The Brand Story
Comfortmaker: A Tennessee Family Brand Under the Carrier Roof
Picture a contractor in a Florida condo on an August afternoon, sweat on his collar, sizing up a tired wall-hung air handler in a hallway closet. He needs equipment that fits the space, works with the condenser out back and comes from a company that will still be making parts in fifteen years. Comfortmaker has filled that role for a long line of contractors, and the story behind the name runs to a small town in middle Tennessee and, from there, to one of the oldest companies in air conditioning.
Chapter 1
The ICP family
Comfortmaker is one of several sister brands built by International Comfort Products, or ICP, headquartered in Lewisburg. ICP has marketed its equipment under the Arcoaire, Comfortmaker, Heil and Tempstar names, and in 2006 it revived the Day & Night brand. The company describes a half-century legacy in heating and cooling. Its residential products are sold and serviced by hundreds of independent contractors across North America, while its commercial range runs from light commercial rooftop units to three-phase split systems.
The family structure is the key to understanding Comfortmaker. The brands come from the same manufacturer and reach homeowners through their own networks of independent dealers. For a contractor, the badge on the cabinet often says more about which distribution channel a system came through than about the company that built it.
Chapter 2 · 1999
Joining Carrier
In 1999 Carrier acquired International Comfort Products. That put Comfortmaker inside one of the oldest names in air conditioning: Carrier was formed in 1915 in Syracuse, New York, when Willis Carrier and six fellow engineers pooled $32,600 to start the Carrier Engineering Corporation. Today Carrier Global is headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and ICP operates as one of its subsidiaries, giving Comfortmaker access to the parent company's engineering and testing. A few years later, in 2002, ICP named Halsey Cook, a Carrier veteran who had run the Toshiba Carrier joint venture in the United Kingdom, as president, with a mandate to build on its brands and dealer channels.
The Lineup
What Comfortmaker builds today
Comfortmaker builds gas and oil furnaces, central air conditioners, heat pumps, air handlers and packaged equipment for homes and light commercial buildings. The Comfortmaker equipment HVAC365 carries is part of the newest generation of its split systems:
The Next Chapter
The move to R-454B
For years, nearly every residential split system in America ran on R-410A. As the industry moves to refrigerants with a lower global warming potential, Comfortmaker's newest condensers and air handlers have moved to R-454B. R-454B is classified A2L, meaning mildly flammable, so it requires A2L-rated tools, updated installation practices and equipment designed with leak detection in mind. Because R-454B and R-410A components are not meant to be mixed, a matched R-454B condenser and air handler is the straightforward path for a full changeout.
At a Glance
Comfortmaker in brief
- Manufacturer
- International Comfort Products (ICP)
- Headquarters
- Lewisburg, Tennessee
- Parent company
- Carrier Global, since 1999
- Sister brands
- Heil, Tempstar, Arcoaire, Day & Night
- Current refrigerant
- R-454B
Questions
Frequently asked questions about Comfortmaker
Who makes Comfortmaker air conditioners?
Comfortmaker is built by International Comfort Products, ICP, of Lewisburg, Tennessee. ICP has been part of Carrier since 1999.
Is Comfortmaker the same as Heil or Tempstar?
Comfortmaker, Heil, Tempstar, Arcoaire and Day & Night are sister brands from the same manufacturer, ICP, a Carrier company. They reach homeowners through different dealer networks.
Is Comfortmaker a Carrier product?
Yes. Comfortmaker's manufacturer, International Comfort Products, is a subsidiary of Carrier Global, which acquired it in 1999.
What refrigerant do new Comfortmaker systems use?
New Comfortmaker air conditioners and air handlers are built for R-454B, a lower-GWP A2L refrigerant that replaces R-410A in new equipment.
What is a front return air handler?
A front return air handler draws return air through its front panel rather than from below, which lets it hang on a wall or sit in a shallow closet without a return plenum underneath.
