your plan makes sense to me.
Thanks
Your reasoning is sound. However, a really old AC unit isn't very energy efficient. Depending on how high your current Electric bill is and if there are any rebates from your electric company for switching to an efficient unit might be worth it, Of course it also depends on how much cash you have available too.
Have the cash available, but would rather not spend it if I don't have to.
Yup.
If it was like for like, yeah run it till it dies.
But as fedwrench says, the new unit will be cheaper to operate and will have a payback period that you should calculate as well. If the old one is extremely inefficient you could save $100+/month.
On a side note, you guys need some serious cooling down there. We have a 4300sqft house cooled entirely by a single 3.5 ton unit.
Damn. We have 3,600' and have 3 units.
IMO the newer unit would be lucky to last ten+ years without issues.
Ok
Just maintain what you have. I might answer differently if it was just one AC system in the house.
That's what I'm thinking, too.
NOw, to keep the GJ standard, we should all be saying, gut the house, spray foam it all. replace your electric service, run minimum 20 amp circuits, double up the floor joists, and then replace all 3 of the AC units.
That's how we roll here!
Mine's are 25 years old. I'd wait.
Hope I can get there, too.
When I had a company in to look at mine a few years ago they did the math for me. The payback was expected to break even at 13 years. The life expectancy of the unit 10-15 years. I figured best case I break even. Even the the guy doing the work told me to just wait until it needed a major repair to switch it out.
Good input. Thanks
I was in a similar boat. Bought a house in Austin area with 19 year old units. I chose to replace with Carrier Greenspeed variable speed units a few months ago. Cheaper to do before summer, and my wife has ALS so the thought of suffering in the heat when one craps out was not appealing.
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With 3 units I'm not too worried about one crapping out.
No, $600 for labor. The rest of profit!
I would wait, it could last another 10 years.
That's what I'm thinking.
That's what I was thinking, 1 day job for maybe 3 guys..........guy makes over $5000.........I can't believe how much greed is out there.
Well, I'm guessing folks are paying it.
When I need to do one im just going to do it myself and who cares if it has no warranty if I can buy 2 more whole systems for what their labor charge is.
Definitely going to look into this. As Yogi Berra said, "It's not rocket surgery."
I don't blame you, do everything you can do and get someone to set the charge and start up...........when I was still working I did a lot of them for guys who just needed some to charge the system.
I have a 19 year old ac at my house and I'm not changing that until it completely dies, and I'm in the business (or was been retired 11 years)
I doubt you'd ever recoup the money on energy savings. We were in the same boat and kept it running as long as we could. When the compressor seized up a few weeks ago, it was time to replace everything. It was ~15 years old as I recall. 16 SEER 3 ton Carrier with new 92% furnace and replaced the 26 year old duct work. Way better now.
I'm going to give the duct work a once over.
The rich get richer and the poor stay poor. Everything is getting priced out of normal people's budgets. For $9200, the loan would last longer than the unit or I would just die trying to sleep in the Texas heat. Getting to the point where us regular folk can't have anything.
My setup is horribly inefficient and makes the furnace inefficient. It's separate from the furnace with everything outside and ties into the ductwork. My heat blows to the least resistance which is backfeeding outside through the AC unit. Same with the AC, backfeeding through the furnace which makes the furnace closet like a meat locker. New furnace a year and a half ago because 4° was a little cold sitting on the living room couch. The AC goes, I don't know what I would do. Furnace is ready for an AC unit, but I'll never afford it.
Sounds like a bit of a mess.
Yea $9k is robbery IMO. Even if you got a "better" unit it wouldn't be more than a grand more.
Run it til it dies
Yup. Maybe it will die while we still have the home warranty!
$6200 for labor
Plus refrigerant and install materials
Plus insurance
Plus benefits
Plus trucks
Plus taxes
Plus, plus, plus...
Yep.
I think your reasoning is sound. Wait for it to die.
It'd be different if you only had one AC unit.
Bingo. Multiple units gives me some flexibility.
Today's prices are what they are. Having someone do it for you costs money. No sense bitchin about it. That said, I'd wait til the AC died, or at least til the off season, to get it replaced. And, if you're game, pick up a book and learn how to install AC in the meantime. Then you can do most, if not all, of the install yourself. It's not difficult, just time consuming and detail driven. I've done several on our properties. The oldest is about 25 years old and giving no sign of wanting to die.
Yeah, I enjoy doing stuff myself, even when it really doesn't make any sense not to hire a pro.
I would wait -- for two reasons. Live in the house and understand how the systems work -- how much are they running? Now you live in TX -- so it's hot and you need more AC than I do. But, typically systems are oversized ... And ductwork undersized (good combination if your old 3T system is on and off on hot days .. it's oversized. Living in the house will give you an idea of what is going on. Typically when they make 20 years ... they live on.
People don't understand one fact -- on the hottest days during the day -- the unit should run all the time. It's not hurting itself ... it's most efficient that way. Oversized units cost more to run .. don't work as well .. and don't humidify as well.
Evaluate all the systems for a while -- see how they all work. It's not unusual to have all the systems oversized. My suburban house had 6.5 tons of cooling when I bought it ... I have added on to it twice -- including a glass atrium that needs 18k when we have people over. Currently 5.5T in the whole house.
