Bob, there's an old adage that the company name on the technician's shirt is more important than the company name on the equipment. Follow up on legit references to know which are the better HVAC contractors to work with. Tell them your requirements and expectations and let them make suggestions - that's their job, not yours. The quality operators provide and install equipment they use most that they rely on to provide customers with the HVAC capabilities they have to stand behind.

I'm a homeowner myself, this was the advice I was given and followed a few years ago for complete furnace and AC equipment replacement in my two houses in two different areas and I could not have been more pleased with the outcome.

PS - At least a few years ago, Bryant equipment (another Carrier brand) was model for model identical to Carrier equipment but a little less expensive. Both of the contractors I used provided Bryant equipment. Think of GM's Cadillac vs Chevrolet in the old days, same cars, same internals, just a different name on the outside and different price ranges.

Note that there are multiple Carrier Corporation brands that sell exactly the same product. These are all the same except for the appearance:

• Carrier 19VS
• Bryant 189BNV
• Heil HVA9
• Comfortmaker CVA9
• Tempstar TVA9
• Day & Night CVA9
• Arcoaire HVA9

There appears to be a shortage of products so your dealer may install a different brand than you expected depending upon what's in the warehouse. I requested a Heil packaged heat pump but received a Carrier instead.

The Bryant 186CNV (aka Carrier 24VNA6) claims to be exceptionally quiet.

I can't answer your question about sizing, but I purchased my packaged heat pump from Cool Breeze in Rockville which had the lowest price and did a very good installation job except for not wiring the thermostat correctly for two-stage operation.

You are probably are not going to find an HVAC consultant. Hopefully one of the 4 HVAC contractors sits down with you and discuss the various equipment options and give you price quotes.

The compressor and a heat pump air handler will be installed...

The equipment which sits outside is called a condenser. The compressor sits inside the condenser. You listed Carrier AC condensers, but you mentioned installing a heat pump and air handler. Are you looking at a separate air handler and heat pump?

The Carrier Performance 2-stage gas furnace, and 2-stage AC condenser would be a good choice in my opinion. The Carrier Infinity has become very expensive in recent years and may not be a good value for your climate. I don't think you need to spend the money on a Carrier Greenspeed 24VNA6 for quieter operation. The Greenspeed required a noise muffler to be installed in the field. I don't know if that is still true with the latest model. This may be a reason why one contractor is advising against it. I also think contractors may be promoting models they know are currently available at the distributor. This makes the equipment selection even more complicated.

Of the ICP brands, Carrier has the biggest model line up, followed by Bryant. All the other brands have a smaller subset of the Carrier models and tend to be more basic type of equipment.

If sound performance is important, go for the Infinity condenser which has a compressor sound blanket as standard. The Performance series used to have them but it looks like Carrier discontinued this. Alternatively, you can order a sound blanket for the Performance condenser from Carrier (~$120) or a generic one from Brinmar (~$60).

Hi, Bob,

You have HVAC consultants right in your backyard:

https://pegenv.com/hvac-design-services/

Thanks to all of you for your comments and the education it is providing me. HVAC is clearly an area where ideally I'd be able to "leave it to the professionals" and take the advice of a trusted professional. Unfortunately after working with a firm for 10 years (installations at two houses) they installed a heat pump incorrectly, and that did not meet my visibility or loudness requirements (other units were available but they did not offer them) - and they were unwilling to change the system or make other concessions after the installation. So this time I'm getting educated and aiming to be very clear in the requirements that I give to whichever contractor I pick.

BTW, while I am focusing on the condenser I am replacing, we will also be moving the heat pump air handler near the condenser, both near those bedroom windows. With the issues Austin brought up about the 24VNA9 unit, the 24ANB6 (66 db) and 24APB6 (68db) are attractive. Any issues with using the Infinity 24ANB6 with a Performance 59TP6B 2 stage furnace and CNPVP coil?

I "hear" your concerns about putting the condenser and air handler near bedrooms. The alternative (where they are now) is on the street side of the house and unattractive both from the street and looking out the sunroom window next to them. I will likely rig a test with my stereo and play "white noise" at 68 to 70 db where the units may be installed near bedrooms and see what it sounds like from inside the bedrooms. I also recognize a big issue is the turn-on noise, which I won't be able to simulate. I will plan on investing in a sound blanket both for the condenser and for the air handler. That seems like all I can do to minimize the noises.

Again, thank you all for your inputs,

Bob C

I took a quick look at the AHRI Directory. The Carrier models you listed are valid matches. Depending on the size and exact model the EER rating would be 11.5-13, and the SEER rating would be 14-16. The furnace AFUE (efficiency rating) would be 95%-96.5% When you get the complete model numbers we can look up the AHRI directory number and the associated ratings.