Bryant and Carrier furnaces come from the same manufacturer and share one control platform, so the numbering here is the numbering in our Carrier furnace error code guide. What changes is the name on the door. Bryant's Evolution furnaces (987M, 986T) are the counterparts of Carrier Infinity, the Preferred series (926T, 925S) lines up with Carrier Performance, and the Legacy line (915S, 912S) with Carrier Comfort. Find the three digits and a letter at the start of your model number and you know which family you are in.
Read the code with the door on. Bryant's instructions say status codes are viewed at the indicator in the blower door, and the LED is either on continuously, flashing rapidly or showing a two-digit code. The blower door switch cuts 115-volt power when the door comes off, so removing it kills the display you were trying to read. Stored codes survive a power interruption but are erased automatically after 72 hours, so a fault from the weekend may be gone by Wednesday.
Newer Evolution and Preferred controls add a three-digit display and write each fault as a major and a minor number, such as 13.1 or 33.1. The major number is the classic code and the LED still flashes it as short and long pulses, while the minor digit narrows the cause. That display reads idL at rest and keeps the last seven faults in a menu. On a communicating Evolution system the wall control also shows furnace faults on its malfunction screen and in its list of recent events.
Codes vary by model: single-stage, two-stage and modulating Bryant furnaces do not all carry the same list, and a code that exists on one board is absent on another. The service label on the furnace's own door is written for the board behind it, so where that label and this page disagree, follow the label. Our Bryant furnace repair page explains how we handle these furnaces, and you can book a visit here.
Bryant furnace codes, decoded
| Code | What it means | Safe? | Try first | When to call |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Continuous on | Normal. The control has 24-volt power and no status code to show. | keep running | Nothing. A cold house with a steady amber light points at the thermostat or its wiring. | Only if the furnace ignores a call for heat with the light steady. |
Continuous off | The control has no power. The label's instruction is to check for 115 volts at the supply and 24 volts at the transformer secondary. | turn it off | Check the furnace switch, the breaker and that the blower door is closed on its switch. | If the light is still out with power confirmed. |
Rapid flashing | Line voltage polarity is reversed. Not a countable code. | turn it off | None. The fault is in the 115-volt supply wiring to the furnace. | Yes, to have the supply wiring corrected. |
11 | No previous code. Nothing is stored, either because nothing has faulted or because the 72-hour memory has cleared. | keep running | Run a heating cycle and watch whether a code appears. | If the furnace misbehaves with no code to show for it. |
12 | Blower on after power up. Normal: the blower runs for 90 seconds when power is restored during a call for heat. | keep running | Wait it out. This follows a power blip or a reset. | No call needed. |
13 | Limit circuit lockout. A limit or flame rollout switch stayed open longer than three minutes. The control resets itself after three hours. | turn it off | Replace the filter and open all registers. Do not press a tripped rollout switch. | If 13 returns, or at once if the rollout switch is the one that opened. |
14 | Ignition lockout. The system failed to ignite gas and prove flame in four attempts. Auto-reset after three hours. | turn it off | Allow one reset at the furnace switch after checking the gas is on. | If it locks out again. See code 34 for the fault that leads here. |
21 | Gas heating lockout. The control will not auto-reset. The label points at a mis-wired gas valve or a defective control relay. | call now | Leave the furnace switched off. | Yes. Gas valve circuits are licensed work. |
22 | Abnormal flame-proving signal. Flame is proved while the gas valve is de-energized, and the inducer runs until the fault clears. | call now | Switch the furnace off and shut the gas cock at the appliance. | Immediately. The label lists a leaky or stuck-open gas valve. |
23 | Pressure switch did not open. The switch is stuck closed or its tubing is obstructed. | turn it off | Nothing to try. The furnace will not start until the switch reads correctly. | Yes, for the switch and tubing to be tested. |
24 | Secondary voltage fuse is open. There is a short circuit in the 24-volt wiring, often in the thermostat leads. | turn it off | Think about what changed: a new thermostat, a humidifier, a nicked cable. | Yes. Replacing the fuse without finding the short just blows the next one. |
31 | Pressure switch did not close or reopened. On labels that list two switches this is the high-pressure switch. | turn it off | Clear the vent and intake pipes outside of snow, ice and debris. | If the terminations are clear and 31 persists. |
