Need opinions, Carrier vs Rheem (4-ton, 12SEER unit)

[Travis Jordan]

Going from 13.0 SEER to 15.0 SEER means you'll save about 15% on your air conditioning bill. Where I live the electric power rate is about

10.5 cent / KWh (all taxes, fees, etc. included). Let's assume yours is the same for this exercise. 4 Tons is 48,000 BTU. At 13 SEER a 48K BTU system will consume approximately (48K/13) 3.7KW. At 15 SEER the power usage would be (48K/15) 3.2KW. So for every hour that the system runs you will save approximately (3.7 - 3.2)= .5KW x $.105 = $.0525, or a lttle over 5 cents an hour. If your A/C is sized correctly it should run about 50% of the time on a 24 hour basis. So .0525 x 12 = .63/day, or about $19.00 a month during peak summer temperatures. Let's say there are five months a year where the A/C runs 50% of the time, the rest of the year it doesn't run a significant amount.

Now we consider the opportunity cost on the $1000 incremental cost. If you were to invest it at 3.5% (Emigrant Direct's current money market rate) you'd earn $35 a year. Depending on your tax bracket that might be a $28 net return. Incorporating this into our calculation we get $19*5 months - $28 opportunity cost = $67 net savings/year. If you 'invest' the $1000 to net $67 in savings it will take 14.9 years to recover your 'investment', assuming that electric rates don't go up.

Is it worth it? In most cases, no. YMMV.

[Travis Jordan]

You are welcome! Good luck with whatever system you choose.

[Travis Jordan]

And don't forget to have your contractor perform a full room-by-room "Manual J" heat gain calculation before you finalize the system size. Four tons may be OK, but it could also be oversized or undersized. The only way to 'right size' it is through a formal calculation. Your contractor should be willing to do this as part of the contract. If they aren't, find another contractor.

[alt.home.repair]

Travis....I talked to the installer once again, and here are some of the final numbers....it will be one of these systems that I go with:

1) Trane 13SEER, XR12 series, 10-5-1 warranty, $3495 (+$495 for 10-10-10)

2) Trane 15SEER, XL14i series, 10-10-2, $4395 (plus free electric air filtering system, a $1200 value..I looked it up online)

I will go with one of these, but I just don't know if the extra $900 is worth it....it's a higher SEER, its the XL14 series which has dual blower speeds, humidifier, etc, etc, plus it has the oem 10-10 warranty (2 on labor).....I know the XR12 is very good as well, so I am comfortable with that one, but the extra OEM warranty and free filtering system, as well as the better technology for $900 is something I am pondering...

any thoughts?

[alt.home.repair]

I just got off the phone with him, and he said he is willing to do this, best case:

XR12, 10-10-10 = $3495 + 495 = $3990 XL14, 10-10-2 = $4395 XL14, 10-10-10 = $4395 + 300 = $4695

The air cleaner is an electric air filtering system from trane:

it pairs up with the Handler, inside the closet where the handler would be, and the MSRP on it is $1200 (again, obviously this is not a good price, is just msrp, but nonetheless is free with teh XL series). yes, I will have access to it,since it will be in the closet upstairs in the second floor of the house.

My wife is leaning towards the XR12 series for $3495, since she doesn't know how long we will be in the house, and given our financial situation, etc......But, the more I think about it, the more I like the value for performance of going with the XL....perhaps it's just my nature of wanting the best, and not what I need....;-)

what do you think?

[alt.home.repair]

Final question:

if this were you, which system would you go with? if money was a little tight, but you wanted to be in the house for 5 years or more, what would you do?

again, in your mind, do you think the better components, higher SEER, and the air cleaner, is worht the extra $900??

[Travis Jordan]

What's the price on a 10-10-10 warranty for the XL14i?

Please clarify what you are saying about the humidifier...is the contractor offering a humidifier or an air cleaner with the XL14i?

Note that if you get the air cleaner you want it to be located somewhere easy to get to for cleaning -- ie NOT in the attic.

[Travis Jordan]

Get the warranty regardless of which system you select. It will give you peace of mind for the next decade.

I think here in Florida these are good prices for both of those systems, and that you would be happy with either one of them. Don't forget about doing the heat gain calculation before you firm up the size.

If you or anyone in your family have any allergies the air cleaner would be worth the additional cost, especially since it will be easy to get to in the closet. Also note that it would be a selling feature when you go to sell your home (might get you a few hundred $$$ in pricing at that time).

Let us know what you decide to do, and how the installation turns out.

[Travis Jordan]

The internal components aren't significantly different between the XR12 and the XL14i condensers, and the variable speed air handlers are going to be the same.

If money is tight now and you expect to have more money later, then go with the lower initial cost XR12. If you expect money to continue to be tight for a long time, then go with the XL14i and take advantage of the higher SEER over the long run..

Remember that in the end what I think doesn't matter, it is YOUR system.

[Travis Jordan]

P.S. My math says the difference in price is $705 on an apples-to-apples basis (same warranty).