homeowner furnace installation?

[jon]

am i getting myself into hot water by installing a new gas furnace on my own? i am a homeowner, and although not licensed, i am relatively well-versed in plumbing, electrical, carpentry, and mechanics. i've run gas line and installed water heaters before and the installation seems easy enough. 80% 70k btu horizontal furnace in a well-vented crawlspace. i am not replacing any of the ductwork, only updating the exhaust venting to code. are there any major issues of which i should be aware? as long as i meet code, am i going to get in to trouble if i ever sell the house? i am planning on having a commercial home inspector or professional hvac man review my work when i am done.

by the way, in no way do i mean to denigrate the skills and abilities of all you hvac professionals out there. i know there is a reason you are liscensed, insured, and paid good money for your work. i just don't have the $2000 that guys in my area charge for furnace installation and product markup, and i think my situation is straightforward enough that i might be able to pull it off myself.

thanks for the advice!

[Childfree Scott]

I think your doing it thew smartest way possible. Purchase and install it yourself and then have a pro do the startup. Yes, the markups on the $500 furnace you desdcribe is tremendous. The only thing I would change is that I might use a higher efficiency furnace instead if you can afford it.

[m Ransley]

see if your warranty is voided if you do the work

[SQLit]

I bought mine from a dealer, installed it. Then they showed up to do the soldering for the a/c. I had everything in and ready to go when the guy got here. The guy that did the start up said I went farther that they would have gone in the installation quality. Natch my home. If your comfortable with the work and your sure that you know what the code is go for it. Forget the home inspector go for a professional. I just sold my home, the home inspector and I had a running 3 hour battle. He made statements like "Have a licensed gate contractor replace the self closing gates and latches. " I have put 1/4-20 bolts and nuts in the latches because I do not have children and I do not want my dogs to be locked behind a gate without any water. What a maroon. Go with a heating cooling man...

[RB]

Go for it. It isn't difficult. Don't waste money on home inspectors though. I recently had a home inspection done by a "licensed" home inspector that a prospective buyer hired. This guy was incompetent to do anything but he was "licensed."

RB

j> am i getting myself into hot water by installing a new gas furnace on

[Martik]

Helped my neighbour do his 2 years ago and had no problems. I would check with the city for any permits required and your insurance company. Post this on the hvac newsgroup if you want more technical info but be prepared for alot of negative comments.

[Jimmy]

That's like saying "stick your hand in a bee hive but be prepared for some slight discomfort".

:-)