Quick answer
You do not have to register a new furnace for it to have a warranty, but on most brands you have to register it to get the full one. Unregistered units fall back to a shorter base parts warranty, commonly 5 years instead of 10. The window is 60 to 90 days from installation depending on the brand, so confirm it was done within the first month.
You do not have to register your new furnace warranty for the furnace to be covered, but on most brands the unregistered coverage is the short version. The base parts warranty starts on the install date whether or not anyone fills in a form. Registration inside the manufacturer's window, 60 to 90 days depending on the brand, is what lengthens it, commonly from 5 years to 10. The form is free and takes about ten minutes, so the only way to lose the longer term is to assume someone else did it.
Base versus registered coverage, by brand
The two-tier structure is the same across the major brands; the deadline and the details are not. From the manufacturers' own warranty pages, checked in October 2026:
- Trane: register within 60 days of installation for the Registered Limited Warranty, typically 10 years on parts. Miss it and the Base Limited Warranty applies, typically 5 years.
- Carrier: register within 90 days and choose either a 10-year parts-only warranty or 5 years of parts plus 3 years of labour. Unregistered units get the standard 5-year parts-only warranty.
- Lennox: registration is what moves a unit from its basic limited warranty to the extended limited warranty.
- Goodman, Amana, Rheem, York, KeepRite and Napoleon: the window and terms are printed on the warranty certificate in the manual packet. Read that page, not a brochure.
The heat exchanger usually carries its own, longer term on the same certificate. One regional wrinkle: Quebec does not let a manufacturer make coverage conditional on registration, and warranty documents carve it out by name. Ontario has no such rule, so the deadline counts here.
What registration needs, and who normally does it
- Model number and serial number, copied from the rating plate inside the furnace door, not from the carton
- Installation date, the one on your invoice
- Installing contractor's company name and phone number
- Owner's name, the installation address and an email for the confirmation
- Each matched component separately: an air conditioner or coil installed the same day has its own serial number and its own registration
The installing contractor normally files it when the job is closed out, and a careful one sends you the confirmation. The manufacturer does not care who was supposed to, though: if the window passes, the shorter term applies to you. Ask at the quote stage who registers the equipment and when you will see proof.
How to confirm your registration online
- Photograph the rating plate so you have the model and serial number.
- Enter the serial number in the brand's warranty lookup; Trane, Carrier and Goodman each run one on their websites.
- Check that the record shows your address, the right install date and the longer term.
- If it shows base coverage or nothing at all and you are still inside the window, register it yourself that day.
- Save the confirmation with the invoice and the installer's licence details.
If the registration window was missed
A missed window shortens the warranty; it does not cancel it. The base parts coverage still runs from the install date, and the heat exchanger term on the certificate still applies. Call the manufacturer's homeowner line with your invoice anyway, because a late request costs nothing to make. The labour warranty is untouched: it comes from the installer, runs on the installer's terms and has nothing to do with the manufacturer's form.
Two situations catch people. In a new-build house the furnace went in months before you took possession, so ask the builder for the install paperwork and register as soon as you close; our guide to Tarion and new-home HVAC warranties covers that. And if you bought a resale house, you generally cannot register as the original owner, which is why whether a furnace warranty transfers on a sale is its own question.
What the missed warranty years can cost
The parts that fail in years six to ten are the ones registration would have covered. Typical repair prices with no parts coverage:
- Blower motor: $500–$1,500
- Control board: $500–$1,200
- Gas valve: $500–$1,000
- Draft inducer motor: $400–$900
Even with full parts coverage you still pay the diagnostic visit, $90–$150, and the labour once the installer's own term has ended; labour versus parts warranties explains the split. ZK Mechanical registers the furnaces it installs and gives you the confirmation to file with your invoice. See furnace installation, or send us your model and serial number if you are unsure what you have.