Attribute Schema Library
Attribute schemaHVACR

Air Handler Attributes

An air handler is the indoor half of a split system: blower, evaporator coil, drain pan, filter rack, and usually a field-installed electric heat kit. Residential and light-commercial units run 1.5 to 5 tons and 600 to 1,800 CFM. It moves through HVACR distribution to installing contractors, mostly as replacement work where the new unit has to fit the old closet.

The data is hard because the air handler has no rating of its own. SEER2 and EER2 belong to a matched indoor/outdoor combination certified under AHRI 210/240, so one efficiency number on the item record is true for exactly one pairing. The rest — coil face area, rows and fins per inch, MCA/MOP with each heat kit, blower CFM against external static — lives in a tech guide PDF. Cabinet width and metering device are single characters in the model number, and every manufacturer codes them differently.

Then the refrigerant transition split the catalog. UL 60335-2-40 replaced UL 1995 for new certifications on January 1, 2025, and does not permit a coil or air handler to be rated for both A1 (R-410A) and A2L (R-454B, R-32).

Core

Every SKU needs these. Without them the record is not a product, it is a row.

Nominal Cooling Capacity
number · ton
3 ton (36,000 BtuH)

The first filter every contractor uses; must match the outdoor unit. Model codes carry it as 18/24/30/36/42/48/60.

Rated Airflow
number · CFM
1,200 CFM

Sizing check against 350-450 CFM/ton and the duct system. Drives heat kit selection and whether the blower holds design airflow.

Installation Configuration
enum
Multiposition (upflow / downflow / horizontal L/R)

Determines if the unit can be set upflow, downflow, or horizontal left/right. A closet job and an attic job are not the same SKU.

Cabinet Width
number · in
17.5 in

The gating dimension on replacement work. Must clear the closet door and sit on the existing platform. Coded A/B/C/D in model numbers.

Cabinet Dimensions (H x W x D)
text · in
47-1/2 x 17-1/2 x 21-7/16 in

Attic hatch, closet height, and freight class all depend on it. A 5-ton cabinet runs ~15 in taller than a 1.5-ton in the same line.

Voltage / Phase / Frequency
enum · V/Ph/Hz
208/230 V, 1 Ph, 60 Hz

Light-commercial jobs are 3-phase or 460 V; residential is 208/230-1-60. Wrong phase is an immediate return.

Refrigerant
enum
R-454B

Hard compatibility gate since UL 60335-2-40. An A2L unit cannot pair with an R-410A condenser, and cannot be rated for both.

Manufacturer Part Number
identifier
AE36BX21

The only reliable key to the tech guide, the heat kit matrix, and the AHRI certificate. Also the cross-reference for competitive replacement.

Differentiating

What buyers actually compare on. This is where catalogs win or lose the filter.

Blower Motor Type
enum
Variable-speed ECM

PSC vs constant-torque ECM vs variable-speed ECM drives efficiency, static pressure capability, and price band. Buyers filter on it directly.

Coil Rows / Fins Per Inch
text
2 rows, 14 FPI, 7.1 sq ft face area

Face area, row depth, and FPI set capacity and air-side pressure drop. A 3-row/12-FPI coil and a 2-row/14-FPI coil are not interchangeable.

Metering Device
enum
Factory-installed TXV

Factory TXV, field piston, or flex-coil with no metering device at all. Decides whether the truck needs a second part to finish the job.

Refrigerant Line Connection Sizes
text · in
3/8 in liquid / 3/4 in vapor, sweat

Liquid and vapor stub sizes must match the line set or the tech is brazing reducers on site. Varies within a single tonnage.

Filter Size and Rack Depth
text · in
16 x 20 x 1 in, internal rack, field-supplied

Filters are usually field-supplied, so the size has to be published. Also the attachment sale: the rack takes 1 in, not 2 in, media.

Electric Heat Kit Range
range · kW
2.4-24 kW (field-installed)

Which kits the cabinet accepts, in 1-phase or 3-phase. Each kit changes MCA and MOP, so it decides breaker and wire size.

