opinions on furnace models

10 years ago

My wife and I just moved into a older house in Western Massachusetts with a forced hot air oil furnace. We are looking to switch over to a gas furnace and have had a few contractors give quotes. We've had trouble getting enough information from most of the contractors but have one now that we like and are now looking for some outside opinions on his quote. We have good duct work in place so we're looking at the furnace installed with a evaporator coil for a/c down the line and will also be adding a humidifier to the unit. Our house is 1100 sq. ft., has vinyl replacement windows, blown-in insulation and is most likely late 1800's. We're trying to get any input on furnace models and see if it is worth it to spend the additional money on the higher end unit.

The 2 models are:

Bryant 1 Stage Furnace 925TA48080E17

and

Bryant Evolution Modulating Gas Furnace 987MA42080V17

Let me know if there is any information I'm missing that might be on the quote. Thanks a lot.

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Comments (5)

mike_home
10 years ago
My suggestion is to get a 2-stage variable speed furnace like the Bryant 96T. The modulating furnace is very nice but it gets to be pricey. If the price difference is small then go for the modulating furnace.

The sizes quoted are 80,000 BTU. This seems over sized for a 1100 sq. ft house with new widows and insulation. The contractor should do a load calculation to verify the size. I assume your old oil furnace was very over sized.

The quote should list the model of the coil and all work to be done. Have you gotten a quote for the AC? Would the contractor give you a discount now for doing the AC now versus later?
jsmith718
Original Author
10 years ago
Thanks for the reply. Does the Bryant 96T fall in-between the 2 models I listed? I looked at Bryant's site and it looks like it is still an evolution system which has me a little confused to what that means now. How is 2-stage different from modulating?

The contractor measured all of the rooms but other contractors had suggested 60,000 as well. Our old oil furnace was 80,000 and it used to heat 2 floors but the house has since been made into condos and the oil furnace now only does the 1st floor.

We didn't get a quote for the ac but the contractor seemed to indicate the ac would be the same as long as the coil was done now. I'll ask because that is a good point.
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You haven't been quoted a bad system, and all these components are compatible. It isn't a top of the line system, however, and with that in mind the price does seem a bit steep. Perhaps you're just dealing with one of the better, more expensive companies in your area. At least it does not appear that they "oversized" the system which will lead to problems down the road. That furnace should qualify for the $1500 tax credit, which I'm sure you've been told about. It may be worth looking into the XV95 furnace, which has a variable speed motor and has a 2-stage gas valve (high and low heat). The variable speed motor can be configured to help control humidity in the summer. The 13 SEER a/c is fine since you don't live in a climate where it stays warm for a large part of the year, although I'm not sure what your electric rates are like. If you go with the XV95 furnace then the XR15 is a nice upgrade on the a/c side for both efficiency and noise reduction (though neither unit would be considered loud by most people). The TCONT802 is a nicer thermostat that you might try to get them to include at no additional cost. To summarize, the system you were quoted is fine, but in terms of efficiency and features, the XV95 and XR15 are worth looking into. Problem becomes - will the added upfront cost pay for itself down the road. Such is the case for the media filter - it provides better filtration and you only have to change it once or twice a year, but you're spending more upfront.
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mike_home
10 years ago
Both the modulating and 2-stage furnaces have variable speed motors. The 2-stage means the gas valve operates on either a high or low stage. Modulating means the gas valve is also variable. It a bit overkill in a small furnace.

I was going to suggest a 60,000 BTU furnace, and perhaps a 40,000 BTU furnace would be sufficient. If the old 80,000 BTU furnace which had an efficiency of less than 80% was enough to heat the old house then you can see appreciate how over sized the new furnace of the same size would be. The ratings are inputs. The output is the rating times the efficiency.
jsmith718
Original Author
10 years ago
Thanks for all your help. We'll see where I end up with further conversations with my contractor. I'll let you know.
jsmith718
Original Author
10 years ago
It turns out the contractor did not do the load calculation yet and is going to do one now. I found a great program online at loadcalc.net and came up with 60,000 and other contractors came up with 60,000 as well so that is probably what is needed.

I talked with the contractor about the top Evolution system the 98m modulating furnace and the Evolution 96t 2-stage and the difference is $400 but the 98m has $150 more in rebates making the difference only $250. So that seems like reason to just go with the modulating furnace? Any thoughts?

In that case the price difference between the Bryant 95t 2-stage non Evolution and the top of the line modulating Evolution 98m is $800. Is the Evolution system over the Bryant 95t worth it? Would we notice the difference and if so where? With the comfort with the savings?

opinions on furnace models

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opinions on furnace models

Comments (5)

mike_home

jsmith718Original Author

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mike_home

jsmith718Original Author

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jsmith718
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