Short answer: Read the Goodman code through the viewing window before opening the blower door, because cutting power can erase the displayed fault. Match the pattern to the legend for that furnace: a single red LED, a multicolor board and an EE display use different charts. A pressure-switch or ignition code calls for diagnosis, not an automatic replacement of the named part.
For a Goodman furnace that will not heat, see our furnace repair service and HVAC service in Livermore.
A Goodman furnace tells you what’s wrong with a light or a small display on the control board. You read it through the window in the blower door. The catch is that Goodman has used three kinds of boards, and the same number doesn’t mean the same thing on all of them. So first figure out which one you have, then use the matching table below. The legend on the sticker inside your access panel is still the final word for your exact furnace.
Here’s how to read each type, what the codes mean according to Goodman’s service manuals, and where the line is between a safe homeowner check and a job for a tech.
Read it before you open anything
On the GMES9 single red LED boards, the flashing stops as soon as power to the control is interrupted, and the blower door switch does exactly that. Goodman’s GMES9 manual says so in a footnote: the LED flash code will cease if power is cut through the disconnect or the door switch. So look through the window first, count, and write it down. Then go check the filter.
A couple of states aren’t faults at all:
- Steady light, no flashing: normal on the GMES9 red LED boards. On Ultra-Low NOx boards the normal light is steady green.
- No light at all: no power reaching the board. Check the breaker, the furnace’s own power switch, and that the blower door is pushed in all the way.
Which board do you have?
Look at the model number on the rating plate inside the furnace.
- Single red LED: GMES9 and GCES9 single-stage furnaces (Goodman manual RS6612016). You count red flashes. A GMES96 with a U in the model is the Ultra-Low NOx version and uses the next board.
- Red, amber and green LED: Ultra-Low NOx furnaces with a U in the model, like GMES96 U and GM9S96 U models (manual RS6612017). Count the flashes and note the color.
- Three-character display: GM9S80, GC9S80, GM9S96 and GC9S96 single-stage furnaces, the GM9C96 and GC9C96 two-stage furnaces, and the GMVC96 and GCVC96 variable speed furnaces (manuals RS6621008, RS6612022, RS6612020, RS6612023). The display shows a code like EE3.
If the plate doesn’t match any of these, use the label inside your door and call us with the model number.
Single red LED boards (GMES9, GCES9)
From the troubleshooting chart in Goodman’s GMES9 / GCES9 service manual (RS6612016, pages 46 to 48). Count the flashes between pauses, and watch two full cycles.
| What the light does | What Goodman’s manual says | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Off | No 115 volt power to furnace, or no 24 volt power to integrated control module. Blown fuse or circuit breaker. | Check the breaker, the furnace switch and the blower door. |
| Steady on | Normal operation | Nothing. |
| 1 flash | Furnace lockout due to an excessive number of ignition retries (3 total) | Call a technician. |
| 2 flashes | Pressure switch circuit is closed, induced draft blower is not operating | Call a technician. |
| 3 flashes | Pressure switch circuit not closed, induced draft blower is operating | Call a technician. |
| 4 flashes | Primary or auxiliary limit circuit is open | Replace the filter and open every register. If it comes back, call. |
| 5 flashes | Flame sensed with no call for heat | Call a technician. |
| 6 flashes | Rollout limit open, or integrated control module fuse is blown | Call a technician. |
| 7 flashes | Flame sense microamp signal is low | Call a technician. |
| 8 flashes | Igniter relay fault | Call a technician. |
| 9 flashes | Twinning fault | Call a technician. |
| 10 flashes | Open fuse, no 24V power to integrated control module | Call a technician. |
| 11 flashes | Igniter open | Call a technician. |
| 12 flashes | Inducer relay fault | Call a technician. |
| Continuous rapid flash | Polarity of 115 or 24 volt power is reversed | Call a technician. |
The same manual explains the 1-flash lockout. The board tries the gas valve three times, then locks out, and it resets on its own after one hour. Turning the thermostat off for more than 5 seconds and less than 20 seconds, then back on, also resets it. Goodman’s note is the important part: if the furnace keeps needing a reset, a problem exists that should be corrected.
