Time for a new central AC, need advice.

[asahitoro]

Well my AC has finally kicked the bucket. I had an AC guy (Scott's AC) come out and he is recommending an Amana 13 SEER unit. Is Amana a good brand? This is just for the unit that sits outside of the house, not any heater, air mover(?) that goes inside. I'm getting a quote of $5K installed with a lifetime warranty on the compressor and I believe other parts also.

My main concerns are:

-brand quality/reliabilty

-cooling ability (house is about 2500 sq feet)

-how much energy savings (my electric bill has been between $350-400/mo)

-quietness

I need to clarify which exact model but he said it's a darker grayish model Amana that is rated @ 13 SEER.

Are there other models to consider?

Thanks for any input.

[ransley]

What kicked the bucket, get a second opinion

[asahitoro]

The compressor basically locked up and kept shorting everything out. The breaker wouldn't even stay on. It's about 12 years old and I'm in Florida. I could just replace the compressor for about $2K (less if I go used) but the whole unit is getting pretty old and ragged.

[Steve Barker DLT]

13 seer is junk. Insist on the 16 seer. It'll pay for the difference in price in two seasons. s

[Lp1331 1p1331]

We sell a lot of Amana have had pretty good luck with it. $5K for only a condensing unit seems very high. I know of the lifetime compressor warranty, but I'm not sure if it is offered on only a condenser replacement. I sorta think it is only on a system with a matching evaporator installed at the same time, but I'm not positive. You need to make sure that the inside unit has an expansion valve, or will have one installed as part of the installation. Also, make sure that if the new unit has a 350/370 volt run capacitor they replace it with a 440 volt at the time of install or no deal. We have been seeing the original

350/370's fail in as little as 2 months. We replace them now when we install a unit. Other than that, they are a pretty nice unit, and fairly quiet. Good luck Larry PS I would shop around a little-- with other reputable contractors-- not cutrate hacks--to see if the price you were quoted is the going rate in your area. It may well be, but even for a 5 ton here it would be less than $5K. One more thing-- is this a heat pump?

[Tony Hwang]

Hmmm, Little lower efficiency is equal to junk? I thought poor quality product meant junk.

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Go to hvacmechanic.com. Better place to ask question like this.

[Uncle Monster]

Five grand for a three ton condensing unit?!!! Holy Cow! That sounds kind of high even for Florida. Did the guy have a shiny new truck? Things would work out better if you replaced the evaporator on the air handler/furnace for one that matches your new condenser but the price, I wish I could get away with prices like that. GEEZ!

[8~{} Uncle Monster

[Tony Hwang]

Hmmm,

3 ton is too small for 2500 sqf house for sure.

[Uncle Monster]

I've seen 2 ton systems on well insulated

2500 sq foot homes that work great here in Alabamastan. Land of the hot humid summers. [8~{} Uncle Monster

[ransley]

Do research on seer and efficency and payback 13 seer is not real good for a high use area where you are, there is quite a difference from

13-14, and 13-15.

[HeyBub]

EXACTLY the same thing happened to me. Mine was a Trane, 17 years old and the compressor went kaput from the power chattering caused by hurricane Ike here in Houston.

Two guys came out last night at 8:00 p.m. with a used, six-year old, Rudd condensing unit. In two hours they had the bad condensing unit replaced with the Rudd. It works swell (so far, see below).

At 10:00 p.m., I gave them $700 and they went away.

Now as to guarantees: I know where the AC guy lives (next door to my son) and HE knows I have a gun. I have a high confidence that all will be well.

Regarding replacing the compressor only, I don't know for sure.

Considering the compressor is the only part of the condensing unit that has moving parts, I would think you'd be okay replacing only it. Someday you might have to replace the power relay or the capacitors, but that's pocket change. The wiring won't go bad and if the unit looks ratty, a couple of cans of spray paint should fix that.

A new compressor for my Trane lists for $981, that's why I chose the $300 cheaper option.

[Blattus Slafaly]

Mitsubishi ductless mini split system is the best.

[hallerb]

I'm in

gee got new goodman 90+ furnace with air for 3 thousand installed 10 year warranty.this summer 13 seer air which is fine for pittsburgh.

in florida go with at least 16 seer, you will save bucks on energy

they bent you over with no KY jelly yopur being ripped off.

on a 12 year old unit i would replace the entire system, when the compressor blew tiny bits of debris lkely contaminatyed the entire system

[asahitoro]

Thanks for the replies everyone,

Well after doing some digging, I think I can definitely get a better deal. I found out my neighbor just got the same unit only with the internal parts (air handler, heater, etc.) from the same company 6 months ago for $4500 installed. That's $3K less than what the guy quoted me for everything. Needless, to say, I have the neighbor's quote in hand and a manager coming out today.

I also have a friend of a good friend who works with AC coming out to check things out. I'm sure he'll have some used parts/cash under the table deals for me. I'm not real comfortable with the used route though since the unit is so old and really not that efficient ($350+ electric bills) so I'm still considering just replacing everything new.

How much more $$ is it to go up to a 14-15 or even 16 SEER rated unit? Will I see the extra benefit in terms of cooling and electric costs relative to the cost of the higher SEER unit? Some folks have recommended Trane and Lennox as better brands to look into. Is Amana/Goodman bad?

Thanks again for the input.

[NATE Certified Heating and Air]

Some folks have

Amman/Goodman is pure, unadulterated, crap. A good installer can make or break any unit, howver, a good installer cannot do anything when they start with junk.

[HeyBub]

Back-of-the-envelope calculation follows:

I'm told a 16-SEER unit is in the neighborhood of 35% more efficient than traditional models. In your case, assuming 80% of your $350 is for AC, that means a savings of (mumble-mumble, carry the three...) about $100/month, or (assuming AC 6 months/year), about $600/year in savings. Compared to $1000 repair, the additional $3500 translates to a six-year payback.

Feel free to adjust the numbers accordingly.

[Steve Barker DLT]

i suppose perhaps the wrong word. But why put in 1990 technology?

s

[Steve Barker DLT]

no way.

s

[ransley]

in

There are charts of Seer and savings per each seer increase, maybe at Carrier,- Bryant I have seen them. In fla I would research every option to save energy. With high humidity as you have look into VSDC motors, you can remove double the humidity of single speed systems and run on a humidistat. Seer may go as high as 19, but get the 10 yr warrantys when you have the fancy stuff its expensive to repair.