32 | Low-pressure switch did not close or reopened. If it stays open longer than five minutes the inducer shuts off for fifteen minutes before a retry. | turn it off | Check outside for a blocked pipe and inside for water backing up at the condensate trap. | If the furnace keeps cycling through the fifteen-minute wait. |
33 | Limit circuit fault. A limit or flame rollout switch is open and the blower runs for four minutes or until it closes. Open longer than three minutes and it becomes lockout 13. | turn it off | Change the filter and check that nothing is blocking the return grille. | If 33 shows more than once. |
34 | Ignition proving failure. Flame was not sensed during the trial for ignition, and the control tries three more times before lockout 14. | keep running | Let the control finish its own retries. Confirm the gas valve and manual shutoff are on. | If 34 recurs or turns into 14. |
41 | On variable-speed models: blower motor fault. The control is not getting an RPM signal from the blower. | turn it off | None. Do not spin the wheel by hand with power on. | Yes. The motor, its module or the wiring needs testing. |
45 | Control circuitry lockout. Auto-reset after one hour. The label lists a stuck gas valve relay, a flame-sense circuit failure or a software check error. | turn it off | Cycle power once to clear the lockout. | If 45 repeats. The label's instruction is to replace the control. |
The codes that usually mean a real repair
34 turning into 14: the flame is not being proved
Bryant's troubleshooting guide starts with the cheap things: gas valve switched off, manual shutoff closed, the green and yellow ground wire off the sheet metal, oxide on the flame sensor. It gives a nominal flame current of 4.0 to 6.0 microamps, and a reading below 0.5 will not hold the burner. Cleaning or replacing the flame sensor runs $150–$300, a hot surface igniter is $200–$450 and a gas valve is $500–$1,000. We put a meter on the flame signal before recommending any of them.
31 or 32: pressure switch, venting or drainage
The service label's check list for these codes is long and mostly not the switch: excessive wind, a restricted vent, a defective inducer motor, inadequate combustion air, disconnected or obstructed pressure tubing, and condensate drainage that is restricted or blocked. On a gusty night off Lake Ontario a side-wall termination facing the wind is a real cause. A blocked trap is $150–$350 to clear or replace, a pressure switch falls in the $250–$500 band and a draft inducer motor is $400–$900.
33 turning into 13: the furnace is running too hot
For a limit fault the label lists a dirty filter or restricted duct system, a loose blower wheel, a defective blower motor and improper gas input adjustment. Only the first is a homeowner fix. If the motor is failing, replacement runs $500–$1,500 depending on whether it is a standard or variable-speed motor. A rollout switch that has tripped is a different matter and needs the heat exchanger and venting inspected before anyone resets it; our furnace repair service handles both.
Licensed technicians, a written price before the repair, no overtime charges.
Common questions
Are Bryant furnace codes the same as Carrier codes?
Yes. The two brands are built on the same platform by the same manufacturer, and the short-flash, long-flash numbering is shared. A code 31 or 33 reads identically on either badge. Match by family rather than by name: Evolution with Infinity, Preferred with Performance, Legacy with Comfort. The service label on your own furnace door still outranks any chart, because boards differ within a family.
How long does a Bryant furnace stay locked out?
It depends on the code. Limit lockout 13 and ignition lockout 14 auto-reset after three hours, and control lockout 45 after one hour. Code 21, the gas heating lockout, does not reset by itself at all. Switching power off and on ends a lockout sooner, but do it once: a furnace that locks out twice on the same code has a fault that resetting will not fix.
The code was flashing yesterday and now the light is steady. Is the problem gone?
The fault has cleared for now, but the furnace has not forgotten it. Bryant controls keep the status code through a power interruption and erase it automatically after 72 hours. Inside that window a technician can recall it at the board. If you saw a code, write the number down with the date. An intermittent 31 or 33 usually comes back on the next cold night.
What does 13.1 or 33.1 mean on a Bryant furnace display?
Newer Bryant controls show three digits: a two-digit major code and a minor digit after the decimal. The major code carries the classic meaning, so 13.1 is still a limit circuit lockout and 33.1 a switch open in the main limit circuit. The minor digit separates the possible causes, and those are listed on the service label for that control. Older single-LED charts cannot decode it.
Can I take the door off to watch the LED while the furnace runs?
No. The blower door presses a switch that feeds 115-volt power to the control, so the furnace goes dead when the door is removed. Bryant's manual warns against taping or bypassing that switch, and technicians only hold it by hand during testing. Read the LED through the indicator in the door instead. For other makes, start at our brand guides.