Ultra-Low NOx boards (red, amber and green LED)
From Goodman’s service manual for the GMES96 U and GM9S96 U Ultra-Low NOx single-stage furnaces (RS6612017, pages 27 to 29). On these boards the color matters as much as the count.
| What the light does | What Goodman’s manual says | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Off | No 120-volt power to furnace or 24-volt power to integrated control module, or the control has an internal fault | Check the breaker, the furnace switch and the blower door. |
| Steady green | Normal operation, idle/standby | Nothing. |
| 1 green flash | Call for heating | Nothing, it’s a status. |
| 2 green flashes | Call for cooling | Nothing, it’s a status. |
| 3 green flashes | Continuous fan operation | Nothing, it’s a status. |
| 1 red flash | Furnace lockout due to an excessive number of ignition attempts (3 total retries) | Call a technician. |
| 2 red flashes | Pressure sensor indicates pressure reading when it should be zero | Call a technician. |
| 3 red flashes | Inducer not making pressure setting | Call a technician. |
| 4 red flashes | Primary limit insert or aux limit circuit is open | Replace the filter and open every register. If it comes back, call. |
| 5 red flashes | Flame sensed with no call for heat | Call a technician. |
| 6 red flashes | Burner temperature limit switch open | Call a technician. |
| 7 red flashes | Gas valve circuit shorted | Call a technician. |
| Steady amber | OEM test mode | Call a technician. |
| 1 amber flash | Low flame sense | Call a technician. |
| 2 amber flashes | ID plug failure | Call a technician. |
| 3 amber flashes | Integrated control module fuse is blown | Call a technician. |
One more row from the same manual is worth knowing. A single green flash together with an abnormal high pitch noise while the burners run is listed as abnormal combustion noise during heating. The causes Goodman gives are not enough combustion air or too much gas input, a blocked flue or air inlet pipe, or a bad inducer or pressure sensor. Shut it off and call.
These boards also store the last five fault codes. A technician reads them by pressing the SW1 button on the board briefly, and clears them by holding SW1 until the LED blinks green.
Display boards (EE codes)
From the troubleshooting charts in Goodman’s service manuals for the GM9S80 / GC9S80 (RS6621008, pages 32 and 33) and GM9S96 / GC9S96 (RS6612022, pages 32 and 33) single-stage furnaces, and the GM9C96 / GC9C96 two-stage furnaces (RS6612020, pages 35 and 36). The GMVC96 / GCVC96 manual (RS6612023, pages 41 to 44) uses the same list with a few extra codes, covered below the table.
| Display | What Goodman’s manual says | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| IdL | Normal operation | Nothing. |
| EE0 | Furnace lockout due to an excessive number of ignition retries (3 total). Failure to establish flame, or loss of flame after establishment. | Call a technician. |
| EE1 | Pressure switch circuit is closed at start of heating cycle (low stage switch on two-stage furnaces) | Call a technician. |
| EE2 | Pressure switch circuit is not closed (low stage switch on two-stage furnaces) | Call a technician. |
| EE3 | Primary limit circuit is open | Replace the filter and open every register. If it comes back, call. |
| EE4 | Flame sensed with no call for heat | Call a technician. |
| EE5 | Open fuse | Call a technician. |
| EE6 | Flame sense micro amp signal is minimal | Call a technician. |
| EEL | Problem with igniter circuit. The GMVC96 manual shows this as EE7. | Call a technician. |
| EE8 | High stage pressure switch circuit is closed at start of heating cycle (two-stage only) | Call a technician. |
| EE9 | High stage pressure switch circuit is not closed (two-stage only) | Call a technician. |
| EEA | Polarity of 115 volt AC is reversed, or poor unit ground | Call a technician. |
| EEb | Gas valve is not energized when it should be | Call a technician. |
| EEC | Gas valve is energized when it should not be | Call a technician. |
| No display | No 115 power to furnace or no 24 volt power to integrated control module. Blown fuse or tripped circuit breaker. | Check the breaker, the furnace switch and the blower door. |
| E10 | Grounding fault, poor neutral connection | Call a technician. |
| E11 | Open roll out switch | Call a technician. |
| EEn | Ignitor open | Call a technician. |
| EEJ | Inducer relay error | Call a technician. |
| EEH | TWIN error | Call a technician. |
| EEE | Internal faults or IRQ loss in control board | Call a technician. |
The GMVC96 / GCVC96 variable speed furnaces add their own codes. EEd is the aux limit switch in the blower compartment. EEF is the aux switch on the condensate side, and Goodman’s cause is high water level in the evaporation coil, with the fix being the evaporator drain pan, trap and piping. Ed0 and Ed1 are memory card and setup data codes. The Eb codes (Eb0 to Eb7 and Eb9) are circulator blower motor codes. Two of those, Eb3 and Eb9, list blocked filters and restrictive ductwork first.
On the GM9S80, GM9S96 and GM9C96 display boards the stored faults sit in a menu. Goodman’s steps: press the left or right button until L6F shows, press the center button to view stored faults, and hold the center button for 5 to 30 seconds to erase them. The buttons are on the control board itself, so it’s a technician’s step.
What you can safely check yourself
Before you call anyone, run through the handful of things that are genuinely safe and that fix a real share of no-heat calls.
Check the filter. In every one of these manuals, the limit code (4 flashes, 4 red flashes, EE3) lists blocked filters and restrictive ductwork among its causes, and checking filters and ductwork is one of the corrective actions. If the filter is dirty, swap it and see if the furnace runs.
