcen.com/PTAC.

The recall is being conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

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