What size home?

What is your location?

A 100 KBTU high eff furnace with just a 3 ton AC seems odd?

You are aware that Infinity zoning is considered the best integrated system in the residential marketplace. I certainly would reconsider since you are
looking at Infinity HVAC. It just seems to me you are shortchanging yourself both on the zoning and Infinity furnace/AC as having totally integrated Infinity system including controller. I would at least go through the motion of getting the numbers.

What is the layout/design of your home and how many zones do you plan on?

IMO

How large is your house? Where are you located in NJ? Is the contractor a Carrier Factory Authorized dealer? Have you discussed the Carrier rebates?

If the load calculation was done correctly, then you should not be adding a 20% safety factor. This defeats the purpose of doing a load calculation. Most single family homes in NJ will do fine with a 80K BTU 95% AFUE furnace. You are probably oversized at 100K BTU.

The Infinity is Carrier's best equipment. You should get the Infinity controller. This will also qualify you for the rebate. Carrier usually starts the rebates in early March. If you are going to do zoning, then you should spend the extra money on the Infinity equipment. I am suspicious of a contractor who would discourage you from doing this.

What price quote did you get? What are you doing about a media filter?

House is 30 x 35 basement 1st floor and second floor so 2100 sq ft 1st and second floor. I also have a family room which is 20 x 13 260 sq ft on a slab off the kitchen. The duct work for the familiy room has it's own trunk off the furnace and it goes up the garage walls and then uses flex ducting to go across the garage ceiling and then down the outside walls to the registers(sweet huh?). 3 zones which would be 1st floor...2nd floor and the family room. There is allot of heat loss in that one room. Thoughts were to put a mini unit but I am over taxed on my breaker box as it is and the electrical run to that room being that it is on a slab is real pain in the neck even though I would be doing it myself. Plus the outside unit would hvae to sit in my wifes flower bed........do we need to say more on that?

What is the big difference of the Infinity zoning I just can't seem to grasp it with the online information.

Carrier is giving an 800 rebate and perhaps that is why the Infinity is in the scheme.

Still an infant project but thanks for the input grealy appreciated.

Mike,

"If the load calculation was done correctly, then you should not be adding a 20% safety factor. This defeats the purpose of doing a load calculation. "

That's exactly what I thought. However the SW which I purchased clearly states to use a 20-25% safety factor. Go figure.

Some more answers to the questions.

House is in Northwest Jersey near the PA border.

Front faces NW and the Family room has an 8x5 window facing SE which seems to make a big difference in the calculations.

I will have an Aprilair media filter

Joe:

First I agree with Mike & Tiger.

I question the integrity of a contractor that would propose Infinity without the Infinity controller. ThatâÂÂs a deal breaker for me. I would never deal with that person again unless he fully understood that we can âÂÂargueâ about price but that thereâÂÂs âÂÂno compromiseâ when it comes to doing things right the first time.

$800.00 rebate seems low for that combination, but that may be a regional thing.

Depending on the cost of energy, you might consider a HP over an A/C unit.

The difference the Infinity controller will make is that itâÂÂs a âÂÂCommunicating Interface UnitâÂÂ. There will be 2-way communications between the controller and the gas furnace and the A/C unit. This will enable the controller to be as âÂÂSmartâ as it can in that it âÂÂLearnsâ from previous cycles to make the next one as efficient as possible. This also means âÂÂSmart Recoveriesâ with setbacks of more than 2F. The Infinity controller will also allow for âÂÂDemand Defrostâ should you choose to install a HP.

Among other things, the Honeywell controller will not be able to do all these things.

SR

Thanks for the info guys. Can any of you comment on the effort to do carrier zoning as opposed to Arzel being that this will be a retrofit?

The Carrier rebate is usually larger when the Infinity controller is included. The larger rebate offsets most of the cost of the controller.

The effort to install either zoning equipment should be the same.

Many HVAC contractors don't have the expertise to properly install a zoning system. I suggest you talk to additional contractors before making a final decision.

In defense of the contractor he mentioned up front we would be losing some of the Infinity Control benefits by not purchasing the Control board. I have had another person look at the ducting and to incorporate the Infinity zoning would take extensive rework since there is absolutely to room to add any new trunks which going by the Infinity zoning design "to do it correctly" it would take additional trunks. For some reason we can't get the older Carrier 58x non Infinity models delivered here which would have the varible speed blower which is an absolute neccesity. Seems you need to go Infinity in this area to get the varible speed blower. I may look at Trane or some other furnace.