So I've thought about this for awhile now, and I've decided 1) I don't have as much room as I "measured." 2) I don't want to eat figs enough to grow them in an espalier. I was kidding myself. 3) I really want something in the plum/apricot family, perhaps enough to spray a bit. 4) I'm allergic to sulfa medicine, and sulfur in dried food, and that might be an issue in spraying. So the new plan is 2011 to work on the soil (and survive other things)and just maybe get the prunus mume in the ground this year - for winter flowers. 2012 build the kiwi and rose pergola, and plant front yellowwood tree. Work on flower garden. 2013 replace sod with clover, dig out the dry stream bed and raise the grape hill. plant kiwi and rose. 2014 build the grape structure, and sprinklers or something for water. plant grapes. 2015 get the berries and currants going. And then once everything else is well established, go back to thinking about something like a hedge of espaliered purple leaf plum, which would be pretty. I'm not giving up on my apricot yet, but I can put it off and see if something new comes out.

eirebyron You are like an expectant parent pacing the hall outside the delivery room...relax and let nature take its' course. If you google blossom drop you will find much written and as many pictures on the subject. You are like the parent who after the baby is born starts to plan which college they will attend...relax (did I already say that) Sounds like you have got everything under control...but remember you will not be able to control Mother Nature Enjoy and Happy Gardening!

I hope I'm not stepping on any toes here, but since the original NOVA swap group has gone suddenly silent (no messages posted are going through), I thought I would try to carry the torch. I started a new group at http://groups.google.com/group/novaplantswap This one doesn't require administrative approval before posts are posted, so there shouldn't be any delay between the time someone posts to the group and the time it is shared. As far as I can tell, we're still on for May 12 at noon...we just have to pick a place!

12" return is almost definitely too large for the basement. I have a 6" return in my basement, and I have actually found it to draw ~200-240 cfm (using a barometer) -- plenty in my case with just a few supply outlets. In your case, I have no way of knowing for sure, but I assume it's piped directly (or near) to the inlet of the furnace blower compartment, in which case there is a lot of pressure and it's sucking in a lot of air and making the basement quite negative (not a good thing). So your basement return in that state may have been drawing close to, if not more than, half of the return air the entire system requires. Is the basement floorplan open to the rest of the home or closed off? If typically closed off, I wouldn't be surprised if the basement door had a tendency to close itself when the system was operating. I suppose putting cardboard over half of the grille is one way to reduce its intake capacity. Your older furnace does not (presumably) have a variable speed blower that will vary its RPM in order to maintain a specific CFM setting. That means that while you are noticing more airflow from the rest of the returns throughout the home, in totality your system is receiving less airflow -- no, not a good thing considering your ductwork is likely undersized to begin with. You have decreased its return capacity. To get the SAME (total) airflow from the rest of the returns throughout the home that were not previously drawing as much air generally requires the system to operate at an increased static; with older PSC type blower motors (non variable-speed), this results in decreased airflow. Hence variable speed motors are often termed "constant CFM" as they can adjust (increase) their speed to maintain a constant airflow (cfm) when subjected to as much as 0.8-1.0" of external static pressure (vs. conventional blowers max. of 0.5", which many duct systems are nowhere close to achieving despite it being the standard "design" figure). You can think of the ESP number as a measure of resistance to airflow, in a sense. The fact that you say the (supply?) ductwork is now much warmer is both concerning and telling. It is unwise for me to say much more than that as I am not there to evaluate your system design and give an accurate assessment of the ductwork design/layout, etc. But it suffices to say, with the info you've provided us, your return ductwork is now more restrictive, which would exacerbate any existing airflow issues. You do say it met the set point without tripping the high limit. Please let us know how the system performs as it gets colder out and the system runs more often in its present state. I would like to ask what made you consider replacing the systems (and proceeding to get 8 proposals) in the first place? Are there functional problems with the existing equipment (besides most likely being oversized) or other comfort issues? By now we have at least established that it is likely the existing equipment is a bit oversized and the existing ductwork is marginal -- but that is (unfortunately) exceedingly common on most residential construction. Are you after more efficiency, better comfort, both? It helps us to help you when we know more about your current system's performance. Lastly, I would not factor online reviews into your decision too much. An air conditioner or furnace is not like most appliances (such as a refrigerator) in that the installation practices and quality can make or break even the best equipment selection. There is a good chance that many (but not all) of the negative reviews you read were due to installation errors. This post was edited by ryanhughes on Fri, Nov 22, 13 at 9:51