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Necessary to cover top of central AC intake in winter?

Ditto

Reply to
DerbyDad03
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Well, you caught me! I also handle snakes and speak in tongues when I put the cover on! ; - ) JimCo

Reply to
JimCo

And, only thier guy has the power to do it right?

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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sounds rather catholic (cult like) to me.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I bet your AC lasts longer than you do? The snakes thing makes a difference, you know.

Tongues -- that's when you're touching the 220 VAC power feed?

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Well, you caught me! I also handle snakes and speak in tongues when I put the cover on! ; - ) JimCo

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

If you use it much, you'd have been better off it it failed instead of being preserved. Like what's the efficiency of that beast? It's probably half of a typical one that is sold today.

Reply to
trader4

If you use it much, you'd have been better off it it failed instead of being preserved. Like what's the efficiency of that beast? It's probably half of a typical one that is sold today.

You're right--it's probably very inefficient. When we get into a couple of heat waves as we did last summer my electric bill climbs well above normal. Lucky about one thing though that does reduces the pain--my city has it's own (municipal) power company and if you pay your bill before a specified date you get a 20% discount which can be quite substantial. However, being in the Northeast it really doesn't run all that much compared to a warmer climate, so I'll stick with it for as long as it lasts. MLD

Reply to
MLD

Of course, you'd still get that 20% discount off of your lower bill.

All it would take is a little math to determine the pay back period of a new unit and you'd know for sure how much more the '70's vintage unit is actually costing you over the long run. A fairly short payback period might change your mind about sticking with it for as long as it lasts.

Another thought....

I don't know anything about the economic health of your municipality, but if things are similar to most other places in the country, how confident are you that the 20% discount will remain available for as long as your old unit lasts?

Reply to
DerbyDad03

A thorough professional cleaning can restore a lot of the lost efficiency. I know, I've done enough cleanings.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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You're right--it's probably very inefficient. When we get into a couple of heat waves as we did last summer my electric bill climbs well above normal. Lucky about one thing though that does reduces the pain--my city has it's own (municipal) power company and if you pay your bill before a specified date you get a 20% discount which can be quite substantial. However, being in the Northeast it really doesn't run all that much compared to a warmer climate, so I'll stick with it for as long as it lasts. MLD

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Of course, you'd still get that 20% discount off of your lower bill.

All it would take is a little math to determine the pay back period of a new unit and you'd know for sure how much more the '70's vintage unit is actually costing you over the long run. A fairly short payback period might change your mind about sticking with it for as long as it lasts.

Another thought....

I don't know anything about the economic health of your municipality, but if things are similar to most other places in the country, how confident are you that the 20% discount will remain available for as long as your old unit lasts?

A new unit would cost several thousand dollars (just a wild guess). We use AC here in Ma, on average, about 2 months of the year (July and Aug and maybe, the odd year, a piece of June. Even then it's not a 24/7 type of use but generally just several days at a time--a heat wave (if and when we get one) might last for a week and then it's over for a while. So if I spend $100+/year extra for electricity then my payback time is about 25-30 years--At my age, hardly an incentive to go for a new unit. With respect to receiving the 20% discount--well, they've been giving it for the last 50 years with no indication what so ever of taking it away. It's one perk that will probably never go away since the power company has always been a profitable enterprise for the city. MLD

Reply to
MLD

If you can run a central AC for that money, you are doing good. My window shaker cost me about $200 to $250 for normal summer.

Heat, OTOH, can be quite expensive if you have oil. The best time was a couple of years ago with a tax credit, but even today, many units can easily pay for themselves just out of the savings. If your unit is as old as the AC, consider it.

My oil savings this year will be about $135 a month versus the $68 payment on a no interest finance by the state. What's not to like?

Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

Don't use oil--Have a natural gas 90+% efficient, condensing furnace. It's a two stage with a variable speed fan. Gas bill is not that high even in the cold months. Keep the house at 69 F during the day and 65 F at night. MLD

Reply to
MLD

And imagine how much your customers would have saved if they had a "thorough professional cleaning" instead of whatever service you provided.

Reply to
Larry W

You're wrong, I don't doubt.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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And imagine how much your customers would have saved if they had a "thorough professional cleaning" instead of whatever service you provided.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Yes, I was talking about if the outside compressor/condenser unit failed. That wouldn't give me any inclination to do anything with the furnace.

But if I was replacing my furnace, I think I would want a new A/C system then. Kind of like if I'm pulling a cam cover to do a timing belt on a car I'll put in a new water pump. Nearly all the labor is getting in there. I don't know how this works with HVAC, or how evap coils go with a particular furnace or condenser unit, is why I asked. I'm not even considering system efficiency, just component longevity, and the "sweet spot" to go ahead and replace them all at one time.

Since I had a new furnace and central A/C put in at the same time, I'm ignorant of the separate costs.

--Vic

Reply to
Vic Smith

I suspect that the old R-22 will be around for a long time. I've worked with it for years, and seems to do the job.

Some companies are pushing the new Puron stuff. I'll have to get some training before too long. More gages and tanks of gas to haul around.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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If you have the money and can afford it, by all means upgrade. You'll save money in the long run with a higher efficiency unit. When you say replace compressor, I assume you mean the whole condensing unit which is the outdoor/hot part. New R22 systems are no longer being shipped but dry/without Freon replacement units designed for R22 are sold for repair purposes. I've installed a number of them where the indoor coil and furnace were in good shape and the customer didn't want to shell out thousands for a complete new system. There is still a lot of R22 along with many 100w light bulbs sitting in warehouses. ^_^

TDD

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I think you did OK. I'd never turn down money but I'll always tell a customer the truth, lies are too hard to keep up with. ^_^

TDD

Reply to
The Daring Dufas

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