Hi!

I just had a new high efficiency Carrier Furance installed and I have a question. Does Carrier recommend a certain location for the air intake in relation to the exhaust? I thought my HVAC company first said they should both be located on the same side of the house. However, he installed it on a different side of the home right next to the hot water heater exhaust. Now we have our carbon monoxide detector going off in the utility room (at a very low level). Any thoughts...

Please clarify. Are there two plastic pipes coming off the new furnace and going outside? If so, did you say they go out opposite sides of the house?

Was there any reducting (sheetmetal work) done. Was there by chance a return grill cut into the side of the furnace that is sucking air directly from the mechanical room.

Yes two plastic pipes going out of furnace to outside, exhaust to west side of house, intake on south side of house.

We assume that the intake air pipe is located way too close to the exhaust of the water heater.

Okay, but if intake of furnace is located to close to exhuast of water heater, you would only experience the furnace problem when water heater is running. I don't think this would cause the detector to go off. You may just have a fualty detector. I am assuming you have a power vent water heater. If not. Please let me know.

To answer your question a little differently, Carrier and others have a concentric vent kit. See example here:

Concentric Kit - Wright Heating and Cooling

They suggest that the kit be positioned within 2 inches to another one. See Brochure.

It makes an extremely attractive installation.

What is a power vent water heater? All we know is that the CO detector has never gone off until we installed this new high efficiency heating system.

A power vent heater has an electric fan to exhaust waste gasses.

If your water heater makes whirring noises when it's on, it's a power vent.

Does your water heater exhaust through a plastic pipe? Is there an intake as well as an exhaust for the water heater? Check for two pipes that head outside.

The water heater exhausts through a plastic pipe but does not have an intake pipe. The utility room is huge 25x20.

Well, the combustion chamber for the carrier should be sealed. The water heater is drawing air from the room thus creating some air movement when on.

If this is just a CO alarm and not gas/CO, then the best guess is a cracked heat exchanger or some other defect in the furnace.

It really can't be an exhaust/intake pipe issue.

The contractor should come out with a portable CO detector to locate the defect.