A/C system is seriously fubar'd - need $$$ advice

[KBScobravert]

Well I just wanted to follow up with you guys and let you know how it's coming along.

Had a guy come out and quote me $3000 to put a new air handler in (drop old one and hang new one) sweat the old pipe off and sweat the new one on, re-use the plenum and return, patch the leak outside, charge the system and re-tape/pookie the upstairs stuff.

F a bunch of that.

Was able to get a brand new Goodman unit (5 ton/13 seer), pookie, duct tape (the real stuff) correct sauder for the pipes, new heating unit and a TXV thingamajiggie.

Called all hands on deck last Saturday for all the favors owed to me. We have the old unit out, new unit in and hung up, return and plenum taped (but not pookied yet), primary and secondary drain lines blown out (you guys should have heard the primary blow out...sounded like diarrhea) and hooked into thermostat/outside unit.

Unit turns on and blows normal air (non-ac mode), heat works friggin awesome, pushes air out the vents very very strong.

All I need now is someone to come out and sweat the pipes on, find the leak in the outside unit (I am betting there isn't one because the A-coil was rusted out ...now fixed), charge the system (roughly 15 lbs) and install my TXV thingamajiggie.

Total cost so far $865.00

Suggestions on who to go for quality but non face-raping prices?

Also on a non-related side note. House has been stripped of all carpet/pad. 3 rooms have been fully patched/painted. 12mm laminate + 3mm pad ordered and should be here mid-June. Defective shower (leaking) ripped completely out and expanded.

Yard cleaned all up (house sat for a year, had 3 different neighbors come over and thank me for cleaning it all up) 14 sprinkler heads replaced and one pipe repaired (had a lake develop in middle of yard).

Whew...it will be worth it.

Sounds like you scored all around. This was a foreclosure right?

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[mustngacman]

Did you buy a 5ton TXV? Also are you sure you have a 5ton Condensor? I will ask some of my guys and see if they might to do it for you. The reason I ask about the TXV is it has to match the outdoor unit size wise. Also is the outdoor unit R22 or R410a? R22 is very expensive now.

[IHaveAMustang]

Well I just wanted to follow up with you guys and let you know how it's coming along.

Had a guy come out and quote me $3000 to put a new air handler in (drop old one and hang new one) sweat the old pipe off and sweat the new one on, re-use the plenum and return, patch the leak outside, charge the system and re-tape/pookie the upstairs stuff.

F a bunch of that.

Was able to get a brand new Goodman unit (5 ton/13 seer), pookie, duct tape (the real stuff) correct sauder for the pipes, new heating unit and a TXV thingamajiggie.

Called all hands on deck last Saturday for all the favors owed to me. We have the old unit out, new unit in and hung up, return and plenum taped (but not pookied yet), primary and secondary drain lines blown out (you guys should have heard the primary blow out...sounded like diarrhea) and hooked into thermostat/outside unit.

Unit turns on and blows normal air (non-ac mode), heat works friggin awesome, pushes air out the vents very very strong.

All I need now is someone to come out and sweat the pipes on, find the leak in the outside unit (I am betting there isn't one because the A-coil was rusted out ...now fixed), charge the system (roughly 15 lbs) and install my TXV thingamajiggie.

Total cost so far $865.00

Suggestions on who to go for quality but non face-raping prices?

Also on a non-related side note. House has been stripped of all carpet/pad. 3 rooms have been fully patched/painted. 12mm laminate + 3mm pad ordered and should be here mid-June. Defective shower (leaking) ripped completely out and expanded.

Yard cleaned all up (house sat for a year, had 3 different neighbors come over and thank me for cleaning it all up) 14 sprinkler heads replaced and one pipe repaired (had a lake develop in middle of yard).

Whew...it will be worth it.

[GeorgeG.]

Okay, so it's mentioned here and I've seen it before. Actually two things.

1. 1 ton per 500ish sq ft IMO, this is an old rule of thumb thats been around long before the spacious houses we have now
2. Over sizing is bad

I know very little about HVAC and I'm not asking about the details.

However, at my previous house and numerous other homes I know about - following that formula has the home AC going pretty all the time. That is a known problem.

Assuming the home is relatively "efficient" or heck, even if it is not but it IS sealed/as air tight as needed - calc more from an AC perspective?

