New A C advice needed. !!!!!!!

[Mudslinger]

If the Rheem lasted you that long, why not go back with it? I had a Rudd last 42 years and went back with the same brand, just a little bigger unit.

[bowhntrmatt]

I found out the hard way and didn't pay extra for the 10 year labor warranty. I have two Amana units on my five year old house. Two years ago my upstairs unit stopped cooling and it was discovered the outside unit coil leaked all the freon out. New one was ordered and several weeks later repaired and cost me 550.00. Down stairs unit stopped cooling last week. Repair man came out and discovered inside coil had a leak. He came back a couple days later with new coil and fixed it and again cost me 550.00. If I would have been smart and paid for the 10 year labor warranty, it would have all been taken care of. I don't remember what the 10 year labor warranty would have cost me but I have no confidence in either AC unit so I'm expecting more repairs in the future.

Funny. I actually carry around an Amana warranty certificate with me to show customers the fine print that a lot of companies fail to mention (nothing against amana, they just have very detailed fine print).

[TXHunter12]

Some good advice here.

To qualify myself, I am in the service/sales department of the largest residential hvac company in San antonio. I personally gross nearly $2m per year between repairs and service. I've seen awesome installs and some very horrible ones.

Don't worry so much about brand. Of the ones you listed, my personal least favorite are the trane, am. Std. Only because they are using more and more plastic in their units in place of parts previously made of metal.
Proper sizing, proper installation, and great filtration are the three most important things, along with iron-clad warranties.
Don't even consider a company that won't show you a manual j/manual d report before installation. Some guys will guess at duct sizes. Nobody is that good.

A good company should have a money back guarantee if you aren't satisfied. They should also guarantee even comfort throughout the home. Air balancing should be included in the price of the duct system.
I don't dwell on seer ratings, but typically the higher efficiency systems will also be quieter and dehumidify better.
Great filtration is also very important. A clean unit will last longer than a dirty one. You should never have to clean an evap coil if the fitration system is up to par.
Make sure to get more than just the equipment part warranty. Parts are cheap. Labor is what costs you down the road. Good companies should offer comprehensive 10yr p&l warranties.
Hope this helps. Pm me if you have any specific questions and I'm glad to help.

Can you explain the manual j manual d reports a little more. No AC person has ever mentioned these before to me.

[louie870]

[QUOTE=bowhntrmatt;9933092]Funny. I actually carry around an Amana warranty certificate with me to show customers the fine print that a lot of companies fail to mention (nothing against amana, they just have very detailed fine print).[/

[louie870]

Am I just unlucky or is Amana just junk? Not sure what I did in the above post. Lol.

[chancito1]

Some good advice here.

To qualify myself, I am in the service/sales department of the largest residential hvac company in San antonio. I personally gross nearly $2m per year between repairs and service. I've seen awesome installs and some very horrible ones.

Don't worry so much about brand. Of the ones you listed, my personal least favorite are the trane, am. Std. Only because they are using more and more plastic in their units in place of parts previously made of metal.
Proper sizing, proper installation, and great filtration are the three most important things, along with iron-clad warranties.
Don't even consider a company that won't show you a manual j/manual d report before installation. Some guys will guess at duct sizes. Nobody is that good.

A good company should have a money back guarantee if you aren't satisfied. They should also guarantee even comfort throughout the home. Air balancing should be included in the price of the duct system.
I don't dwell on seer ratings, but typically the higher efficiency systems will also be quieter and dehumidify better.
Great filtration is also very important. A clean unit will last longer than a dirty one. You should never have to clean an evap coil if the fitration system is up to par.
Make sure to get more than just the equipment part warranty. Parts are cheap. Labor is what costs you down the road. Good companies should offer comprehensive 10yr p&l warranties.
Hope this helps. Pm me if you have any specific questions and I'm glad to help.

You do know manual j can be manipulated by someone that know how right? I've seen homes with a load calc that have failed but we're used to pass city inspections. Not argueing by any means but reputation of the company is everything.

[bowhntrmatt]

You do know manual j can be manipulated by someone that know how right? I've seen homes with a load calc that have failed but we're used to pass city inspections. Not argueing by any means but reputation of the company is everything.

Exactly. Reputation is everything. A company that would do something like that is as worthless as those that don't do The proper calculations at all.

[bowhntrmatt]

Am I just unlucky or is Amana just junk? Not sure what I did in the above post. Lol.

Amana=Goodman. Not exactly synonymous with quality like carrier, Lennox, etc.

