choosing best furnace for home remodel

[malibu.ron]

Is there a publication besides Consumer Report Magazine to help one compare home furnaces. I want to replace my home furnace for a 1600' home in a moderate climate area, Malibu, CA

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Sticking with major brand, call your local dealers for extimates and quote. Most important thing is quality of installation.

[Zyp]

Malibu.Ron

Currently in Malibu, the most popular choices have been hydronic heating with high pressure forced air. It gives you the best of several worlds. One appliance [boiler] will heat the domestic water, and, you can tie in solar. With hydronics on slab, you can heat quite comfortably the outside decking that overlooks the ocean. The same hydronics can pipe water to several fan coil units with high pressure ducting [smaller ducts than low pressure], a popular choice for large two story estates.

You should ask your design engineer what choices he's offering and what comfort level those choices will give you.

If you are just replacing an existing forced draft furnace, you might want to consult your local HVAC company. The one who installs, services and is most likely going to fix it is the one who has to back it up for the next 20 or so years. What you really want is service. You want a company who's going to stand behind the product they install, and you want a company that's going to be around as long as you are.

Consider this, the one to ask is the one who's responsible to fix it when it breaks, [and believe me, no matter what brand, they will break.] After all, that's why we're in business.

Check out

and use their contractor finder. Also, you might check out [local to you] and ask them for some recommendations. Good luck and happy hunting.

[geothermaljones]

If energy is a concern, check out a variable speed blower unit, most mfgrs have them. These typically operate at a fraction of a constant speed blower, mine is saving about $15.00 a month (operates 24/7 for comfort) Also noteworthy, even a constant speed conventional system blower will operate much cheaper than a high velocity system of similar size. High velocity systems pack a much larger motor to overcome the static pressure of the system. I've worked with 2-1/2 ton High Vel systems that had 1 HP+ blower motors. Compare this to the nominal 1/4 to 1/3 HP blower in a conventional furnace & the savings is obvious. The upgrade to a variable speed blower results in a huge savings & the comfort is far superior, which is, after all, what we're aiming for...

goodluck geothermaljones

[TH]

Just had a new 2 stage gas furnace installed. These pros are correct - the installer is the key. Next time, I'll just trust this installer to recommend the brand..