At the end of the day, what I'm asking is are home owners just screwed from an electricity cost point of view if the AC has to run non-stop and MOST other things in their home have been done? (Duct work checked, insulation checked, caulking, door seals, and so on) Is it more advisable to spend money on more higher end home efficiency things than to up the size of the AC? IMO, if it runs non stop, you still have a problem somewhere. My house had this problem a couple of years ago...it would run literally all day and still couldn't keep up. It would be 87 degrees by 6pm and still take a few hours more to drop down to low 80's. We had to replace our air handler due to the heater throwing fits in 2010 and since then, the new air handler has made a huge difference just in how quickly it cools the house. It's quieter, more effecient, and blows more air. We still have the old 8-10 SEER compressor too so I don't know if it was the air handler that was the issue or not.

Admittedly the biggest help at my old home was to go from some '00 builder grade unit to a 14 SEER until from a COST perspective. It still seemed like the thing ran all the time though. It does seem like 14 SEER is more average now and they have much better.

Also, does it sometimes make sense to split 5 tons into may 1 2 ton and 1 3 ton for different zones?Again, just IMO, but our house, IIRC, is right at 2300 sq feet (1 story) with a single 5 ton unit and it's slightly cooler on one side. We have a 700ish sq foot add-on with lots of windows and it stays a little warmer since the t-stat is on the opposite side of the house. I would say yes, especially if you have a large floor plan. If you have a 2 story, then definitely yes.

my comments in red

On another note, last year we had one of those companies call us that offers to make your house more energy efficient for free...I was skeptical at first but they came by, insulated the shit out of the attic, tested how sealed the inside is and ended up removing all the light switch/plug covers and added a weather seal, resealed the doors and a few other areas and I can literally feel an added difference.

[forbes]

i have 1800 square feet with a 3.5 ton unit. except last summer it hardly runs.

[ceyko]

Okay, so it's mentioned here and I've seen it before. Actually two things.

1. 1 ton per 500ish sq ft
2. Over sizing is bad

I know very little about HVAC and I'm not asking about the details.

However, at my previous house and numerous other homes I know about - following that formula has the home AC going pretty all the time. That is a known problem.

Assuming the home is relatively "efficient" or heck, even if it is not but it IS sealed/as air tight as needed - calc more from an AC perspective?

At the end of the day, what I'm asking is are home owners just screwed from an electricity cost point of view if the AC has to run non-stop and MOST other things in their home have been done? (Duct work checked, insulation checked, caulking, door seals, and so on) Is it more advisable to spend money on more higher end home efficiency things than to up the size of the AC?

Admittedly the biggest help at my old home was to go from some '00 builder grade unit to a 14 SEER until from a COST perspective. It still seemed like the thing ran all the time though. It does seem like 14 SEER is more average now and they have much better.

Also, does it sometimes make sense to split 5 tons into may 1 2 ton and 1 3 ton for different zones?

[hunt4m3x]

Too much A/C can lead to some moisture/mold issues. It's worth getting it engineered.

2x. Not to mention it will sound like a freight train blowing through the vents.

I would do a 4ton, 500 sqft per ton. I think most ac companies do 750 now with the new radiant barrier, etc.

[03mustangdude]

Did u buy a foreclosure?

[IHaveAMustang]

Well I have the guy who helped my Brother in law out coming to my house on Saturday. He will get a more precise description of what all is wrong and will quote me what it will cost to fix it.

I am taking possession of the house on the 27th now, so that first Saturday (28th) I hope to have a guy working on the A/C. Sucks I can't do anything now. That house is mine.

[KBScobravert]

PM Mr EDD oh wait he is banned lolz

They should un-ban him and invite him back. Those were the good ole days.

[sspstang]

PM Mr EDD oh wait he is banned lolz

[GeorgeG.]

almost forgot...i wouldn't install a 5 ton air handler unless your condensor unit is also a 5 ton.

I don't claim to be an expert..i can only speak of my personal experiences and what i've learned by speaking to other AC techs. It's been suggested to me, when I was shopping around for AC work, that i could go up a 1/2 ton. I don't know what going up 1 whole ton would do as far as performance.

[Vertnut]

Too much A/C can lead to some moisture/mold issues. It's worth getting it engineered.

[fordracing19]

You need a manual j for sizing. My old house was 2200' with 4 tons and no problems.
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[ceyko]

All I know is my old 5 ton would run non-stop in a 2600 sq ft home. Most of these homes are not THAT efficient....not to mention what George said and that's a low ceiling really compared to a lot of them.

Personally, I'd go 5 ton for the 2000 sq ft home. I'm no pro and I'm sure there are a 1001 things in over-sizing but - I can tell you a 4 ton will probably struggle at 2K sq ft.