If you have the capacity on the boiler I'd stick with hydro-air. However, nowhere do you mention AC in your post. I lived in MA for 25 yrs and you want de-humidification. I would suggest you look at a mini-split heat pump for your addition. Much easier to run small line sets rather than ductwork and the system will give you excellent heat as well as cooling. Mini-splits are very popular on the Cape. It is a fine place to live.

Thanks, Ryan. I forgot to mention that my house, which is rectangular, is situated so the the garage corners face SE and SW and the bedroom corners face NE and NW. Helps with the sun. Except for one spot the sun never directly comes into the house due to those wide overhangs. Prior to the leak, the current system kept the house cool unless we topped 100 which happens during the summer. This summer is shaping up to be very hot and dry. I am on an averaging billing system for my gas/electric from CPS, our local utility company. In the winter, they average around $90 and during very hot summers can go as high as $125.00 The Ruud consultant/contractor has given me three bids. Bid 1 is $6946 for a complete heating and AC 16 SEER 3 ton Ultra1 2 speed condenser, 4 ton evap. coil (RCFM Hm48), and 70,000 BTU furnace (Model UGPRO7E) with a new thermostat as this unit won't work off the power company's. Bid 2 is $5206 for a complete system Ruud 14 SEER 3 ton system (don't this this has the 2 speed condenser though). Bid #3 is $4116 and is for a 14 SEER 3 ton condenser/coil and keep the present furnace which is still working. If the furnace goes out later, it can be replaced with new one. Both bids 3 & 3 leave the free power company thermostat in place. All bids include a new 3/4" plywood bas for the furnace, an E-Z filter bas , setting and leveling A/C pad, upgrade PUC Sch 40, inspection and resealing all existing air duct and adding an a AC grill & boot in my sewing/ironing room adjacent to the laundry room by tapping into the laundry room duct. I can get a Guardian Air filter with either system for an additional $626. Is it worth it? I passed on the UV light. Only the 16 SEER qualifies for the $375 Energy Star rebate from the electric company and he will match it. If I go the 14 SEER route, he has a $300 coupon in the yellow pages. Plus, he's offering zero financing for 12 months. I have the money in savings, but might just put it in a six months CD at higher interest and pay off everything on month 11. The Ruud guy said unfortunately, he finds the duct work in San Antonio to be of poor quality. So I will definitely have that checked. Are there companies that only evaluate this or should I trust the AC contractor's evaluation. The Lennox guy is coming next week. I'll call Trane and set up an appointment next week. My daughter-in-law's mother has had them for years and had very little problems.

Thanks for reply>> This house is total approx 4500 sq ft.in NC. Triad Area. 1. Bedrooms are one one side Approx 1300 - 1400 sqft 2. The other side is Living room , den, kitchen and dining area. Approx 1600 sqft At present we have 24000 BTU - 2 units (1 for Upstairs and 1 for bed room side) There is 30000 BTU unit for the Kitchen Side. The upstairs is 1 great room /bathroom and 1 bedroom approximately 1400-1500 sqft. The house was built in 1993 and has 3 zones. HVAC. I also want to make this a 2 zone system and so far 2 HVAC companies have not offered me this alternative. All the ducts and vents are in place , Plenty of in floor Supply registers and return vents. All windows are Double Paine Glass with plantation shutters. The flooring is Hardwood. There are 3 bay windows and approx 15 other regular windows. So far not many issues but bathrooms are pretty cold in winter though there are supply register in each bathroom. The downstairs ceilings are 12 ' High and upstairs about 10. The quote includes new line set and refrigerant lines also the 5 inch media filter. Existing Units are as old as house. The Outside units are working at present and upstairs units are not. The furnaces are pretty shot as water is dripping in crawl space which is brown color. The HVAC tech came and I asked for load calculation but he says that it is not needed and irrelevant as guidance are not accurate. ( I disagree). I also feel the system he is trying to sell is older. The 2 furnaces are in crawl space and upstairs furnace is in Attic. The house still has orignigal /HVAC System. It is Insulated pretty well. Please let me know any other info is needed.

I live in Michigan. My home is a colonial with approximately 2400 sq ft. The current heating system, when it worked, was excellent. The house would heat up in a matter of minutes. The temperature also stayed pretty consistent. In the old house we also had the furnace replaced. I hated, hated, hated the new furnace. The furnace would turn on, the house would get warm, then the temperature would go down about 5-7 degrees before turning back on. The air was also super dry and we had never had that problem before. I don't want to make that mistake again. Here's the actual information from the quote: Remove and haul away old equipment. Install Carrier 110,000 BTU 80% efficient furnace with 35ft chimney liner. Install a Carrier 3.5 ton 13 seer central air package with 25ft copper lineset, ac pad, a coil cond (can't figure out what he wrote) pump to pump to laundry. Elect (can't figure out what he wrote) and disconnect. All permits, sheet metal, work, taxes, and cleanup included. Warranties: Furnace - 20 year heat exchanger Parts - 10 year Service & Labor - 2 year Total Cost - $4890 Extras: air cleaner - $200 95% Carrier 100,000 BTU furnace $700 more It seems that it makes more sense to get the 95% or 96% furnace but I really don't know.