Well, the verdict is in. I called a Goodman authorized HVAC
dealer/contractor (in Denver Metro), and their technician told me that
the reason that return air temp must not be less than 55F is because of
the possibility of excess condensation.

BTW, I first called the Goodman hotline, but they told me that, for
liability reasons, they didn't provide tech support directly to
individuals. However, they told me to call one of their authorized
dealers with any questions. They gave me three names, and I called one
of them.

Cheers.


On Jan 18, 10:12 pm, wrote:
The unit in question is Goodman GMV9509050XBA gas furnace (95% eff.,
90,000 BTU.)
It says in the Installation Instructions (page 7, Location Requirements
& Considerations) that the following must be observed:

"The temperature of the return air entering the furnace is between 55F
and 100F when the furnace is heating."

I am curious why the 55F requirement. I mean, when I'm not in the
house, I would like to set the temp as low as possible in order to save
on my heating bill. I think I could otherwise set it as low as 45-50F
and still keep the water pipes from freezing. But I wonder why I'm not
supposed to go below 55F. What could happen? Could the unit get damaged
and why?

Thanks

P.S. I'm in the Denver, CO area - 5,300 ft altitude, if that matters.