Thanks Tiger and Mike Do you mean that this: 3 ton,up to 16 SEER, Puron, Performance Series, Condenser Model # 24ABC636A003 Is not a Performance model but actually a Comfort one? Do you recommend the performance over the comfort? I see your listed models above are for the comfort series. As for the second part: 3 ton, Deluxe Fixed Fan Coil with Puron, Comfort Series, Model # FX4DNF037000 Is this where I should be looking at getting a variable speed to decrease noise? This will be the unit in the attic - correct? As for returns, there will be a single return at the top of the stairs on the second floor. The layout is very open downstairs and the expectation is that warm moist air would easily rise up there and be returned. Haven't heard anything on the filtration. Good point on labor warranty. Plan to be here 20+ years. Will inquire. Thanks again. Really appreciate it (as you can tell, totally clueless on this). E

Well, after MANY, MANY load calculations, inspections, and load calculations, I have finally signed a contract. I wanted to post my decision back here for others to use in the future. I ended up going with an HVAC contractor that I have used for a number of years (about 12 years on three different houses). His pricing was middle of the road to slightly higher than most, but I do trust his expertise and his work. SECOND FLOOR SYSTEM After careful inspection of ductwork in both my attic (second floor) system and my main (first/basement) system, it was found that my returns were in adequate for the second floor system. He has proposed to add two returns from our central upstairs hallways to compliment the individual returns in each bedroom. Additionally, he recommended dampering all the runs and replacing two of the longest runs with a larger diameter duct. Additionally, he is replacing the leaking Carrier coil and condenser with a TRANE 2.5T XR15 (4TTR5030) A/C unit and 4TXCB031 coil. He will reuse the existing lineset (and flush, wash, rinse, and vacuum procedure). He assures me the lineset is in good shape and correct in size. We will also resuse the existing thermostat that currently runs the system (a carrier). He will also resuse the 6" Aprilaire media cabinet. Further, he will seal all ductwork with a brush on mastic. He is doing all this for $3774 which includes a 10 year parts and 3 year labor warranty. MAIN SYSTEM - FIRST FLOOR/BASEMENT The net outcome of all the inspections for this system was that (1) my A/C unit was oversized (2) my ductwork was poorly sealed and not dampered (3) I needed a "wrap" added to my furnace along with a second filter to allow adequate return air flow to the furnace. The other determination was this furnace was in poor condition and the blower motor needed replacement and the furnace did not burn cleanly and efficiently. It was repairable, however, I decided to replace it and pair my main system with a very new high efficiency VS furnace to take advantage of a 2 stage A/C unit for this level that could help drive out the high humidity levels in the house better. What I am purchasing for this system is: Trane 95% XV95 Furnace variable speed, 2 stage heating (TUHMC100ACV4A) Trane 4.0T XL20i dual compressor A/C unit 4TZCC008CC3HCA coil Trane Comfortlink II Thermostat (2) 4" pleated media filters (along with a furnace "wrap" for return air) Trane humidifer Dampering all runs for main system and balance all registers with CFM meter Sealing all ducts and returns with paint on mastic to prevent air leakage New Lineset This system qualifies for $500 federal tax credit and $400 Duke Energy credit 10 year parts (12 on compressor) / 3 years labor $11,225 In the end, I think we will have a system that not only works, but hopefully increases our comfort in the home. I'd like to thank everyone who helped me gather information and pointed me in the right direction to asking good questions and getting the real issues with this system (particularly Tigerdunes and Baldloonie). I doubt I would have made as wise a choice without your help. The systems will be installed in (3) days. (1) day for the upstairs unit and (2) days for the downstairs system. I'll post after the system is up and running with my opinions on how it works. Michael

