Condensate Drain On Intake Vent Pipe?

[dtontarski]

Is there any reason that a condensate drain line would be needed on the intake vent pipe for a high efficiency furnace? (Rheem RGRA-06EMAES)

If you look real close (upper right) you will see that that this intake line has separated from one of the elbows (never glued).

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[dtontarski]

Ah...the pitfalls of getting up early and asking stupid questions here instead of waiting for the installers to get to work so that I can make my inquiries locally.

I was told by the company that installs these furnaces that they routinely install a drain line on the intake side to protect the furnace from any rain or melted snow that finds its way into this intake pipe.

This seems like a good practice...I wonder why they don't glue their PVC connections, properly strap their vent pipes, and put some type of exterior elbow, t, or manufacturer termination kit on the vent pipes to keep the water out?