Compliance & identifiers

Standards, regulatory data, and the identifiers channels reject you for missing.

AHRI Certified Reference Number
identifier
AHRI ref. 210853421 (AHRI 210/240)

Ratings are certified per matched combination, not per unit. Rebates, tax credits, ENERGY STAR, and many permits require the number.

Safety Certification
enum
cETLus, UL/CSA 60335-2-40

UL 60335-2-40 replaced UL 1995 for new certifications in 2025. A2L SKUs listed to the old standard will not pass inspection.

GTIN / UPC
identifier
00885681234567

Required for marketplace listings, EDI catalogs, and any data pool sync. Without it the item cannot be matched across trading partners.

Country of Origin
enum
United States

Drives tariff classification, Buy American eligibility on federal and institutional bids, and customs paperwork.

The fields that aren't in the schema at all

What most air handlers catalogs are missing.

The table above is the schema most catalogs already have. These are the attributes that usually aren't in it — each one surfaced by a signal from the live market rather than by an audit of what's already there. This is what Anglera's Schema Foundry does on a real catalog, in this category.

Supplier signal
+ Refrigerant Class (A1 vs A2L) as a governed single value

Catalogs carrying both eras of SKU show 'R-410A/R-454B' or leave refrigerant blank on the air handler row, even though UL 60335-2-40 bars a coil or air handler from being rated for both.

A2L air handler ordered against an R-410A condenser. Non-compliant install, failed inspection, and a 150 lb return the branch has to eat.

Competitor signal
+ AHRI Certified Reference Number / matched outdoor unit

Manufacturer portals ship AHRI matchup tools as a separate lookup; the distributor item record carries a bare SEER2 number and no field for the combination it belongs to.

Rebate and tax-credit paperwork rejected, permit held, and a counter call on every quote because the match cannot be answered from the page.

Search signal
+ Cabinet Width

Buyers search '21 inch wide air handler' and '17.5 air handler closet' and get zero results. The dimension exists only as a letter inside the model string.

Unit will not clear the closet door or attic hatch. Truck roll wasted, freight both ways, and the job sits until the right cabinet arrives.

Supplier signal
+ Electric Heat Kit Compatibility (and resulting MCA/MOP)

The kit-to-cabinet matrix and the MCA/MOP it produces sit in a table inside the manufacturer tech guide PDF. Air handler and heat kit are separate SKUs with no link between the records.

Wrong kit shipped, or breaker and wire sized off a cooling-only MCA and the job fails inspection at rough-in.

Social signal
+ Metering Device (factory TXV / field piston / flex-coil)

Forum threads ask which models ship with a factory TXV vs a flex-coil. The answer is one character in the model string - a valve size code, or X for none - that no catalog exposes as a field.

Tech opens the box on site with no TXV or piston. Job stops, second trip, and the branch overnights a small part to save a large install.

How Schema Foundry finds these

Messy in, governed out.

The same value, spelled every way HVACR suppliers spell it. A filter only works once they agree.

Installation Configuration
MultipositionMulti-PositionMultipoiseConvertible4-WayUpflow/Horizontal
Multiposition (Upflow / Downflow / Horiz L/R)

Carrier says multipoise, Trane says convertible, Goodman says multi-position. Same capability, three words, three dead filter facets.

Nominal Cooling Capacity
363 Ton36,000 BTU/h36 MBH3.0T36K
3 ton (36,000 BtuH)

Model codes carry the MBH figure; buyers filter in tons. Store both or the tonnage facet silently drops half the catalog.

Voltage / Phase / Frequency
208/230-1-60230V 1PH1/60/208-230208-230/1/60240V
208/230 V, 1 Ph, 60 Hz

240 V appears because heat kit kW is rated at 240 V while the unit is a 208/230 V class. Two different fields, routinely merged.

Refrigerant
R410AR-410APuron410aR-454BPuron Advance
R-454B

Puron and Puron Advance are Carrier trade names for R-410A and R-454B. Free text here now hides an A1/A2L safety mismatch.

