I don't mean to jack the thread, but I'm looking to replace my HVAC system also, or at least my furnace, which broke down three days ago. I'm looking to replace the 21 year-old furnace, and possibly the AC also. I would rather replace the furnace now, and the AC when the weather is more conducive, but I don't know how practical that is or isn't. I'm heating the house just fine with the wood stove, but it's surprisingly bothersome not to have that furnace to back us up, even though it sometimes goes weeks at a time without being used.
I was going to PM Churchmouse, but I hate to bother a man when he might be enjoying kicking back on a snow day.
I do have questions about my situation:
1. The old furnace is a 100,000 btu 80+ unit, and I think the AC is 3 ton or so. My instinct is to stay with an 80+ unit, since my house is small (1650 sq.ft.), very well insulated, and since we burn wood routinely. And, I also like the idea of the 80+ unit being more simple and basic, being more durable in the long run, and easier to fix if/when it has a problem. I would just like to know if there is a down-side to an 80+ unit that I'm not thinking of?
2. Also, I know my AC, being 21 years old, is on borrowed time, and if that needs to be replaced with the furnace, I can do that. I just was thinking that if I could get a new furnace now, it would be quicker and easier to change that out, and do the AC in the spring. I know that there are problems with using a new furnace with old AC units and vice versa, but it seems like it would be a chore to replace the AC in this weather, and I'd like to get a new furnace sooner than later. I plan to call Alaska Heating and Cooling (in Albany) tomorrow and get a guy to come take a look and discuss my options.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Heat pump with natural gas backup is the best “normal” system.
Radiant floor heat is awesome, but expensive/complex.
Geothermal loops are awesome but expensive/complex.
The problem when you get into the 90+% furnaces and high seer uber-efficient a/c systems is the price of the parts when (not if) they fail. Yeah you’re saving some money in your energy bill but then a blower motor goes out and it’s $600+ instead of $100. Or an a/c compressor goes out and it’s $1000+ instead of $500-ish. Not to mention all of the extra control boards and circuit boards to run the high efficient systems.
I’d go high dollar on the housing insulation because it doesn’t degrade and doesn’t need service. Get the house sealed up tight and you’d be surprised how little it takes to heat/cool a home.
I'm sure things have changed since my younger years when I did heat loss calculations for residential and commercial rooms. But I still think I would prefer a gas fired hot water boiler with cast iron baseboard. Plus by sizing how many feet of baseboard you put in each room, you can "zone" each room so that temps are more consistent room to room. Of course you can also zone hot water systems too.
The concept of radiant heat from a baseboard is that the items in the room are heated, not necessarily the air like you get with scorched air systems. Studies have shown that people are more comfortable in a room with cooler air temps but warmer furniture, flooring, etc.
But I'm not sure hot water baseboard is used anymore. Most likely due to the high installation cost.
We just put a new furnace and air conditioner in on Friday.
Yikes.
We ended up going with a Lennox Signature furnace and a Lennox Elite air conditioner. It was...er, costly.
I'm also a little bummed out. The furnace they removed was a Bryant installed in 1979, and it still worked...well, usually. The A/C was a GE made in Dayton Ohio and installed in 1982...still worked, although it ran all the time...still, not bad for forty years in-service. I don't figure I'll get much more than 10 years out of the new stuff. I wanted to have a wood-burning stove installed (emergency heat only) along with the new furnace, but my insurance didn't like that idea, so it didn't happen.
It's disappointing because it doesn't seem like my dollars buy as much as they did even a few years ago, and the stuff they do buy doesn't last nearly as long. It's hard to buy or build with an eye toward longevity anymore.
Anyway...the Lennox stuff has a decent warranty, it's assembled in the US (if you get the upper-mid grade or better), and has locally-based distributors, so they check enough of my "buy local" boxes. I had a trusted local company do the install, and I am impressed with the quality of the machinery and the work. Runs quiet, and not very often from what I can tell. Thermostat is my phone...also a ipad-like thing on the wall, but there's no need to taunt that...I leave it alone and it does its thing.
We did a bunch of research before we bought. I didn't find reviews very helpful, as pretty much every brand has some awful reviews. I ended up making my decision based on the anecdotal evidence I collected from family and friends...and rolled the dice.
Good luck. Buying a furnace is like buying a car. There's just too much hype and BS. Hopefully Churchmouse chimes in on this thread, he is a wealth of knowledge on HVAC stuff.
I don't mean to jack the thread, but I'm looking to replace my HVAC system also, or at least my furnace, which broke down three days ago. I'm looking to replace the 21 year-old furnace, and possibly the AC also. I would rather replace the furnace now, and the AC when the weather is more conducive, but I don't know how practical that is or isn't. I'm heating the house just fine with the wood stove, but it's surprisingly bothersome not to have that furnace to back us up, even though it sometimes goes weeks at a time without being used.
