HVAC replacement quote comparison

12 years ago

I'm a total newbie and any help would be very much appreciated.

I'm in a 2 story townhome in inland Southern CA. The highs in the summer can reach about 100 and the lows in the winter can be in the 30s at night. The current system is original to the home--24 years old. It's time for a replacement.

Both are NATE certified companies and proposals include enlarging the return grill and installing new supply grilles.

Company #1, using Carrier

(Warranty is 20 yr limited on heat exchanger, 5 yr limited on entire furnace unit; 10 year limited on parts for air conditioner)

58PHX-80% AFUE gas furnace w variable speed fan

24ABC6-16SEER R410-A condenser

HE coil with built in TXV

Cost: $7,260

After rebates/tax credit: $5,710

Company #2, using Ruud

(Warranty is 1 yr labor; 10 yr compressor, indoor coil, outdoor coil and parts; lifetime on heat exchanger)

Quote a:

14AJM series, 16.5 SEER

Ruud or CE evaporative coil

Ruud RGPE series furnace, 80% AFUE, two stage var speed

Cost: $8750

After rebates/tax credit: $6900

Quote b:

UARL JEC series, 16.5 SEER, two stage compressor

Ruud or CE evaporative coil

Ruud RGPE series furnace, 80% AFUE, two stage var speed

Cost: $9850

After rebates/tax credit: $7500

Thank you in advance.

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Comments (6)

neohioheatpump
12 years ago
I like the carrier quote based on price, equipment and efficiency.
veesubotee
12 years ago
Does the Ruud quote include the communicating thermostat (500 series, I believe)? If not, not real advantage of the JEC over the JEZ. Could save some money.

Need to have full model number of coil to verify real SEER of combo.

V
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Thanks for the response Ryan. I did get 4 quotes in all. SEARS quoted $12000 for Carrier comofrt series 13 SEER 3TON A/C and 90K BTU 2 stage single speed furnace. Another contractor quoted $8000 for Performance series 13 SEER 2.5 TON AC and Infinity series 80K BTU 80% AFUE furnace. No humidifier though. Yet another contractor quoted 7000 for Coleman system. So looking at all the other offers I thought this guy's TRANE estimate was the best. Here is the update on the COIL Model is TE47636CI75B2922 and it says Make is TRANE/ADP. As for the not going with 90% Furnace the reason is new PVC venting that the homeowner association will not allow. So I am staying with 80% . The contractor said I will not miss much by going with 80% as opposed to 90% BTU. He did do the load calculation by measuring the house, windows etc. How much more do you think I am paying for this job? Don't the prices vary by the market. I am sure if I did this in Alabama it would be cheaper than doing here in NY Metro? Once again thanks for the input!
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gabadger I thought you probably had Ga location. I like HPs as well. However, I saw some recent rates in Georgia for electric and nat gas and you could not justify upgrading to a HP-that's at this time. gas rates will fluctuate but they are cheaper at the moment. eventually they will trend upwards as the economy recovers. if you want to verify your rates, I will run a comparison for you. you are probably oversized on the furnace. However, that's typical of Trane because that's the smallest XT furnace that will allow you to qualify for tax credit. I am not certain why the thermostat would be so expensive. For your quoted system, I would want HW mdl 8321 with humidity sensor. You have the filter cabinet and the lineset covered. Looks good. IMO
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Before you start the discussion of pricing and equipment quality, you need to make sure the equipment is properly sized. Equipment which is too big can be just as bad and often worse than equipment that is too small. Did this contractor do a load calculation or did he base the sizes on what you currently have? If he did a load calculation did he explain it to you and show you how the sizes were determined? What is the size of the first and second floor? Do you have a walkout basement or is it mostly underground? The quote for the attic doesn't make sense. Are you replacing the current heat pump with a furnace? If it is a furnace then why does it say 17.5w? I don't think you need 5 tons of cooling and 160K BTU of heating. Do you know what sizes you currently have? Did the old equipment keep the house cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Final question, do you have access to natural gas?
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Sizing can be less of an issue when you have multiple units. Because each unit is controlled independently, provided of course the unit itself is not over sized for the area in which it serves resulting in excessive short cycling. In your case 3 ton plus 2 ton isn't necessarily equal to 5 tons of cooling... unless you drive those thermostats really low. By having two systems with total capacity of 5 tons (which, most of the time this would be oversized for a 1700 - 1800 sq ft structure) has a few advantages. 1. You have the ability to use one system only during low heat days or set the opposing unit higher. The unit set higher only runs if load conditions warrant.... meaning if it's not hot, the thermostat controlling the unit does not call... the unit can not run without a call... 2. Utility bills can be much less... because you rarely use both systems at the same time. You run the bedroom system when you sleep, the other when you're awake. If you have a home office in one the bedrooms you may need to rethink things a bit. 3. Extra capacity for when it's hot out. When it's hot you have the capacity to cool the home. (even while entertaining guests --- additional people add heat) Remember heat waves come, heat waves go... a so call 'properly sized' AC system is essentially properly sized roughly 10% of the time... especially if that system is a single speed AC system. Alot of people I come across like to sleep cool. So for that reason I doubt I would change the configuration of the space. Once you realize what you have, the choices you make are mostly budget type concerns. Essentially a set up like this runs like a 2 stage system. This kind of subject is above the pay grade of many... choose your contractor wisely. I service the Katy, Texas area.
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tigerdunes
12 years ago
Cmp

Several questions on the carrier quote.

What size is your townhouse?

What size furnace and AC are you replacing?

What size furnace and AC is Carrier dealer quoting?

Is new refrigerant line set included?

What is the Carrier evap coil mdl number?

What thermostat is quoted?

What if anything are you doing about a whole house air filter cabinet?

Be aware the Carrier dealer is quoting the btm end AC condenser. I would
not have that and don't recommend it. Upgrade to the Comfort series mdl,a much nicer condenser.

Post back.

IMO
cmp77
Original Author
12 years ago
Veesubotee,

As far as the Ruud proposal...

The thermostat would be a Honeywell (either a 3000, 4000, or 8000).

The evaporative coil is a model #RCFL-Ruud Standard 13 SEER Coil.

Tigerdunes,

As far as the Carrier quote...

The square footage of our home is 1700 square feet. We are replacing a 3 ton furnace and a 2.5 ton AC. The size of the new units will be determined by Manual J load calculations.

The thermostat was quoted as a Honeywell 6000.

The refrigerant line is not going to be replaced, but is going to be flushed.

I should be able to answer the rest of the questions (evap coil model #) tomorrow.

And, what exactly is a whole house air filter cabinet?

Thanks.
cmp77
Original Author
12 years ago
Tigerdunes,

Here's the other information about the Carrier quote that you asked about...

The model number for the evap coil is C36A175C536.

Thanks again.
tigerdunes
12 years ago
Cmp

That appears to be a third party coil as I expected. You want the correct Carrier brand tin plated coil.

I would also want the Carrier Edge thermostat. And as I mentioned you want the Comfort 16 Carrier Condenser, not the btw end base model.

Refrigerant line set if to be reused and flushed must be the correct size. Not a detail to be overlooked. And close does not count.

How do you currently filter your return air both for indoor air quality and to protect blower motor and evap coil? I prefer a whole house 4-5" filter cabinet that is changed out once a year.

IMO

HVAC replacement quote comparison

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neohioheatpump

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neohioheatpump

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