[bowhntrmatt]

Can you explain the manual j manual d reports a little more. No AC person has ever mentioned these before to me.

They are industry-approved methods of properly sizing equipment (manual j) and duct systems (manual d).

Lots of guys use rules of thumb and guesswork to size systems and duct designs. Allows them to operate much more quickly and cheaply than having the proper tools and technology, but the end result of their work is usually much sloppier.

[tpack]

Here is a bid from the Lennox AC installer. He gave me several choices to choose from. I asked for the 3 ton 16 seer bid. A 2.5 ton unit may be big enough based off of his bids. He couldn`t tell me how big my unit was based off of the information he got off of my outside unit at the time and I have not talked with him since. He did spend plenty of time looking in the attic and checking out the system in my house. I do not mind spending the extra money for a 3 ton system as long as the duct system will handle the load . The main thing I do not want to do is to get a system that is to small.

3 TON 16.5 SEER LENNOX ELITE HEAT PUMP SYSTEM WITH
WIFI ICOMFORT THERMOSTAT. THIS PRICE INCLUDES
REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT
RUN AND ENLARGING THE DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM.
THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10 YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1
YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 8,067.57


2.5 TON 15 SEER LENNOX MERIT HEAT PUMP SYSTEM WITH
DIGITAL THERMOSTAT. INCLUDES REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT
WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT RUN AND ENLARGING THE
DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM. THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10
YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1 YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 5,857.00


2.5 TON 14.5 SEER LENNOX SIGNATURE SERIES / MERIT HEAT
PUMP SYSTEM WITH WIFI ICOMFORT THERMOSTAT. INCLUDES
REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT
RUN AND ENLARGING THE DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM.
THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10 YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1
YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 6,861.00


2.5 TON 14 SEER LENNOX MERIT HEAT PUMP SYSTEM WITH
DIGITAL THERMOSTAT. INCLUDES REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT
WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT RUN AND ENLARGING THE
DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM. THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10
YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1 YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 5,607.00

[elliscountyhog]

Oh no doubt any system is only as good as the installer that's a fact that can't be argued. But apples to apples Trane properly installed vs goodman properly installed I will take the Trane all day long. I've always told my customers spend more time researching the installing company rather than brand. I have Goodmans that have been running for 20 plus years but I've also changed out more than my fair share less than 10

Agreed

[elliscountyhog]

Here is a bid from the Lennox AC installer. He gave me several choices to choose from. I asked for the 3 ton 16 seer bid. A 2.5 ton unit may be big enough based off of his bids. He couldn`t tell me how big my unit was based off of the information he got off of my outside unit at the time and I have not talked with him since. He did spend plenty of time looking in the attic and checking out the system in my house. I do not mind spending the extra money for a 3 ton system as long as the duct system will handle the load . The main thing I do not want to do is to get a system that is to small.

3 TON 16.5 SEER LENNOX ELITE HEAT PUMP SYSTEM WITH
WIFI ICOMFORT THERMOSTAT. THIS PRICE INCLUDES
REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT
RUN AND ENLARGING THE DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM.
THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10 YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1
YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 8,067.57


2.5 TON 15 SEER LENNOX MERIT HEAT PUMP SYSTEM WITH
DIGITAL THERMOSTAT. INCLUDES REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT
WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT RUN AND ENLARGING THE
DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM. THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10
YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1 YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 5,857.00


2.5 TON 14.5 SEER LENNOX SIGNATURE SERIES / MERIT HEAT
PUMP SYSTEM WITH WIFI ICOMFORT THERMOSTAT. INCLUDES
REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT
RUN AND ENLARGING THE DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM.
THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10 YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1
YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 6,861.00


2.5 TON 14 SEER LENNOX MERIT HEAT PUMP SYSTEM WITH
DIGITAL THERMOSTAT. INCLUDES REPLACING ALL FLEX DUCT
WORK AND ADDING 1 NEW DUCT RUN AND ENLARGING THE
DUCT IN THE MASTER BEDROOM. THIS EQUIPMENT HAS A 10
YEAR PARTS WARRANTY AND 1 YEAR LABOR WARRANTY 5,607.00

Is the 16 seer the XP16 two speed? If so that is a great option. Lennox makes a good unit as well.

[Maui-diver]

Contact Airhead on here. He will hook you up with the best deal out there.

[tpack]

Is the 16 seer the XP16 two speed? If so that is a great option. Lennox makes a good unit as well.

Yes it is the 2 speed .

[Axe Man]

I may be in the market very soon so tagging for info.