Coleman® HVAC age

How to determine the date of production/manufacture or age of Coleman® brand HVAC Systems.

The industry average service design life for most forced air furnaces is 15-20 years, and the industry average service design life for most air conditioning condensing units is 10-15 years. The average service design life of boilers can vary from as little as 10 years to as many as 50 years depending on the type and quality of materials used in their manufacture. Routine upkeep/maintenance, regional weather/climate, and location/placement of the mechanical systems will all play critical roles in the longevity of these systems.

See also: Estimated Useful Service Life Expectancies

Parent Company: York (A Johnson Controls Company)

Subsidiaries or other related brands: Borg-Warner | Coleman | Evcon | Fraser-Johnson | Guardina | Luxaire | Moncrief | Red T | York

The date of production/manufacture or age of Coleman brand HVAC equipment can be determined from the serial number located on the rating data plate.

Example serial number styles/formats found:

  • Style 1:    W0K5896070
  • Style 2:    WAKM011379
  • Style 3:    990697368
  • Style 4:    0188123456

Legend:  Year is RED;  Month is GREEN; Week is BLUE

Style 1:   W0K5896070

Year of manufacture can be determined by using the 2nd & 4th positions (digits) of the serial number combined

Month of manufacture can be determined by using the 3rd position (letter separating the year digits) of the serial number. See Chart

NOTE: This style used after 2004 (first use was October, 2004)

ImageImage

Style 2:   WAKM011379

Year of manufacture can be determined by using the 3th position (letter) of the serial number

Month of manufacture can be determined by using the 2nd position (letter) of the serial number

See Charts Below

NOTE: This style used prior to October, 2004

ImageImage

Style 3:   990697368

Year of manufacture can be determined by using the 1st & 2nd positions of the serial number

Month of manufacture can be determined by using the 3rd & 4th positions of the serial number

NOTE: This style first used in 1992

ImageImage

Style 4:   0188123456

Year of manufacture can be determined by using the 3rd & 4th positions of the serial number

Month of manufacture can be determined by using the 1st & 2nd positions of the serial number

NOTE: This style used prior to 1992

Image
Coleman® History¹
  • 1958 - Coleman enters the heating and air conditioning industry designing units for mobile homes.
  • 1984  - Coleman acquires Red T Coil - an independent manufacturer of evaporator coils and fan units. The Red T brand name is established.
  • 1990 - Beacon Capital Corporation purchased Coleman's Heating and Air Conditioning division, and creates Evcon Industries. Beacon renames Coleman to Coleman-Evcon
  • 1996 - Unitary Products Group of York (a Johnson Controls Company) acquired Evcon Industries. They continue to market the acquired product lines under the Coleman-Evcon brand.
  • 1999-2005 - Unitary Products Group phases out the dual Coleman-Evcon brand, and transitions to using Coleman and Evcon as separate brand names. Certain mobile home units during this period of transition continued to carry the dual Coleman-Evcon brand name.

Coleman, Evcon, and Red T brands continue to be marketed for both residential and commercial applications under license by York UPG

¹Excerpts from colmanac.com

Every effort is undertaken to offer you correct and concise information to assist you in determining the age or manufacture date of HVAC/R equipment. Users relying on this information do so at their own risk.
Page last updated: 11/03/2023