I was going to PM Churchmouse, but I hate to bother a man when he might be enjoying kicking back on a snow day.
I do have questions about my situation:
1. The old furnace is a 100,000 btu 80+ unit, and I think the AC is 3 ton or so. My instinct is to stay with an 80+ unit, since my house is small (1650 sq.ft.), very well insulated, and since we burn wood routinely. And, I also like the idea of the 80+ unit being more simple and basic, being more durable in the long run, and easier to fix if/when it has a problem. I would just like to know if there is a down-side to an 80+ unit that I'm not thinking of?
2. Also, I know my AC, being 21 years old, is on borrowed time, and if that needs to be replaced with the furnace, I can do that. I just was thinking that if I could get a new furnace now, it would be quicker and easier to change that out, and do the AC in the spring. I know that there are problems with using a new furnace with old AC units and vice versa, but it seems like it would be a chore to replace the AC in this weather, and I'd like to get a new furnace sooner than later. I plan to call Alaska Heating and Cooling (in Albany) tomorrow and get a guy to come take a look and discuss my options.
Any advice would be appreciated.
You can get a heat pump with gas forced air as a backup.
We ended up going with a Lennox Signature furnace and a Lennox Elite air conditioner.
I don't mean to jack the thread, but I'm looking to replace my HVAC system also, or at least my furnace, which broke down three days ago. I'm looking to replace the 21 year-old furnace, and possibly the AC also. I would rather replace the furnace now, and the AC when the weather is more conducive, but I don't know how practical that is or isn't. I'm heating the house just fine with the wood stove, but it's surprisingly bothersome not to have that furnace to back us up, even though it sometimes goes weeks at a time without being used.
I was going to PM Churchmouse, but I hate to bother a man when he might be enjoying kicking back on a snow day.
I do have questions about my situation:
1. The old furnace is a 100,000 btu 80+ unit, and I think the AC is 3 ton or so. My instinct is to stay with an 80+ unit, since my house is small (1650 sq.ft.), very well insulated, and since we burn wood routinely. And, I also like the idea of the 80+ unit being more simple and basic, being more durable in the long run, and easier to fix if/when it has a problem. I would just like to know if there is a down-side to an 80+ unit that I'm not thinking of?
2. Also, I know my AC, being 21 years old, is on borrowed time, and if that needs to be replaced with the furnace, I can do that. I just was thinking that if I could get a new furnace now, it would be quicker and easier to change that out, and do the AC in the spring. I know that there are problems with using a new furnace with old AC units and vice versa, but it seems like it would be a chore to replace the AC in this weather, and I'd like to get a new furnace sooner than later. I plan to call Alaska Heating and Cooling (in Albany) tomorrow and get a guy to come take a look and discuss my options.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Hybrids aren't a bad way to go if you have a tight envelope. It just doesn't have the nostalgia of a wood stove or an insert.
We just put a new furnace and air conditioner in on Friday.
Yikes.
We ended up going with a Lennox Signature furnace and a Lennox Elite air conditioner. It was...er, costly.
I'm also a little bummed out. The furnace they removed was a Bryant installed in 1979, and it still worked...well, usually. The A/C was a GE made in Dayton Ohio and installed in 1982...still worked, although it ran all the time...still, not bad for forty years in-service. I don't figure I'll get much more than 10 years out of the new stuff. I wanted to have a wood-burning stove installed (emergency heat only) along with the new furnace, but my insurance didn't like that idea, so it didn't happen.
It's disappointing because it doesn't seem like my dollars buy as much as they did even a few years ago, and the stuff they do buy doesn't last nearly as long. It's hard to buy or build with an eye toward longevity anymore.
Anyway...the Lennox stuff has a decent warranty, it's assembled in the US (if you get the upper-mid grade or better), and has locally-based distributors, so they check enough of my "buy local" boxes. I had a trusted local company do the install, and I am impressed with the quality of the machinery and the work. Runs quiet, and not very often from what I can tell. Thermostat is my phone...also a ipad-like thing on the wall, but there's no need to taunt that...I leave it alone and it does its thing.
We did a bunch of research before we bought. I didn't find reviews very helpful, as pretty much every brand has some awful reviews. I ended up making my decision based on the anecdotal evidence I collected from family and friends...and rolled the dice.
Good luck. Buying a furnace is like buying a car. There's just too much hype and BS. Hopefully Churchmouse chimes in on this thread, he is a wealth of knowledge on HVAC stuff.
Stay away from the Hybrids. Just do not go there.
I'll bite... what's wrong with them?