Video · Furnaces and Heating
80 vs 90 Furnace: A TV Drop-Off, Then a Basement Walkthrough
An 80% furnace sends hot exhaust up a metal flue. A 90% furnace pulls more heat out of the same gas, vents through PVC and drains off water. Here, Tyler Griffin walks through what switching would take in one real basement.
Job footageSwiftPro
- Topic
- Furnaces and Heating
- Length
- 4:13
- Posted
- July 22, 2026
- Shot by
- The SwiftPro crew, Northern Virginia
What you’re seeing in this video
Tyler Griffin, SwiftPro's owner, carries a boxed 43-inch TV up to the front door of the homeowner who won our home show giveaway. No catch, just the prize. The homeowner asks if he'd mind looking at the heating system while he's there, so they head downstairs.
The furnace is an 80% unit tucked in facing the wall, its metal flue pipe running out through the wall right beside it, with a whole-house humidifier hanging on the side. Tyler measures the cabinet and calls the install manager to talk through a plan: turn the furnace around so it's easier to service, rework the ductwork, and run a new high-efficiency vent out the front of the house.
Outside, they look at where that vent could exit. Before leaving, Tyler confirms the age of the cooling equipment, 2016, so about 10 years old and younger than expected, and heads out to put together a range of options.
We have a new TV to drop off for you. So, it is brand new. Yes, please. It's tucked turned right towards the wall with that pipe running right out here and then out this wall.
Redo the ductwork. Obviously, there'll be some changes with the ductwork here. Turn the thing. Then run the the new high-efficiency flue pipe out like he was thinking the front.
We have the TV giveaway and so we've just been trying to arrange a time to drop this off with the winner. And so [homeowner]'s getting a free TV today. Our way of saying thank you for stopping by our booth at the home show and giving us his information. Hopefully, we'll have the chance to work with [homeowner] at his house here with some of his HVAC and plumbing needs in the future.
No strings attached. We're just excited to give his family a TV. So, we're about to walk up and do this right now. Hey [homeowner], I'm Tyler.
I'm the owner at SwiftPro and we have a new TV to drop off for you. So, it is brand new. It'll be back in the original package here. 43-in flat screen.
So. Okay. Can I bring it in for you? Yes, please.
All right. How long you guys been in the neighborhood here? We've owned the house since 1995, but we have been living here the second time since last fall. We've been renting the house for 28 years.
military or Okay, so you left the area for the military. Right. When you first bought it, you lived here for a little while? 2 years.
Okay, so not very long. No. Did you Were you able to keep it in the military community or is it just general? It's just general.
What was your most unique place that you guys were stationed? We lived in Indiana from '99 until we moved back. Let me grab the tape measure here just so I can measure the size of the furnace and everything. We'll go look at the basement.
Okay, so what I'd like to do is have this taken out Okay. 180° and have a high-efficiency line go out the front like the kind of basically right out through the stuff here. But here and then we get rid of this completely cuz we wouldn't need it anymore with a high-efficiency furnace. to you 80% All right, let's see if I can get install manager on the phone.
I want to talk to him. Hey [install manager]. His thought was basically to flip it around a little bit so it's a little more accessible not you know, tight. You can kind of see there it's tucked turned right towards the wall with that pipe running right out here and then out this wall.
So his thought was redo the ductwork obviously be some changes with the ductwork here turn the thing then run the the new high efficiency flue pipe out like he was thinking the front. It all looks good. We just got to be 3 ft away from the window. Dryer vent.
Let's go take a look. think he can be close to that gas meter though. So this is the side. What do you think about that?
I don't know if we can make the turn because the joists are running the wrong way. You're worried about the proximity to the gas meter? Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's 3 ft with that too. I mean I would just call it in and look at the double check the clearance on that gas pipe.
So there's no photos of that joist space right there. I will. I'll finish documenting everything. But other than that you don't really see any issues right like from what you saw there.
We should be able to just reconfigure ductwork make it work. Yeah, inside's easy. Yep. All right, thanks.
Hopefully some things on it are still legible. Oh okay. Yep. Yep.
Yep. They tucked it right in here. Okay. I just want to confirm the age real quick.
How old did you think it was? It's actually from 2016. It's 10 years old. Oh.
Um I I saw the coil downstairs and I didn't think it looked like it was 20 years old. We'll put together some options. Here's what I I think would be best. I've documented a lot of information here.
If we can come up with a good plan is it something you would get done on the sooner side? Like what's the what's the timeline you're thinking about? Depends on how much it's going to I got it. So and we'll take a look at that.
Yeah, no problem. Okay. Well, thanks for your time. Okay, it's been a pleasure.
Great to great to meet you. We'll put everything together and I'll be I'll be back in touch. Pretty fun that we drew his name out, which is which is really awesome. So, we're going to be putting together his estimate and then So, we're going to put together a range of options.
Hopefully, we'll have one that makes sense for him to to get this done done now or in the future when the time's right. So, on to our next stop.
Why it matters in your house
- An 80% furnace needs a working chimney or metal flue for hot exhaust. A 90% furnace needs PVC venting through a wall or roof plus a drain for the water it makes, so switching is more than a swap.
- A high efficiency furnace upgrade pays back faster in a house that runs the heat hard all winter. Ask for both options priced side by side, with the venting and drain work spelled out.
- If your furnace is jammed against a wall like this one, every service visit is harder. Turning it during a replacement makes filters, burners and the blower easier to reach for years.
Is a 90% furnace worth it over an 80% furnace?
In Northern Virginia winters, usually yes, if the venting works out. A 90% furnace turns about 90 cents of every gas dollar into heat, versus about 80 for the older style. The catch is the install: it needs PVC vent pipes, a condensate drain and a clear path outside. A good estimate prices both so you can compare.
Want it done at your place? See Furnaces and Heating at SwiftPro or call (703) 997-9757.
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