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The Article Details The Six Companies Who 24 A/C Brands — And The Brands Each Company Makes.  Home Pro Plumber, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides; maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps. Additionally, we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (owned by American Standard), and Coleman HVAC (same company as York).

Click On This Link To Read About The Different Central A/C Outdoor Units Speeds Available: HomeProPlumber.com Different A/C Speeds Available

Home Pro Plumber also provides Full-Service Plumbing; maintenance, repairs, and replacements for every plumbing component in your home.   We repair, sell & install gas & electric water heaters.  We’re near your home in Plano, TX, Garland, TX, and Richardson, Texas.  We service all homes in southern Collin County with no additional travel charges.

Call Home Pro Plumber to discuss concerns about your Plumbing or HVAC System.  We’ll arrange an appointment at your convenience

These Six Companies Make 24 A/C Brands

   

Image Source: Dreamstime

Shown:  Goodman/Amana brand Central A/C (left) — A Compressor For Ductless A/C System (on right)

These six companies make 24 A/C brands:

• Trane Technologies makes; Trane, American Standard, Oxbox, and AmeriStar HVAC.  In 1984, American Standard acquired Trane.  In 2008, Ingersol Rand acquired Trane.   In 2008, Ingersol Rand broke into 3 Divisions  — the HVAC Division was renamed Trane.  Trane Technologies was formed in 2020.  Trane Technologies is located in Davidson, NC. **

• Carrier Corporation makes; Carrier, Bryant, Day & Night, Payne, Comfortmaker, Tempstar & Arcoaire.  Carrier is owned by United Technologies Corp (UTC).   In April 2020, United Technologies Corporation (UTC) merged with the Raytheon Company — to form Raytheon Technologies.  Raytheon Technologies is located in Waltham, MA.

• Goodman Manufacturing makes; Goodman & Amana A/C brands.  In 2012, Daikin bought Goodman.  Daikin North America LLC is located in Houston, TX.  It operates as an independent subsidiary of the Daikin Group — Headquaretered in Osaka, Japan.  Daikin is the world’s largest manufacturer of HVAC Systems.  Daikin bought Goodman to expand into the U.S. HVAC market.

• Nortek Global makes; Maytag, Frigidaire, Gibson, Nutone, Broan, Mammoth.  They are located in O’fallon, MO (near St. Louis).  ***

• Rheem Manufacturing makes; Rheem, Ruud, and Weatherking.  Rheem is located in Atlanta, GA.

• York makes; York, Coleman & Luxaire HVAC.   York is located in Chicago, IL.  Coleman is located in Norman, OK.

** Source: https://www.tranetechnologies.com/en/index/brands.html

*** Source: https://www.nortekhvac.com/top-brands/

Why Are There So Many A/C Brands?

Most HVAC brands have 2–3 Price-Points; “Good”, “Better”, & “Best.”  It’s common to different brand name assigned to each price point.

Example:

• Trane HVAC sells two “Best” brands — Trane & American Standard.

• They also sell two “Good” brands — Oxbox (Trane) & Ameristar (American Standard).
• The “Good” brands don’t have the same components the “Best” brands have.   In addition to other differences –they have a Copeland ® brand compressor — instead of a “Clima-Tuff” ®

Trane & American Standard Brands Have Their Proprietary “Clima-Tuff” ® Brand Compressor (they make it themselves).   

Are Climatuff® (brand) Compressors Superior To Copeland (brand)?   That would be an opinion — we only provide facts.  

Image Source: Dreamstime

Shown: Trane / American Standard Central A/C Unit

This Story Tells Of The Reliability & Longevity Of Trane’s & American Standard’s Clima-Tuff ® (brand) Compressor:

“Snowball I” (nickname) was the original Climatuff® compressor.  It began its life in late 1972 — and ran for nearly 28 years.  It ran at an estimated 3,500 rpm — equaling an automobile running 60 — 70 miles per hour, and covering 14.8 million miles.  Five presidents later — and after the rise & fall of; disco, glam rock, and grunge music,  Snowball finally ran out of steam — and created a legacy for the Trane Climatuff® compressor, found in every Trane & Ameican Standard A/C & Heat Pump. **

“Snowball II”  replaced Snotball I — and is also located at Trane’s Compressor Test Lab in Tyler, TX.   Snowball II has been running nonstop since 2000 — and is inside a block of ice that it created.  Technicians have tried to break this Climatuff® compressor over 900 ways.  Trane says” “If a product doesn’t make it through our test lab — it doesn’t get made.”

** Source: https://www.trane.com/residential/en/why-trane/tested-to-extremes/

Consumer Reports’ Reliability & Owner Satisfaction Survey

Results By Brand

In 2019, Consumer Reports Magazine did a study of their members — for 21,770 central A/C systems installed between 2007–2018. 

Consumers’ Ratings For The Six Companies Make Nearly Every A/C Brand

The ratings shown are based on a statistical model tracking problems that arise within the first 5 years of ownership.

Reliability:

(highest score = 10)

8  Trane

7  American Standard

7  Bryant, Carrier (same company), Lennox

6  Amana & Goodman (same company), Day & Night, Payne, Rheem, Rudd, Tempstar

4 Coleman, York & Luxaire (same company), Maytag, Frigidaire

 

Owner Satisfaction:

(highest score = 10)

9 American Standard & Trane (same company)

9 Lennox, Carrier & Bryant (same company)

7 Rheem, Rudd

6 Amana, Day & Night, Frigidaire, Maytag, Payne, Tempstar

5 Goodman, York & Coleman & Luxaire (same company)

 

Consumer Reports said: These Five (A/C brands) rated only “Fair” (for reliability).  Consumer Reports did not recommend these brands:

York, Coleman & Luxaire (same company)

Maytag & Frigidaire (same company).

