Heat pumps?? Brands make a big difference

[peppy]

Looking at Goodman and Trane. Is there a lot of difference in brands? They both have 10 year warranties and are highly recommended by the installers. Price is about the same.

[MysticLlama]

We got a York system installed a year ago when we bought our house and it's been good. The house is twice the size of the old one, plus has A/C, and our power bill is about the same.

They have pretty standardized ratings metrics, so should be pretty close to directly comparable.

The installer choice is just as big, possibly even bigger.

The guys that did ours were real Pros. Did a good job, cleaned up after the end of each day (was a two day project), all permited, licensed, etc. We also got a half price deal that costs $150 a year for two tune up / test visits (usually Spring and Fall) which in turn doubles the warranty period.

[red-beard]

Look at the SEER number (basically 4 times the Coefficient of Performance). Higher is better.

I think there are some 2 stage compressor systems with an intercooling stage. This would be more efficient, but more expensive.

[peppy]

The seer on the Trane is 13 and the Goodman is 15.

Is that a big difference?

[MBAtarga]

Goodman - total crap! This comes from a friend of mine that is in the AC business.

[strupgolf]

Our local energy Co-op has a rebate going. They won't even consider a SEER rating below 13 to warrent a rebate. 13 is the lowest of the best, up to 17-19-20. But at those ratings, it will be expensive. It takes some getting used to the lower heat from a heat pump than a gas furnace.

[74-911]

Had a Trane heatpump installed 7 years ago. Absolutely no problems and in the summer it gets really hot here. Normally not much cold weather but this last 3 weeks have been abnormally cold ( mid 20's at night and 30's in the daytime) and it keeps the house warm. I'm not sure a heat pump is the way to go if you have temps in the 20's and below in the winter however.

[strupgolf]

I can't say for sure, but we make Trane units in our town, and my installer said he would not install them. He's concerned about some of the parts in them. I've got my unit set to come on over 30 degrees. Anything under that is the reliable gas furnace. I put my heat pump in only for the air conditioning aspect of it. If it keeps me warm from 30 to 65, then great, but I still prefer the warmth of a gas furnace. I CAN feel a difference in the amount of heat produced, but the h/p comes on more to keep temp's up.

[peppy]

I am keeping the oil furnace, but heat pumps are not much more than just a/c. I like the idea of having a backup heating system.

[GDNF2ET]

I hope you have a well referred AC guy doing the work...There are more crooks in that line of work as there are car mechanics..My Dad does AC work, he has many stories about what customers have told him that OTHER AC guys have pulled...
Example, all heat pumps have a capacitor..Its usually silver, oval-shaped and as big as a pack of cigarettes.These go bad quite often on hot days..They cost about $15 to $25 bucks and are stupid easy to replace.Contractors have told customers that they need a whole new unit, and if you change the outside, you have to change the inside unit they say..Could cost you thousands !! If their half way honest and its 95 outside, you'll be thankful to only pay $350 - $600 for this easily available part..
Please do your homework...

[A930Rocket]

I've heard Goodman is near or at the bottom of the barrel and made by someone else.

[red-beard]

A higher SEER unit will allow putting a smaller unit/lower HP for the same house.

A 15 vs a 13 means it transfers about 15% more energy per unit of electrict, or it would use about 13-14% less energy for the same cooling.

A 19 vs a 13 would use about 31.5% less energy for the same cooling. In NY, this might not pay for itself. In Houston, it will in a short period of time!

[Brian 162]

Originally Posted by MBAtarga

Goodman - total crap! This comes from a friend of mine that is in the AC business.

What Mark said.

They are cheaper than most units.
Trane has a good rep. I have a Trane a/c from the mid 80's and it's still plugging away. A couple of other good brands are Lennox, and Carrier.

[red-beard]

What about the Nordyne IQdrive units, sold under the names Maytag, Broan, Frigidaire, NuTone, Tappan and Westinghouse. They are supposed to be up to 24.5 SEER. Those would use about 1/2 the energy of my 13 SEER unit.

[peppy]

Both estimates that I have gotten they said the higher seer numbers are a lot more expensive.

[porsche4life]

Go for a higher seer, with a geothermal ground loop....

[Dantilla]

I have a two-stage Carrier system. I don't remember the SEER rating off the top of my head, but it's on the high end.

This system only uses one of the two curcuits the old system needed. Much less power draw.

A few more bucks now can save quite a bit down the road.

[red-beard]

That sounds like the Carrier Infinity system

[turbo6bar]

Between Trane and Goodman, at the same price, I'd take Trane. That said, the difference isn't enough to offset a poor installation or poor sizing. A well-installed Goodman is better than a Trane installed by a hack.

Based on what I've read, the Nordyne IQDrive stuff is really nice. The inverter drive takes efficiency to extreme levels. However, if it were my home, I'd opt for a step above builder-grade. You'll get a better compressor, a well-built condenser body, and less expensive parts. The multi-stage units truly are nice, but they're more complex and parts cost more. A standard blower motor is around $60-90. A multi-speed inverter blower motor is around $200+. You'd need to save a lot of electricity to pay the difference. I was told the Nordyne IQDrive is roughly twice the cost of the standard 14 seer equipment. I never followed up at the local wholesaler for confirmation.

Other thing is ductwork. Is the ductwork sized properly? Is it sealed? If the ductwork is in unconditioned space (attic), is the ductwork well insulated? If the HVAC doesn't get enough CFM, unit efficiency drops. Poor ductwork can make a 14 seer unit more like a 12 seer.

So, it is much more than the equipment. It's a package. You want good equipment, a good install, and good ductwork.

[pavulon]

Originally Posted by porsche4life

Go for a higher seer, with a geothermal ground loop....

True if you have remarkably wet soil or a pond. I have very wet clay and run geothermal in my home. Works really well but I begin to supplement w/ a gas fireplace when it gets to -10F.