I'm in the LA area too and I've been trying to replace my broken down 3.5 ton condenser. Unfortunately, I've been stuck doing too much research (analysis paralysis), but I've learned a lot. My house is 1430 sqft, long wall faces east and gets the hot afternoon sun, I'm on a raised foundation with crawl space, insulation R25 in attic, hardwood floors, no insulation in walls, double pane windows, built in 1952, 3 bd, 2 ba, etc. You need to get someone to do a load calculation (Manual J) which takes into account your insulation in the attic, insulation in the walls, insulation in the crawl space, sqft of windows facing east/west/south/north, sqft walls facing east/west, sqft of doors, type of floor, volume of your house, sqft of house, temperatures that you want to set inside the house in winter/summer, climate in your area, number of people in house, number of appliances, etc. All these factors determine your cooling needs in the summer and your heating needs in the winter. Or you can learn how to do this yourself at http://loadcalc.net I would guesstimate that no insulation in the attic, no insulation on the walls, no insulation under the floor, and drafty old windows probably raises your cooling needs to close to 5-tons. A 5-ton condenser and matching furnace are a lot more expensive to run/operate than a 3-ton system. I ran the numbers on my house and my cooling needs were a little over 4 tons without attic insulation and without wall insulation. I have R25 in the attic and I'm adding R15 wall insulation as I type this message and my cooling needs went down to a little under 3 tons (at 35.5k BTUs). So, my wall and attic insulation reduced my cooling needs by 1-ton (a little over 12k BTUs). I think the attic insulation makes more of a difference than the the wall insulation, so I recommend that you get that done asap. It really helps. Now, getting back to equipment. I've been following the advice on this forum not to get low end equipment. This advice has taken me in a two month quest for a reasonably priced mid-level equipment from a good company (Trane, American Standard, Rheem), but I'm having trouble finding it. The best quotes I've gotten are for Amana and Lennox. The most expensive are for Trane, AS, and Rheem. Goodman is very popular probably because of the price. They have good warranty, but the equipment is not well regarded in this forum. Almost everyone says it's better to get a great installer with low end equipment than high-end reliable equipment with a bad installer. I think I met two really bad installers and two good installers. It's a feeling, but it's hard to know for sure. Some dealers send their salesperson to talk to you, so you never meet the installer. One way to protect yourself is to get a permit. In my area, this ensures that the refrigerant level is checked to make sure it's appropriate for your system. That's all the permit does in my city. Another way to protect yourself is to qualify for rebates. The rebates from So Cal Edison require an outside inspector to inspect/test your ducts and install. The problem with rebates is that it costs more money to pay for these tests and the installers/dealers build in a markup when you try to get rebates. I got quotes with rebates from Lennox and Rheem and both were in the $9500 range with the possibility to get about $2700 in rebates. It's scary trying to qualify for the rebates because you might have to pay additional fees in repairs in order to meet the requirements of the rebates. Now that I've written a book on this topic, my advice to you is to get a load calculation done and see what your heating and cooling needs are. Figure out if it's worth getting the attic insulation to cut down on equipment size. Remember that it's more expensive to run a 5-ton system than a 3-ton system of equal SEER. Oversized equipment might cause your system to short-cycle which may be bad for the equipment. In So Cal, we really need the a/c and not the heater so much. So, matching a 5-ton a/c condenser with the right 5-ton 2000 CFM blower in a furnace will result in an oversized furnace. Your heating needs are probably 3-tons 36K BTUs without insulation, but you are putting a 100K BTU furnace in order to get the matching blower in the furnace to blow the cooling air at the right speed. Also, 3-ton equipment is cheaper than 5-ton equipment. So, the savings in equipment price and the operational savings can probably pay for your attic insulation. I'm paying $1600 to insulate all my outside walls. I insulated my attic myself using encapsulated batts from Home Depot. I might have to pay a little extra fill in some of the attic areas that I didn't do such a great job on. I'm talking to the wall insulators about doing this extra work for a small fee. I want them to blow some loose cellulose into those areas that need it. Okay, you might not have finished reading all this, but see my other posts on price and equipment. I researched 3-ton systems.

Oh, no way, a failure by you, someone who's helping folks in your spare time?! No way! (I hope you were joking.) By "not a single person mentioned", I meant like installers when they came to give estimates, not anyone here. No trouble, it's all a learning experience. Yes, I had a media cabinet installed, but it was a Honeywell. I couldn't convince my installer to get the official Ruud cabinet. I wouldn't even call the condensate issue a failure necessarily by my installer, because he is right that my sump pump should work in freezing weather. Just these furnaces still aren't common in my area, so I'm surprised there aren't more words of caution out there. (In fact, my emergency handyman who came out that night cause I thought something had burst -- services rental properties as his full-time job -- turned to me and said "I haven't seen this before but your furnace is discharging water.") My installer is considering a condensate pump and there's a slight issue where the outdoor temp isn't being read. But overall, I'm super happy with my 96% Ruud and EcoNet thermostat. The thermostat tells me whether it's running high or low stage, I've been told I'm spending too much time with it. I can't thank everyone here enough. In the end, I was able to find a great HVAC team. It's been quite the adventure. I'll post pictures soon. The duct work is a masterpiece, everything was turned 90 degrees because otherwise code required I create a service opening in the wall.