SaferProducts incident

Failure type

Fire / ignition

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20160119-17A94-2147424536. Severity: Injury, Hospital Admission. Product: Goodman SSZ140481 4-ton R410 Heat Pump & AEPF426016 Air Handler (Variable speed Air Handler with COIL and 4-ton R410 Heat Pump). Incident: I have recently learned that I am far from the only consumer who has experienced a premature failure of an indoor evaporator coil on a Goodman Manufacturing Co. heat pump/AC. Our unit was purchased in mid-2009. In sales literature, the company claimed that its coils had undergone rigorous testing:"Then, to ensure consistent comfort, every coil is tested three times to detect leaks, and not just the obvious kind. We test for the smallest possible leaks, so small they may only surrender one ounce in ten years. That way, you will never have to worry about costly refrigerant escaping or an unwanted service call to address leak-related system problems" (Goodman "AIR HANDLERS AND COILS brochure dated 11/07). Although the coil is under warranty, the labor and R410a refrigerant and refrigerant recovery parts have led to our being billed over $700. Twelve POUNDS of R410A had apparently bled out inside our home over who knows how long. The system would have been running inefficiently as a result, resulting in higher utility bills and excessive wear on the motor. Whether the leaking refrigerant was responsible I cannot say, but during the time we owned this heat pump I experienced heart arrythmia (multiple cardiac arrests), and lung issues that someone at Mayo Clinic believed looked like sarcoidosis in the lungs (sarcoidosis was later ruled out, I understand). Then came congestive heart failure and in 2014 a heart transplant. Please know that I'm only 62. Until my early 50s I was regularly bicycling to work -- about 14 miles round trip. I think I was in my 50s when I hiked up Pike's P