Homeowners: Opinions RE heating & cooling upgrade

[Ed_S]

We're finally seriously considering upgrading our 1973 furnace & AC. No rush, everything works so we've got time to shop equipment & installers.


The two I've gotten bids on so far are:

Amana - name speaks for itself, or at least it used to....
Decent enough installer, never dealt with them before but they did a co-worker's system recently & he's happy with the work.

Heil - I'm not familiar with the brand, but I've dealt with this installer before & he swears by them.

Anyway, comparing apples to apples in capacity, efficiency, & features the only real difference is the name & the warranty - Amana has the longer warranty. But realistically, I'm 44 & Brenda's 50 - do we really care if the heat exchanger craps out after "only" 25 yrs?

Now, I don't mind paying more for quality, but there's a $950 price difference...
I'd pay it if it'll make the difference between trouble-ridden & trouble-free, but otherwise that's a chunk of change!

Anyway, I'd like to hear opinions on different makes - who makes better equipment nowadays, or who to avoid.

Experiences?

Links?

Anything helpful?

[no1_vern]

Its the AMANA thats $950 more than the Heil? You might go with the Heil depending on the price of installation and Maintenance.

I am familiar with Amana and I have had no trouble out of it in the last 3 years. But I got a good deal - I was able to buy a new unit off ebay for over $1500.00 less that what it was selling for locally. You might want to look around.

About the warranty its the incidentals that will make or break you as far a repair costs. - make sure it covers the labor as well as the parts if possible.

How much did the guys who gave you the quotes say it would cost YEARLY for preventive maintenance? Sometimes if you ask the will give you a special deal, so ask.

Have you made sure to insulate you house well? The better insulated your house is the smaller the heating/cooling bills will be.

This site may help you ; http://homeenergysaver.lbl.gov/hes/answerdesk.html

[MTAtech]

I replaced mine with a Trane. The HVAC guys at work said Trane was the best central AC.

[Ed_S]

Amana is the higher priced, yes. We really didn't discuss the preventitive maintenance expenses - I've done it myself so long that I just didn't think about asking! Either one looks a lot easier to care for than the old G.E. that I've been nursing along forever...

House is in pretty good shape on insulation, and the windows are relatively recent thermal replacements. I added attic insulation right after we bought the place in '85, did the windows a few at a time '89-'91. I've had a couple of walls opened up before & they ARE insulated - somewhat...
It's tight enough that the attic fan can't draw air if no windows are open & will kick off in seconds!

[Mntsnow]

I use Rheem both for furnace and AC and have been very pleased with them.