CPSC, Goodman Company,
L.P. Announce Recall of Amana, Trane, and American
Standard Brand Package Terminal Air Conditioners/Heat
Pumps
May 24, 2006
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety
Commission (CPSC) and Goodman Company, L.P., of
Houston, Texas, are recalling about 875,000 Package
Terminal Air Conditioner/Heat Pumps (PTAC) due
to a fire hazard.
A fire hazard can result from the
folllowing chain of events: the 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, and then a fire hazard can
develop.
Goodman has 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.
Recalled units sold under the brand name Amana
have
serial numbers beginning with 96, 97, 98, 99,
00, 01, 02, 0301, 0302, or 0303. They have model
numbers beginning with:
PTH073A35; PTH074A35; PTH093A35;
PTH093A50; PTH094A35; PTH094A50; PTH123A35; PTH123A50;
PTH124A35; PTH124A50; PTH153A35; PTH153A50; PTH154A35;
PTH154A50; PTC073A35; PTC074A35; PTC093A35; PTC093A50;
PTC094A35; PTC094A50; PTC123A35; PTC123A50; PTC124A35;
PTC124A50; PTC153A35; PTC153A50; PTC154A35; PTC154A50.
Recalled units sold under the brand
nameTrane and American Standard have serial numbers
beginning with A96, A97, A98, A99, A00, A01, or
A02. They have model numbers beginning with:
PTHC0701G; PTHC0702G; PTHC0901G; PTHC0901J; PTHC0902G;
PTHC0902J; PTHC1201G; PTHC1201J; PTHC1202G; PTHC1202J;
PTHC1501G; PTHC1501J; PTHC1502G; PTHC1502J; PTEC0701G;
PTEC0702G; PTEC0901G; PTEC0901J; PTEC0902G; PTEC0902J;
PTEC1201G; PTEC1201J; PTEC1202G; PTEC1202J; PTEC1501G;
PTEC1501J; PTEC1502G; PTEC1502J.
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.
The manufacturer is providing a 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
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
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