Yes, the Heritage 15 costs more money for the dealer to purchase than the Allegiance 15 because of the extra controls/components associated with a heat pump system. Since you have a gas line run upstairs already, I would stick with gas heat and air conditioning upstairs, and put the 80% furnace as tiger mentioned with the heat pump downstairs. I agree that a top-efficiency furnace in your mild climate, when paired with a heat pump, isn't worth the added cost. The 95% furnace requires PVC venting out the side of your house as well, another cost factored into the total. If you don't get a humidifier, the 803s are fine and probably thermostats the company is more familiar with. You can still get a humidifier even with the 803 thermostats, however. I don't think having a heat pump makes a humidifier any less necessary, in my opinion. Many homes have humidifiers and heat pumps. You can try without first, and if the air is really dry, one can always be added later. I agree, the upfront cost is a lot, but they are quoting you one of the most expensive models. Ask for what is called a bypass or flow-through humidifier. Aprilaire model 600 or American Standard part number AHUMD300 (same thing different look from what I gather).

You need to find a new HVAC contractor. I would be suspect of a professional who has proposed 180K BTUs of heating and 7 tons of cooling for the house you have described. Cutting those numbers in half is closer to the correct value. Find a contractor who will do a Manual J load calculation! Are you planning to insulate the attic? If not then I would install bought furnaces in the basement. Basement should have its own zone if you really want to control the temperature in the winter. If your windows are tight then you probable don't need a humidifier. You certainly don't need two. Get smaller equipment and put the money towards upgrading to 2-stage furnaces and condensers.

I have revisited this posting several times because I have been going back and forth trying to determine the pros and cons of a 15 versus 16 seer American Standard heat pump. We moved to Greenville, SC about two years ago knowing that we would be replacing our hvac system and duct work within a few years. We have a gas furnace and outdoor a/c that is about 22 years old. We have a reputable contractor and we have had the appropriate load calculation done. This thread has me stumped on which direction to go. We have a ranch style 2600 square foot home and we have no complaints about our humidity control in our home. With the current AS rebates the 16 seer 4-ton heat pump will be about the same cost as the 15 but I wondering if we want it. People prefer the latent humidity control of the 15 but why and what does that mean? I understand that the efficiency difference between the two is small. My main concern is the humidity control between the two systems. What is the difference between on demand humidity control on the thermostat versus the humidity control on the 16 seer AS model? Would having the first stage setting running more often than a 15 create more condensation on the coil and make us more susceptible to moisture/mold issues? If so, how do you know this? I spoke to someone today who had the 15 seer furnace and outdoor a/c and within two weeks asked for the contractor to upgrade them to the 16 seer because they said their home was too humid. He said he is in love with his system now. Can this experience be applied to the heatpumps? Thanks so much!!

Hi, I'm in the midwest and have a 5100 sq ft home. I'm looking at replacing my 17 yo furnaces, 2 Carrier Weathermaker high efficiency , with electronic filtering system , (eletroair SST), two air conditioning units, one blown and one 4 years old (got 10 years out of the blown one) with a similar set up to above. Recommended by the dealer is 1 American standard 16, 2ton communicating heat pump with a Am ST. Freedom 95 60K btu, 3 stage furnace and Acculink 900 comfort controller... AND 1 Heritage 16, 3 ton communicating heat pump with Freedom 95, 80K btu, 3 stage furnace, both with the AccuClear air cleaner system. We could keep the 4 yo air conditioner for a while, and put in the extra heat pump later. We could keep the current air cleaner (the kids, who sleep near it downstairs say it cracks and pops a bit). I'm looking at getting another quote, and from the looks of it above Carrier would be the place to get another quote and opinion. The American standard dealer made a big deal about the communication between the furnace and heat pump, calling this "geothermal above ground, at 1/3 of the price". We probably could get a couple more years out of our furnace, but has needed repair a couple of times, and were told it could become a problem, which we'd like to avoid in the middle of winter. We did consider geothermal and priced that out last year, and just felt the retrofit wasn't worth the bother. A contractor friend recommended that future high efficiency furnaces would make the geothermal unnecessary, at least for retrofitting. Any opinions out there?