Check the breaker, the furnace switch and the blower door. An off breaker, a switch that got bumped (people mistake it for a light switch), or a door that isn’t fully seated all cut power to the board. That’s your no-light situation.
Check the thermostat. Make sure it’s set to heat, the temperature is set above the room temperature, and the batteries aren’t dead if it uses them.
Check your vents. Make sure supply registers and return grilles aren’t blocked by furniture or rugs. Restricted airflow causes the same limit trips a dirty filter does.
On a condensing furnace with a code that points at condensate, like EEF on the GMVC96, look for water standing in the drain pan or around the furnace. Don’t take anything apart. Tell us what you saw when you call.
That’s the safe list. If a fresh filter, a reset breaker, and a correct thermostat setting don’t bring it back, the code is pointing at something deeper.
Why the rest is a pro job
The codes you can’t safely chase are the ones tied to gas and combustion. A pressure switch or inducer code can mean a blocked flue, a weak inducer, or a cracked or pinched hose, and diagnosing it means testing draft and checking the venting. An ignition or flame code involves the gas valve, the igniter and the flame sensor working together in a timed sequence. A rollout code (6 flashes, E11) or a burner temperature limit (6 red flashes) is a safety trip that happens when flame shows up where it shouldn’t. That can point to a blocked flue or a cracked heat exchanger, which is a carbon monoxide concern and not something to reset and ignore.
These aren’t jobs you fix with a screwdriver and a video. They involve gas, combustion and safety devices that exist to keep carbon monoxide out of your house. A tech tests each part of the sequence, finds the actual cause, and confirms the furnace is safe before it goes back into service. Resetting a furnace that keeps locking out without finding why is how a small problem turns into a dangerous one.
When to call us
Call (925) 999-4095 to schedule a visit.
If your Goodman furnace is flashing a code and a new filter and a breaker check didn’t fix it, give us a call with the code and the model number. We’ll read the code, run the diagnostic sequence, and tell you exactly what’s failing and what it takes to fix it. If it’s a safety code, we treat it like one. We’re listed in Goodman’s official Find a Dealer locator, and Andrew completed Daikin factory training in Houston in 2025. Our diagnostic is $99, and we credit it toward the repair if you go ahead with us.
We serve Danville, San Ramon, Alamo, and the surrounding Bay Area, usually same or next-day when we can. Call (925) 999-4095 or book at bayareahvacservice.com. I stand behind the work, and on anything involving gas and combustion, I’d rather you call than guess.
Sources
The flash patterns, display codes and descriptions on this page come from these Goodman service manuals:
- Goodman GMES9 / GCES9 single stage gas furnaces, Service and Troubleshooting, RS6612016: diagnostic codes, p. 26; troubleshooting chart, p. 46 to 48.
- Goodman GMES96 U and GM9S96 U 96% single stage Ultra-Low NOx gas furnaces, Service and Troubleshooting, RS6612017: troubleshooting chart, p. 27 to 29.
- Goodman GM9S80 / GC9S80 service manual, RS6621008: troubleshooting chart, p. 32 and 33.
- Goodman GM9S96 / GC9S96 service manual, RS6612022: troubleshooting chart, p. 32 and 33.
- Goodman GM9C96 / GC9C96 two-stage service manual, RS6612020: troubleshooting chart, p. 35 and 36.
- Goodman GMVC96 / GCVC96 service manual, RS6612023: troubleshooting chart, p. 41 to 44.
For a dirty filter that keeps tripping the limit, see how long a furnace limit switch takes to reset.
Key takeaways
- Goodman furnaces use three kinds of control boards. GMES9 single-stage boards flash one red LED, Ultra-Low NOx models flash red, amber or green, and newer boards show a three-character code like EE3 on a small display.
- Read the light before you pull the blower door. On the GMES9 boards, the code stops when power is cut through the door switch or the disconnect.
- Limit codes (4 flashes, 4 red flashes, EE3) are the ones a dirty filter or blocked vents can cause. Goodman's manuals list blocked filters and restrictive ductwork among the causes.
- The legend inside your furnace's access panel is still the authority for your exact board. The tables here come from Goodman's service manuals for the series named above each one.
- Ignition, flame, gas valve, pressure switch and rollout codes involve gas and combustion. Those are a technician's job.
Related questions
How do I read a Goodman furnace fault code?
Where is the fault code legend on a Goodman furnace?
My Goodman furnace light is on steady. Is that bad?
What does 4 flashes or EE3 mean on a Goodman furnace?
What does EE0 mean on a Goodman furnace?
Can I fix a Goodman furnace fault code myself?
Need help with your system? Call (925) 999-4095 or book a visit. Repair diagnostics are $99, credited toward the repair. Installation assessments are free.
Further reading
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