I decided on the 80% AFUE...2 stage York furnace simply because: #1)Our home is located 2 miles from the beach ( Santa Monica California )...and I feel it should be sufficient. with our (usually) mild climate ( Am I wrong ?) #2) A 90% AFUE furnace would cost an additional $1000.00...In your opinion should I spend the extra money for 90% AFUE ??? The contractor will be installing next week. Please reply ASAP As an update...It looks like I will not be able to add the central air system :...the cost is HUGE because I would have to REPLACE AND MOVE my entire electrical box from its original location . It will not accomodate an additional 50 AMP breaker !!...Cost would be (approx)an extra $ 4000.00 plus whatever city permits and code upgrades may cost!! To summarize...York Gas Furnace... New ducts (cal flex silver jack 6.0 ) Thermostat : Honeywell 8000 model Air Filtration : Aprilaire 2250 TOTAL COST $ 4800. I have one more question...please:....My original register return for gas furnace is located on wall near floor level in my hallway...I was told by contractor that this is not the correct location for it....It should be moved to ceiling of my hallway..Unless I hear otherwise from this forum...I will have it moved as he suggests...SHOULD I seal up the old register return or let it remain but it will not be functioning ??... Thanks all !!

Ryan... It would be R-22. We did talk about that and my concern about being 'stuck' down the road somewhere. I'm assuming the R-410A is the replacement higher pressure stuff? This guy was telling me that this unit has the ability to be converted to the new stuff if needed. He used a term like 'drop in', I think? Personally and just using my own logic here, it seems to me that the R-22 at it's lower pressure and it's ability to be recharged is the better way to go even with the phase out. It's been around so long and what are the odds that it will need to be recharged? I'm sure this is a debatable issue and could create some heated discussion. But is the risk of getting the older stuff all that high? This guy did give me two other options moving up in price. The price leap was pretty significant moving into the $5000 range....then to $6000 on the higher end unit. I quickly had him discard those since I can't justify that cost to cool this old house. These units would have been more efficient and include multiple stages or something to that effect. I know there was an option to get the newer refrigerant right off the bat. There was no pressure or scare tactics to to that. In fact, he gave it to me pretty straight about the drawbacks to the new stuff. I guess this could be taken a couple of ways. One of which these dealers want to off the older units before the phase out starts. He did say that it would be available for the next 10 years? Of course I had to arrange the estimate at the HD store, but it was the contractor that showed up at the house. My gut tells me to trust these guys. There was no pressure (upselling or asking for credit card numbers) during the visit or after (no phone ringing off the hook like other HD estimates I had). The ten year warranty and their professional approach looked pretty good to me. I think the 1 year same as cash may be a break even situation where HD takes their cut. I've had enough estimates to pick out the knuckleheads in my experience. These guys look ok, at least to me. He is also going to honor my request to have the unit set away from my screened in porch....which is directly next to my furnace. It would be going around the back corner of my house at no extra charge. He said the extra distance would not cause any problems. It would be an additional 15 ft. run for the copper tubing. I think I asked all the right questions. I just got myself completely out of debt (including paying off my mortgage) which makes this a tough decision. In this who-knows-what's-going-to-happen-next economy we got here, I'm prepared for the worst. I'm just battling the dilemna of taking myself into the red again. Also, at what point does the IRS give me a tax break for doing this? Thanks again.

1 and 3 would need externally mounted hot water coils and the pump as you say. Be nice to have the all in one unit from First Co. The Bryant quoted can do 16 SEER but not on a mismatched air handler, probably more like 14 SEER. The variable speed blowers on 1 and 3 are nice as well. The Carrier is a 2 stage outdoor unit that rates up to 17 SEER and would qualify for the $1500 tax credit and maybe other utility or state incentives. The A-S proposal is the builder model, not the Allegiance. Not quite as nice of a unit. The system quoted is 14.75 SEER, if a different air handler is used, you'd get over 16 and a tax credit. Pretty dumb of him to quote you the 4TEE3F31.

mike_home, Thanks for the info. I will consider a heat pump. This year the state of new jersey now requires all ac installers to receive training and state licenses in ac installation. In my research it has been stated quite a few times, the ac will work only as well as it was installed. Lennox has premier installers and only a very few of the other brand installers are NATE trained. But the majority are still not ac trained licensed installers. The majority are plumbers and electricians. My concern is the duct work and the refrigerate not being done to specifications. Many hvac contractors offer only one year labor. Unfortunately a number of homeowners found themselves shelving out more money 2,3,4, years later, just for labor. The installer is as important as the ac with 10 year limited warranties. I can accept an annual maintenance contract, but want the ac to work as smoothly as the Luxaire had for 35 years.