Trane or American Standard

[kywallace69]

Some people perfer a Trane System and many others an American Standard. I have both installed on the homes that I have built and sold.

What is the difference between the two? Many dealers argue that a Trane is better and others argue that an American Standard is better. Dosen't Trane own American Standard?

[Danimal535]

Trane has A XL line that is their high end line American Standards depending on model are the same as Tranes XB and XR line besides the 20 and 16 SEER unit only difference cap on top of condenser. Air handlers are the same. When I say the same I mean exact different color paint jobs.

[Danimal535]

Ingersol Rand owns both

[SoFlaDave]

The all come off the same assembly line.

[catmanacman]

I believe that the warranty is different

[kywallace69]

I has a dealer a month or so ago told me not to buy a American Standard, to only by a Trane. There compressor is better, and the warranty is better as well. He said that the A/S will have problems down the road. However, he was selling Trane and not A/S. I have had A/S dealers talk about Trane. I guess there are like a Chevrolet and a GMC correct in the HVAC comparison of course, correct?

[cuchulain]

They are built at the same factory, come off the same lines and in some cases they don't put the final sticker on till they get the order for them so they know if it needs to be a trane/AS.

and you said it...it's the diffrence from a chevy and a GM. The diffrence is cosmetic.

The trane side is a bit more picky then the A/S side on sales and such, but that's the only true diffrence

[Danimal535]

Same warranty
Its like Carrier and Bryant Rheem, Ruud, Heil, Tempstar any more

[EugeneTheJeep]

I has a dealer a month or so ago told me not to buy a American Standard, to only by a Trane. There compressor is better, and the warranty is better as well. He said that the A/S will have problems down the road.

::DD:::DD:::DD:

They are both the same.

[darctangent]

Gee, that's big decision.

Do you like light green or do you prefer dark green?

Personally I'd be worried about buying from a contractor that thought it was ok to lie to me like that.

The biggest difference between two different offers is generally the contractor, not the brand they are selling. You are looking at the wrong thing.

I might not pick either one if I were you.

[BaldLoonie]

It's always bothered me when a Trane dealer would tell a customer that A-S was inferior. Do they have to lie to sell there product? One of my early furnace sales was like that. The homeowner was told they were an inferior product, don't buy from me. I said I bet when we unbox the furnace, it will say Trane on it, as many did at first. Sure enough, out of an American Standard box came a Trane labeled furnace.

If anyone wants to keep saying that, get on Web CATS parts program and other than cabinet, find me a coil, compressor, motor difference, anything of consequence except that PITA top on the XLi units.

Used to be that American Standard was the parent. Then they played name games and renamed the company to Trane for a few weeks then announced the sale to Ingersoll Rand. Another American company bit the dust.

[kywallace69]

The area that I live and work in, have three Trane Dealers and 4 American Standard. The Trane dealers for some reason really hit A/S hard and put them down. Not a good business approach.

On another thing, has Trane started producing the ForeFront Air handler yet?

The last house I did I had the A/S contractor install one. It is a nice A/H. It was a GAM5. Very easy to take apart and install in the attic area.

I was told that the 4TEC and the 4TEE A/H's will be replaced by these in the near future and that they have already stopped production on them and the new A/H will be the ForeFront.

[meh70087]

Installer VS Installer

[shhvac14]

I've installed American Standard rooftop units before...you can see the outline of the Trane sticker under the AmStd sticker. :)

[John Markl]

If you look at an American Standard unit, somewhere on it, it says "The Trane Corporation".

As previously noted, the only discernable difference is that some Trane models have that side outlet condenser.

[BaldLoonie]

The GAM5 has been out a while, the *AM7 is now out with variable speed (a Chinese Panasonic motor!). Haven't heard a timeframe on the PSC version. Was told the 4TEE will be gone end of the year.

[american]

I run into this all the time. I sale American Standard and every Trane dealer in the area during an estimate talks down to American Standard. I have lost many sales do to this. Customer just called yesterday and asks if we sale Trane because he was told that American Standard units have problems. It is all in the sales pitch for the company. Some companies sale both so they can close the sale at the kitchen table and don't have to worry about it. Personally I like American Standard and have had excellent luck with them. It is like flipping a coin to decide which one.

[SoFlaDave]

I don't get the mentality of talking down Am. Std equipment. Its not like I couldnt get the equipment just as easily. If a customer asks about it, i just explain that we have a better relationship with the Trane distributer and that their warranty parts processing is better. I would have no problem if someone wanted Am Std.over Trane, just don't expect the equipment to be any cheaper.

[John Markl]

Yah, it's kinda funny that I get all my Trane repair parts from my AmStd distributor....:cheers:

[aircooled53]

Both are made In Tyler Texas under the name of Ingersol Rand now..

[darctangent]

Some people perfer a Trane System and many others an American Standard. I have both installed on the homes that I have built and sold.

What is the difference between the two? Many dealers argue that a Trane is better and others argue that an American Standard is better. Dosen't Trane own American Standard?

I don't understand the point of talking down any brand. There are certainly brands that I like more than others, but whatever... Contractors however... Well now we've got something to talk about. Everybody focuses on the brand the contractor is selling, but that has almost nothing to do with how good your system is. HVAC systems are field engineered, not a prepackaged appliance like a refrigerator or a car. I say a car, because in my mind a mass production car is a lot closer to an appliance than a HVAC system. A refrigerator you roll into place, plug in and set the temperature, done deal. A car you stick a key in the ignition and turn to start. In both cases they were put together in a factory in exactly the same way every time, day in day out. You can't do that with HVAC systems. Sure the individual components come out of a factory, but the components must be selected as part of a "matched" system based on the requirements of your home in your climate. It is then assembled on site and connected to your ductwork, plumbing, gas lines, electrical, etc. It is only after all this has been done that you can test, fine tune and refine the operation of your system. What comes out of the box is up to the manufacturer, and certainly matters. Whatever happens after things come out of the box is up to the contractor. Many contractors don't select equipment well. Many contractors don't install systems with care. Few contractors fine tune systems after the systems are in place.


The manufacturer doesn't know the things listed below, but your contractor should, even though they don't always.

The capacity (heating/cooling) of the system you need
How well your duct system is designed, and what changes can be made for better airflow and less noise
How much energy your duct system is losing through leaks and energy transfer
Humidity levels
Temperature extremes and norms for your area
Your goals and expectations for your system
the space available for your HVAC system (some systems are smaller than others)
your altitude (this can be a huge issue)
the energy content of your natural gas (it varies by provider and location -most contractors have no idea)
the capacity of your electric panel
the capacity of your gas line
any local code issues
and a whole host of other issues I'm not thinking of right now.

You might have picked your prospective contractors based on the brand that they sell, but did you pick them on their ability to install your system properly? You can buy the brand you think is the best, and still get the biggest headache of your life.

I understand that you are a contractor, but the same advice applies. Do you want to pay for a Chevy that runs well, or a Rolls Royce that nobody cared enough to put together right?