Hi, This is no brainer. Higher efficiency furnaces and higher SEER a/c units. I got digned pretty bad when I upgraded ~20 yo system during summer time. 98% efficiency furnace, 18SEER a/c and HRV box, wireless thermostat, etc. I had to cancel my summer vacation to pay for it, LOL! Utility bill shows slight barely noticeable power and gas savings.
The issue is about the higher costs of more efficient heating/cooling systems.
Issues regarding venting are only the effect, not the cause, of the increased cost.
This article came from a New Jersey news source and in New Jersey they are more concerned with heating than air conditioning. Had a similar article been written for Atlanta, the writers would have dwelled on a/c costs with only a passing mention of heating systems.
chase for the vent as well as the intake pipes. On some of the smaller furnaces all you need is a 2" PVC pipe for each. I imagine in most cases you can still find a shorter way to an outside wall but if completely stuck - there's still your old chimney right there.
are already spending a considerable amount of money. Why would you not spend perhaps less than 10% more (if even that) to install a much more efficient furnace that creates the same amount of heat using less gas? Makes no sense to me to object to a good thing only because "the government mandated it". Even with gas prices falling right now, I believe it's still worth getting a more efficient furnace - never know where the price is going to be in the future. And regardless, even after the 40%+ fall this year, it's still far from being free.
But that is sensible reasoning that doesn't flow with the normal heybub drama...
I did a lot of residential HVAC work with my late friend GB but most of the work I do now is commercial. A few weeks ago I did get a call from a little 90 year old lady who was a customer of mine and GB's to come out and fix her furnace. ^_^
Yeah, pretty much. Used to be able to burn leaves. Not now. Have to pay for front end loaders and dump trucks to haul them away. R-12. Catalytic converters. CFL's. No smoking in hospitals. On and on and on. This is the best part of the posted article.
"There?s still another concern ? and another possible cost ? if a home has a standard 40- or 50-gallon gas water heater. Those heaters are generally vented through the chimney along with the older furnaces. But after removing the old furnace venting pipe, there is not enough heat generated in the chimney by the water heater venting pipe alone to prevent condensation from occurring. And that condensation will include sulfuric acid, which can eat away at a chimney?s mortar joints. Re-venting the water heater could increase the total cost of the new furnace project by $3,000 to $4,000, Baum said."
So in that world gas furnaces run winter and summer to provide draft for the water heater. Strange world. But does add "$3,000 to $4,000" to get the Chicken Littles flapping and clucking.
Don't keep us in suspense. What did the furnace need, and did she feed you cookies?
Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus
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I did a lot of residential HVAC work with my late friend GB but most of the work I do now is commercial. A few weeks ago I did get a call from a little 90 year old lady who was a customer of mine and GB's to come out and fix her furnace. ^_^
for the vent as well as the intake pipes. On some of the smaller furnaces all you need is a 2" PVC pipe for each. I imagine in most cases you can still find a shorter way to an outside wall but if completely stuck - there's still your old chimney right there.
are already spending a considerable amount of money. Why would you not spend perhaps less than 10% more (if even that) to install a much more efficient furnace that creates the same amount of heat using less gas? Makes no sense to me to object to a good thing only because "the government mandated it". Even with gas prices falling right now, I believe it's still worth getting a more efficient furnace - never know where the price is going to be in the future. And regardless, even after the 40%+ fall this year, it's still far from being free. Hopefully the NEW 95%+ furnaces last longer than the ones sold as little as 7 or 8 years ago. I went for the highest efficiency non condensing furnace I could buy when I replaced mine 9 years ago after my brother replaced his new condensing furnace after less than 2 years due to repetative expensive failures.
I had repaired her furnace a year or two back after GB died when her basement flooded and destroyed the control board. Some moron from another service company had bypassed the flame roll-out switch which resulted it the wiring harness being burned up. Repairing the wiring and replacing the board had it running for at least a year but a few weeks ago the furnace quit and I found that a delayed reaction with moisture had damaged the circuit board in the Honeywell Smart Gas Valve. I replaced the gas valve and everything was back to working as normal. Me and GB had pumped out her basement several years ago and replaced the sump pump, check valve and pipes. The later flood happened due to a power outage during a heavy rain. Now I'm checking into a backup sump pump solution for her. I'm going to take care of the elderly customers as best I can because some jerk is going to show up and rip them off. My late friend GB and me helped out a lot of older folks and last week I was over at his 78 year old sister's place fixing her tankless water heater. Now I have to put together a kit to clean tankless water heaters. ^_^
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