Need advice: how to shop for replacement home A/C unit?

[Coiled]

It's time I get serious about replacing my 30yo York plus I here there is a new, much more expensive refrigerant that will be mandated soon.

I need a package electric heat & A/C unit, everything in one box. 1 supply, 1 return air and of course electrical connections to be made.

If you have a positive recommendation, I also need a company for installation between Huntsville and Livingston.

If you do this kind of work in my area I will PM system details but for now I am omitting that info here because I'm in the shopping mode. If you know significant $aving$ come later in the year, I may delay purchase and hope my system doesn't crap out beforehand.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Lead Belly]

Refrigerant is the new "printer ink" and each company wants their own proprietary gas. Daiken here in Texas (bought Goodman) and they are huge into mini/multi-splits- up to 5 tons. I was speaking to a ac tech and he told me the new units use blended gas and must be kept to much tighter fill pressures- used to be 5 lb range was ok for R22, now it is is under a pound, so when they leak the blend of gasses escape at different rates- the lighter stuff leaves first, so the entire system must be evacuated.

He also said new copper lines are brittle garbage copper-alloy and crack easier, so they must use loctite on connections.

Split/Multi-Split Type Air Conditioners | Offers superior performance, energy-efficiency, and comfort in stylish solutions conforming to all interior spaces and lifestyles | Air Conditioning and Refrigeration | Daikin Global

www.daikin.com

 

[gasgas]

Get a Trane or American Standard unit
And upgrade to a Heat Pump unit

 

[gasgas]

Get a Trane or American Standard unit
And upgrade to a Heat Pump unit

Go to American Standard Air site for nearest dealer

 

[ZX9RCAM]

Advantages to heat pump?

 

[leVieux]

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Buy from whoever will be servicing it.

When there is a crisis and service requests are endless; companies will naturally take-care of established customers first.

Also subscribe to their routine twice-a-year preventive maintenance service.

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[pronstar]

Advantages to heat pump?

Very low heating costs, you won’t need to use backup electric or gas heat until temps drop below freezing. It really cut-down on my winter gas bills.


i recently upgraded our downstairs system. Here’s what I got and what i paid, to give you an idea of current pricing.

• Goodman 5 ton, two-speed, 19 seer
• Heat pump
• New air handler, relocated to attic
• New ducts
• Damper with separate zone for garage-conversion where my in-laws live, including their own thermostat
• Paid $14.5k

An independent shop has way less overhead than a giant company, I would start with an established local business.

 

[ZX9RCAM]

Thanks.
Not real worried about gas heating bill.
I was hoping for cheaper cooling, lol.

 

[Texasjack]

Cheap cooling just isn't a thing in this region because of the humidity. My son lived in Las Vegas for a few years and the A/C on his apartment wouldn't cool the cab of my pickup. Turn it on and in 5 minutes you could hang meat. The unit doesn't have to condense humidity.

The good news is that any new unit should be more efficient than a 30 year old one. That can have a positive effect on your electric bill. After this year, the new systems are supposed to be a lot more expensive.

When I worked in a refinery, we had some big chillers and it began to cost a fortune to keep them in Freon. We changed them to propane and solved the problem. Of course, we had a flare where we could route any leaks.

 

[oldag]

Agree on Trane or American Standard. Heat pump: I suspect most units today are heat pumps.

Do not buy the super efficient models. I ran the numbers and the payoff for the higher purchase price of the super efficient unit is way out there. Beyond 15 years IIRC.

14 SEER is plenty good.

I replaced my old a/c unit not long to avoid the increased cost coming up in 2025.

 

[Vaquero]

Mini split if feasible.
No matter what you go with, look into added insulation.
R values matter more than seer values.

And mini split systems are almost silent. Indoor and outdoor.

 

[Tblack89]

2 new freons in September, I would wait and go with r32 after September. American standard.

 

[Lonesome Dove]

Move to the high country cold air is almost free and the headlights are almost always on High beam,
you know what I'm talking about.

 

[Whistler]

Swapped my 1996 central AC w/ gas furnace for a 3 zone mini-split for the bedrooms and a bigger single zone mini-split for the living room & kitchen.

Much quieter, the electric went from over $300 to around $100. Bonus was saving $600-$800 in propane over the winter. Used a local company, cost $13k including removing the central unit.
This was before the tankless water heater which helped consume the propane. The brand is Carrier Midea if I recall.

Full disclosure; I also installed heated flooring in the bathrooms and replaced all lighting with LED which contributed to the electric bill reduction.

 

[ZX9RCAM]

Do the mini-splits also provide heat?

 

[Vaquero]

Do the mini-splits also provide heat?

Yes, most all of them are heat pumps.

 

[Whistler]

Do the mini-splits also provide heat?

Yes. They keep up okay until just below freezing but they have an electric element that supplements.

I'm in my "office" (spare bedroom), this is one of the head units they call a "high wall". As you can see it's about 6" from the ceiling.

 

[GaryS]

We recently replaced our HVAC system with a Bosch heat pump system. We used a local guy who someone we know recommended. He did a great job including adding some insulation in some areas. He also reconfigured our duct work for better air flow and added an auxiliary blower for one room that had poor airflow.

The system also had "emergency" heat strips in case it gets really cold. I think he said once the outside temperature gets below about 25 degrees we'd probabably wont' to turn those on.

Like everything else, there is an "app" to control the system remotely. Which I'd only use if we were out of town and needed to adjust the temperature to keep the cats happy.

As someone else noted, the heat pump saves needing to have a gas fired furnace. Modern systems are also much more efficient at cooling and that saves on the electric bill as well.