Source: https://www.consumerreports.org/central-air-conditioners/most-reliable-central-air-conditioning-systems/

 

The Contractor Installing A New HVAC Is As Important (maybe more) Than The HVAC Brand

Image Source: Shutterstock

 

A “Good” HVAC brand with an excellent installation — will outperform a “Best” brand with shoddy installation.   Particularly with flexible ductwork — (which is used in most new HVAC System Installations) — if the ductwork is not installed correctly to specifications — the HVAC System will perform poorly.

Air-flow through an HVAC System is one of the most important operating characteristics.   If ductwork is poorly installed, or is too small for the furnace, airflow is compromised. And, the System can’t perform as it was designed to.   This condition will; reduce comfort, raise cooling & heating costs — and will wear the System out faster.  It can also cause the furnace to overheat and shut down to protect itself (furnace will start running again once it’s cooled down).  Over time, the furnace wears out much sooner due to multiple overheating events.

 

Click Here To See Properly Installed Flexible Ductwork: Properly Installed Flexible Ductwork #1

Click Here To See Properly Installed Flexible Ductwork: Properly Installed Flexible Ductwork #2

 

Click Here To See Shoddy Flexible Ductwork Installation: Shoddy Flexible Ductwork Installation #1  (Ductwork Compressed).

Click Here To See Shoddy Flexible Ductwork Installation:  Shoddy Flexible Ductwork Installation #2 (Ductwork Bent Too Tight).

TIP:  Tell your contractor, up front, that you want photos of all the flexible ductwork once it’s installed.

All HVAC Brands (except American Stanard & Trane) — Use Copeland BrandCompressors.

If there’s an exception somewhere — it’s rare.

Copeland Scroll™ UltraTech™ Compressor

In 2016 — Copeland announced a 2nd Generation — Variable-Speed Compressor.  Copeland originally began making; Variable-Speed, Scroll, Compressors in 2011. **

** Source: https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/24278785/field-tested-award-winning-copeland-scrolltm-ahr-expo

** Source: https://climate.emerson.com/en-us/shop/1/copeland-sku-zpv0282e-2e9-xxr

** Source: http://climatecontrolme.com/2016/02/emerson-launches-second-generation-variable-speed-compressor-motor-control-drive/

 

In January of 2017 – Copeland announced a 2nd Generation — Two-Stage A/C Compressor.   The second-generation, two-stage, Scroll, A/C compressor operates at 65% or 100% capacity — to more closely match cooling-output to the home’s current cooling-demand.  Two-stage compressors deliver higher energy-efficiency when operating at the lower capacity (during milder weather) — and running slower will remove more humidity from the indoor air.

Copy this into your browser to see a Brochure For 2nd Version Copeland Scroll Compressor: 2nd Generation Copeland Two-Stage A/C Compressor

What Is A Scroll A/C Compressor?

A Scroll Compressor contains 1 fixed coil in the center of the unit +  A 2nd coil that rotates around the fixed coil.  The rotating coil pushes refrigerant towards the center, which compresses it.   Until recently Scroll A/C Compressors operated at only 1 speed.  As compared — reciprocating (piston) Compressors can operate at many different speeds.

Now, Copeland brand Scroll compressors are make as Single-speed,  Two-Speed, or Variable-Speed.   Two-stage units provide either partial-load & full-load capacity.  Scroll compressors change speed while they are running.   Reciprocating/piston compressors operate at partial-load capacity — by shutting off some of their cylinders.  Depending on its size — a reciprocating compressor can have as many as 8 cylinders.

What Is A Reciprocating (piston) A/C Compressor?

Image Source: YouTube Embedded Video.

Click On White Arrow In Center Of Image To View Video

The reciprocating (piston) compressor is the most common.  A piston compresses the refrigerant by moving up & down inside a cylinder (much like a car engine).  As the piston moves down, it draws refrigerant into the cylinder.  As the piston moves up– the gas compresses.

Click On The Arrow In The Image Below To Watch How A Reciprocating (piston) Compressor Works.

Image Source: Embedded YouTube Video

Click On White Arrow In Center Of Image To View Video

 

An A/C Compressor’s Outside Appearance Tells You Which Type It Is

Click Here To See A Reciprocating (piston) A/C Compressor (short & wide): Reciprocating (piston) A/C Compressor

Click Here To See A Scroll A/C Compressor (tall & narrow):  Scroll A/C Compressor

 

HomeProPlumber 

The Article Detailed The Six Companies Who 24 A/C Brands — And The Brands Each Company Makes. . Home Pro Plumber, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides; maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps. Additionally, we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (owned by American Standard), and Coleman HVAC (same company as York).

Home Pro Plumber also provides Full-Service Plumbing; maintenance, repairs, and replacements for every plumbing component in your home.   We repair, sell & install gas & electric water heaters.  We’re near your home in; Wylie, TX, Rowlette, TX, and Murphy, Texas.  We service all homes in southern Collin County with no additional travel charges.

Call Home Pro Plumber to discuss concerns about your Plumbing or HVAC System.  We’ll arrange an appointment at your convenience