Yep. Need to do a bit of research. Living in the house for a while will help, too.
Of course "they " recommend changing the unit, plant that little doubt and worry in your head so you think it needs done. If you just had it serviced, that is good and since you have 2 others in the house then it's not like you will be sweltering if it goes out. Remember though when it does go the other units will work harder to keep things cool. Also today's quote of $9200 will be 5-10% next year. My B-n-law works the counter at an HVAC company the markup on heat pumps is crazy. Look for a scratch an dent unit, he gets them once in awhile that have been dropped or forklift ran into, mostly cosmetic damage and about 80% off.
80% off would be nice!
Granted, every market is different. That said, we got a $11k quote for a 98% 60k modulating gas furnace and matched 20 SEER 2 ton inverter heat pump. Will wait until our current stuff gets a bit older, or our utility coughs up some better rebates.
Ok, speaking of cost. My brother in law's brother owns a commercial A/C business. He's about 7 hours away from me. He has offered to sell me whatever unit I want at cost. Is he going to get it a lot cheaper than I can? Or can I buy something locally for about the same price?
In a somewhat similar boat here.
Heat pump only, it's a really old Trane, but it still works great and is pretty darn efficient.
Trying to decide whether to have it replaced this summer or fall or just run it till it poops out.
Obviously, we can survive a few days without the A/C if it conks out during the summer, but if it conks out for good during a cold snap this winter we got problems fast.
If we had something go t*ts up in the winter, wouldn't be a big deal here!
IMO -- replacing a working single speed unit with another same size single speed unit is foolish. You will never get 9k of electric savings and the new unit will be no better.
Now -- doing a proper heat and cooling load -- checking over the duct work. Maybe getting a HP and skipping the furnace part (if the numbers work) .. using all the rebates available. And .......... getting a multispeed unit with VS blower . That's going to give you more comfort -- quiet and less humidity. The better units do give you electric savings .. but the real benefit is quiet comfort.
Heat pumps: typically going HP over straight AC is only a few hundred dollars ... in my case it was less as the HP got me more rebates. Depending on the amount of heat needed -- electric cost ... going HP may save putting in a furnace. HPs really work -- even in very cold conditions -- they pump out impressive heat. It's not the cold rush of air at 40 degrees outside like they were only a few years ago. Mine are hot at 5 degrees outside. Again -- its all about cost. In Maine w/ NG available it may be worth putting in a furnace so you are not running the HP all year long -- in extreme climates having backup possibilities is important.
Thanks for the info. Need to do some more research.
My A/C was just replaced and ran pretty much trouble free from 1998. If you won't die without it, I'd just wait until it takes a dump or take your time getting quotes. I had a 3ton unit installed for about half what you're looking at. Granted we don't run the more efficient systems in WI due to short summers.
Thanks
Estimate seems a bit high for a 3 ton Rheem system. Are they also replacing ductwork? Might want to get another 2 bids, but I would just start saving until the unit dies.
So how many tons of cooling total do you have? I know some houses have way more cooling than required.
Long story short. You might get by with smaller units and use the money saved on adding more insulation. It will be cheaper in the long run from a energy savings perspective.
Thanks. Need to research what I have.
I'm in the same boat. I've bought a house 25 years ago with a newly replaced A/C unit.
After about 18 years I asked my HVAC guy if I should change it and he said "No...they don't make any that reliable any more. Run it until it dies." 7 years later it's still working fine.
Phil
That's what I'm hoping.
So, what's the scope of work in that quote number?
Not enough details.
What kind of access is available to the equipment? Where is it (attic)?
These things will influence the cost of the job.
I'm in the proactive replacement camp. It is well beyond the normal expected service life. It won't fail when you don't need it.
There is some merit to running it and paying attention to how it operates.
Most newer equipment performs so much better if it's properly installed, and your home will be more comfortable.
They were going to replace ductwork as well.
I'd look up brand ratings and reviews before making a decision like that. You want something that will last another 20+ years. We have a 15 year old unit that was getting noisy. My Carrier dealer would rather sell a new one than work on an old on so they gave me a high ball hoping I would go away. I did and someone else put in a new compressor for me. Unit works as good as new. Fortunately I stashed some R-22 since I have an EPA cert from way back but my HVAC tools are all obsolete so it was cheaper to pay someone to do the work. This unit is a 13 SEER unit from 2004. It replaced a 6 SEER unit from 1979. You might have a 9 or 10 SEER unit. If you can find that out you can figure whether it is cost efficient to replace it. My drop in electricity use in summer saved about $400 a year (2004 cost) x 15 years = $6000. The replacement ducting saved another $200 a year in heating costs = $3000. Total is $9000 saved. It cost me $8000. So I look at it as a free unit. Today the math is different. A similar upgrade in SEER would cost me $20,000. I would have to save $1400 a year in power and gas. Not going to happen here in California with time of day pricing coming in. You can't even run your AC between 5 pm and 8 pm without giving up a first born. And Noon to 5pm, and 8 pm to midnight the state takes the rest of your family.
Don't want go give up our first born -- she's all we have!
I would wait...I have 17 year old unit and I asked my local guy if I should replace.. He said he would use it until it dies. He said I would never make up the difference in efficiency no matter what anybody says...Yes they are more efficient but if mine is running trouble free, just get it serviced yearly...
Good deal.
