Need help with getting new house A/C unit...HVAC

[ghuns]

Well this morning the other company will be here to let me see what they think. I was talking about getting one or two window units last night depending on the install window I can get.

Depending on your distance from me, I'm in the 46573 zip, I've got two small window units you could borrow. I only use them when the kids come home to visit in the summer and they've already came and went.

 

[chef1231]

So just a quick update. Thanks to everyone for the info and Ghuns for the offer on the window unit. As it turns out this guy that was just here was able to get my old unit working temporarily until he can get out to do the install. I am going with Armstrong. Now the question is do I spend the extra $1,300 to have the Honeywell thing ( technical term ) put in that gives me a thermostat upstairs so I can run split floor and different temps. Seems like that would be the thing to do..

 

[Brandon]

So just a quick update. Thanks to everyone for the info and Ghuns for the offer on the window unit. As it turns out this guy that was just here was able to get my old unit working temporarily until he can get out to do the install. I am going with Armstrong. Now the question is do I spend the extra $1,300 to have the Honeywell thing ( technical term ) put in that gives me a thermostat upstairs so I can run split floor and different temps. Seems like that would be the thing to do..

A zone? Would make things more comfortable. If that is worth 1300 to you.

 

[chef1231]

He said there would be a wireless thermostat upstairs so that it could kick on when needed and could be at a different temp then the main level. So in the summer for example its way warmer upstairs and I have to crank down the air to cool off the upstairs and in the morning the main level is Antartica lol.. Still not too sure about it though. It's never been a crazy problem

 

[Brandon]

He said there would be a wireless thermostat upstairs so that it could kick on when needed and could be at a different temp then the main level. So in the summer for example its way warmer upstairs and I have to crank down the air to cool off the upstairs and in the morning the main level is Antartica lol.. Still not too sure about it though. It's never been a crazy problem

Can always leave the fan/blower on "on" to keep the air circulating. This can help witht those temp differences. It will NOT be the fix all, but its cheaper than 1300.

If upstairs is where all the bedrooms are, if you don't already, consider adding returns to those rooms. Now instead of the hallway return like alot of houses are it will pull air from all the rooms.

 

[ghitch75]

as said above get the highest seer you can get for what you can afford.....just got home 12.5 hours of funny with another one waiting for tomorrow....

 

[Mr. Habib]

He said there would be a wireless thermostat upstairs so that it could kick on when needed and could be at a different temp then the main level. So in the summer for example its way warmer upstairs and I have to crank down the air to cool off the upstairs and in the morning the main level is Antartica lol.. Still not too sure about it though. It's never been a crazy problem.

Our thermostat is downstairs and all of the bedrooms are on the 2nd floor. We have had good results closing off vents downstairs and opening them upstairs in the summer and reversing the process in the winter helps a lot. Costs much less than $1300, too.

 

[Brandon]

Our thermostat is downstairs and all of the bedrooms are on the 2nd floor. We have had good results closing off vents downstairs and opening them upstairs in the summer and reversing the process in the winter helps a lot. Costs much less than $1300, too.

That can cause a whole different set of issues...

 

[Mr. Habib]

That can cause a whole different set of issues...

Really? Please educate me.

 

[BobDaniels]

we had a payne high efficiency gas (propane) furnace installed by the legendary ingo hvac guy and are happy with the results. (the amana a/c unit was recycled, which was not recommended, but was done anyway due to our satisfaction with cooling) The payne threw an error code one time at the beginning of heating season but turning off the breaker for a few minutes fixed the problem, sort of like having to reboot your pc on occasion.

at the end of this past may, when it got really cold, I had to fire up the heat and it would not kick on. turned out the induction motor didn't want to spin, so I gave it a slight nudge and all was well. as fair warning, Tim should expect a call from me for advice on what to do about the induction motor. :-)

 

[Brandon]

Really? Please educate me.

Should You Close Your HVAC Vents? | PV Heating & Air

Closing a vent or two might be ok, but you shouldn't need to close your air supply vents if you have a properly designed HVAC system.

www.pvhvac.com

 

[Mr. Habib]

Should You Close Your HVAC Vents? | PV Heating & Air

Closing a vent or two might be ok, but you shouldn't need to close your air supply vents if you have a properly designed HVAC system.

www.pvhvac.com

Thanks!

 

[churchmouse]

That can cause a whole different set of issues...

This. You need air across the coil. A given amount per ton. This practice could shorten the fuse on your compressor.

 

[churchmouse]

we had a payne high efficiency gas (propane) furnace installed by the legendary ingo hvac guy and are happy with the results. (the amana a/c unit was recycled, which was not recommended, but was done anyway due to our satisfaction with cooling) The payne threw an error code one time at the beginning of heating season but turning off the breaker for a few minutes fixed the problem, sort of like having to reboot your pc on occasion.

at the end of this past may, when it got really cold, I had to fire up the heat and it would not kick on. turned out the induction motor didn't want to spin, so I gave it a slight nudge and all was well. as fair warning, Tim should expect a call from me for advice on what to do about the induction motor. :-)

As always I am here. There has been some issues with those motors and not just on the Payne units.

 

[jkaetz]

So just a quick update. Thanks to everyone for the info and Ghuns for the offer on the window unit. As it turns out this guy that was just here was able to get my old unit working temporarily until he can get out to do the install. I am going with Armstrong. Now the question is do I spend the extra $1,300 to have the Honeywell thing ( technical term ) put in that gives me a thermostat upstairs so I can run split floor and different temps. Seems like that would be the thing to do..

If they are retrofitting in a zone system, I'd ask them to use an IO ESP zone controller rather than a Honeywell zone controller. It will ensure that you don't have issues with static pressure when only one zone is calling for heat/cool by sensing the pressure in the ducts. I don't believe Honeywell has any controllers that do this. As CM and others noted, all systems must have a minimum amount of airflow going through the heat exchanger and AC coil or problems will come up.

Ideally multi story homes would have a separate HVAC unit for each floor as they will all have different heat/cool demands. This of course isn't usually realistic or cost effective. Zoning is a nice middle ground but is a bit more complex to plan out and setup so that you're not straining the equipment when only one zone is calling for heat/cool. When done properly, it works pretty well.

Our home had a single stage system with two zones and it did not work very well. I had one of the resident INGO experts install a two stage system and it works much better now. Spends most of the time in the 1st stage of cooling and only engages the 2nd stage when the temp gets above .5 degrees of the setpoint (usually late afternoon once the temp goes above 85 and the sun starts to come through our back windows). It also raises and lowers the fan speed depending on whether one or both zones are calling for cool.