HELP I need 2 new furnaces!! Single or dual 80% or 90% single or variable speed fan

[yellowdogs1]

I have cracks in the heat exchangers in 2 yes 2 different gas furnaces so both will have to be replaced. They are 18 years old and I did have

2 different companies come out to check them. I did not tell the second one that there were cracks I just had them come to do a preseason check. Both techs found the cracks in the exact same spots so they must be there. Each one told me that I needed to put in 90% dual stage with variable speed fan furnaces. The more I am reading the more I am thinking that that is not what I want to put in. Let's take into account that I cannot afford to put that in unless absolutely my only choice. One unit will be a 2 ton and the other a 2.5 ton. I am in Colorado. For the money what would be the best furnace to put in. One recommended American Standard the other Trane. What brands are most reliable? Thanks for your inputs.

[Bubba]

The brand put in by the most reliable, competent, insured, licensed hvac contractor. Focus on the contractor, not the "box". Bubba

[daytona]

At this point in the economy and price of utilities.......the most efficient is the way to go. The variable speed DC motor will also give you the most savings for your investment dollar. The return on the investment will be faster in MOST cases. American-Standard and Trane are the same equipment, made by the same manufacture "American-Standard"...who owns Trane. Also there is a 10 year parts and labor that can be purchased to cover you for any break downs. But if you read Consumer Reports...you can see that A/S & Trane are in the top 3......and Rudd and Rudd are in the top 4-5 slots. Other name brands .... surprisingly are DOWN the list.

YOUR CHOICE...my $.02

[daytona]

At this point in the economy and price of utilities.......the most efficient is the way to go. The variable speed DC motor will also give you the most savings for your investment dollar. The return on the investment will be faster in MOST cases. American-Standard and Trane are the same equipment, made by the same manufacture "American-Standard"...who owns Trane. Also there is a 10 year parts and labor that can be purchased to cover you for any break downs. But if you read Consumer Reports...you can see that A/S & Trane are in the top 3......and Rudd and Rudd are in the top 4-5 slots. Other name brands .... surprisingly are DOWN the list.

YOUR CHOICE...my $.02

[MikeT]

I installed an American Standard Freedom 80 two-stage in my house (had it installed I should say) a few years ago, with a White Rogers 1F95-371 dual stage stat. I love it, it hardly ever kicks in high stage and is quiet.

I did have the blower motor die within 6 months, and it was replaced, everything has been fine since.

[Tekkie®]

MikeT posted for all of us...

Isn't dat nize! Oy vey

[Bubba]

However...........if "it hardly ever kicks in high stage" then the furnace is most likely oversized. Bubba

[Power's Mechanical]

Pj our resident crack puppet suggested that youre getting ripped off because they didnt show you the cracks. He assumes you asked I guess. Disregard his BS and listen to me.

Your question is which furnace is best, a two stage variable speed furnace or something less. In your climate I would reccomend a 90 plus. It will probably pay for itself in five years, give or take. Dont consider anything less than a 90 percent or better furnace. FWIW I think Amana has the highest effiency rating at 94-6 percent.

Now, do you want get to the regular 90 or a variable speed two stage

1. In reality one over the other is not noticebly cheaper to run over the course of a season. Your probably talking dollars instead of hundreds of dollars ok. The big differance is in comfort with the variable speed two stage being the tops in comfort. The question is how comfortable do you want to be, and at what cost. Keep in mind that the more bells and whistles there are, the more it going to cost in repair.

They say here that the contractor is important and that is true to a degree. They say that here because most of these guys are one man shows and they are the "contractor". I know, thats a scarey thought but remember, its not so much the company name that is important as it is the individual actually doing the work.

The most important thing to remember in this group is Pj is nothing but a scum bag hacker who is only here to spam his bug and spyware ridden software. Everything he knows about HVAC is due to his lurking here for 10 years and Google. Take his shit for the grain of salt it is and good luck.

[gofish]

yeah? what if the cooling load is 57,978 btu and the heating load is

37,856 btu. Guess what? Nobody makes a 40,000 btu 5 ton furnace. So instead we sell a 80,000 two stage furnace, because 75-80k is the smallest size that comes with a 5 ton blower.....I run a 2 stage 60k furnace in my own home, and 2nd stage isnt even wired in.

[Oscar_Lives]

We can't help it if you do half-assed work!

[daytona]

YEP

[Bubba]

Then you should move to a climate where you can make a furnace and air conditioner match the load for the home. :-) Oh, and you should get rid of that 2 stg 60K in your home because it wont handle a 5 ton blower either. :-) Bubba

[MikeT]

Quite possible, was old 70% 125k Lennox previous, the company just downsized to an 80K 80%. No calcs done, would never call them again.

[MikeT]

Yes it is, thank-you for saying!