What buyers ask

Every one of these should be answerable from the attributes above. If it isn't, that's a gap.

  • Is this rated for R-454B or R-410A?
  • What's the AHRI reference number for this air handler with my condenser?
  • How wide is the cabinet - will it fit a 21-inch closet?
  • Does it come with a factory TXV or do I need to field-install a piston?
  • Can I set it horizontal left, or is it upflow only?
  • Which heat kit fits this cabinet, and what breaker do I need with it?
  • What filter size does it take - is the rack 1 inch or 2 inch?
  • Is that a PSC blower or a variable-speed ECM?

What channels require

The same SKU, different mandatory fields per destination.

Distributor e-commerce + counter search
Nominal Cooling CapacityCabinet WidthInstallation ConfigurationRefrigerantVoltage / Phase / FrequencyBlower Motor Type
AHRI Directory (ahridirectory.org)
MPN (indoor model)Matched outdoor unit modelAHRI Certified Reference NumberRefrigerantSEER2 / EER2 / HSPF2
HARDI EDI 832 price/sales catalog
MPNGTIN / UPCUNSPSC codeCabinet Dimensions (H x W x D)Country of Origin
Amazon Business
GTIN / UPCBrand + MPNCabinet Dimensions (H x W x D)Nominal Cooling CapacityVoltage / Phase / Frequency

Air Handlers data, in practice

Why does the same air handler show different SEER2 ratings?

Because the air handler has no rating of its own. SEER2, EER2, and HSPF2 are certified under AHRI 210/240 for a matched indoor/outdoor combination, and the same air handler paired with two different condensers produces two different numbers. Coil face area, metering device, and blower control all move it. SEER2 also uses the DOE M1 blower procedure at 0.5 in. w.g. external static instead of the legacy 0.1 in. w.g., so older SEER figures are not comparable. Publishing one efficiency number on the air handler record is how rebate and tax-credit paperwork gets rejected. Carry the AHRI Certified Reference Number against the specific pairing instead.

Can one air handler be listed as compatible with both R-410A and R-454B?

No. UL 60335-2-40, which replaced UL 1995 for new certifications on January 1, 2025, does not permit a coil or air handler to be rated for both A1 (R-410A) and A2L (R-454B, R-32) refrigerants. A free-text 'R-410A / R-454B' value in the refrigerant field is not a convenience, it is a safety mismatch waiting to ship. Refrigerant has to be a single-value governed enum on every row, and catalogs carrying both eras of SKU need it populated on all of them. Where A2L charge exceeds the standard's threshold, a refrigerant detection system is required as well, which adds wiring and a control board and is worth its own field.

What actually drives returns in this category?

Fit and match, not performance. Cabinet width (commonly 14.5, 17.5, 21.0, or 24.5 in) and cabinet height decide whether the unit clears the closet door or the attic hatch. Configuration decides whether it can be set horizontal left. Metering device decides whether the tech can finish out of one box or needs a piston. Heat kit compatibility decides breaker and wire size, and therefore whether it passes rough-in. Every one of those lives in the manufacturer tech guide, not the item record, so the counter answers by phone and the wrong unit ships anyway.

How much of the spec is hidden in the model number?

Most of it, and that is the trap. In the York AE line, AE36BX21 decodes to: A = single-piece air handler, E = standard ECM motor, 36 = 3 ton, B = 17.5 in cabinet, X = no factory TXV, 2 = 208/230-1-60, 1 = first generation. Seven filterable attributes encoded in eight characters. Every manufacturer's nomenclature is different, so a parser built for one brand's model string is worthless against the next, and the string still tells you nothing about coil rows, MCA/MOP, or filter size. The model number is a lookup key, not a data source. The fields have to be extracted and stored.

More HVACR schemas

Air FiltersCondensing UnitsDuct & FittingsHeat ExchangersRefrigerant Line SetsThermostats & Controls

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