Central air conditioning

[BigNumbers]

I can't see it ever being economic to buy anything but the lowest seer unit for Calgary, as the payback period would be astronomical and almost certainly a negative PV use of cash... With that said, I got a 16 seer with a sound blanket for noise reduction purposes... So I think the seer rating is less important in our climate than noise rating is.

[underGRADFlame]

Yeah i ran the numbers based on usage and 2 times the current price of power, and it would take 12 years to make up the cost difference between a 13 seer and 16 seer.

[Calgary14]

Last weekend I got a quote for central AC, about $4500 installed for a 2.5 ton unit.

It's about $1,000 more for a heat pump. Does anyone know how to calculate the potential savings using a heat pump vs a regular AC unit (specific to Calgary)? I asked how common they are in Calgary and they said they are becoming more common, but he didn't know what the savings would be. I'd be interested in spending the extra $1k if it meant a decent savings on the monthly utilities but not sure what the numbers look like since heat pumps aren't too common here

[rain_e]

Originally Posted by Calgary14

Last weekend I got a quote for central AC, about $4500 installed for a 2.5 ton unit.

It's about $1,000 more for a heat pump. Does anyone know how to calculate the potential savings using a heat pump vs a regular AC unit (specific to Calgary)? I asked how common they are in Calgary and they said they are becoming more common, but he didn't know what the savings would be. I'd be interested in spending the extra $1k if it meant a decent savings on the monthly utilities but not sure what the numbers look like since heat pumps aren't too common here

I had two York 13 seer units installed for $5950 + tax. You might want to get some more quotes. Edit: This was in July 2015 however I don't think prices have gone up that much. Send me a PM if you are interested in who I used.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by Calgary14

Last weekend I got a quote for central AC, about $4500 installed for a 2.5 ton unit.

It's about $1,000 more for a heat pump. Does anyone know how to calculate the potential savings using a heat pump vs a regular AC unit (specific to Calgary)? I asked how common they are in Calgary and they said they are becoming more common, but he didn't know what the savings would be. I'd be interested in spending the extra $1k if it meant a decent savings on the monthly utilities but not sure what the numbers look like since heat pumps aren't too common here

I had a 2.5 ton unit at 16 seer installed a few months ago for a few hundred less than your quote. Partially because my basement is a finished basement, the labour was a little bit higher because a bit of time was spent fishing cables across 40 ft of finished ceiling. I believe the unit I have is a Goodman.

No idea on the heat pump. But I doubt the savings are worth it.

[calgarygeologist]

I've been hearing a weird noise coming from my furnace over the last couple of nights. My house typically cools off enough overnight that the A/C doesn't kick in until around 2 in the afternoon at which point it runs pretty consistently until around 10pm to cool the house down to around 22c. Around 7 or so in the evening I start to hear a rattling noise coming from the furnace. It kind of sounds like something is in the duct and is floating in the air flow bouncing off the ducting walls. Anyone know what could be going on?

[Northendzone]

Could you install the heat pump later once you get a sense of how much it costs to run the ac unit?

[MoneyGuy]

My installer has advised me to let the ac run constantly and not fiddle with the temps. I disagree. If the house isn't occupied I change the settings so it doesn't run, just as I do in winter with the heat settings. I'm away now for two weeks and the system is shut down. My daughter's house has the same make and they run it constantly using the same installer's questionable advice. I was alone at their house recently and they were at work. The place was cold and I wished I had had a sweater. We both have Lennox units. Comments?

[REDVAN]

The advice these days, is that it's better to run the machine on longer cycles and less start/stop on the system. That means that it runs all the time, but they can use smaller units to cool larger homes. That also means that if you turn your air on you can only expect about 0.5 - 1 deg C of cooling per hour. A large machine may also freeze up easier, from what I have been told but that doesn't make as much sense to me as long as it's installed correctly.

Example: my house has a 3 ton unit for a little less than 2500sqft zoned system, but I really only use it to cool the upper floor and the air spreads down to the main.

When we went away last weekend I turned it up to 23, and when I got home it took about 4 hours to cool down to 21ish.

MoneyGuy, I think if you are away for two weeks, it is smart to shut down your system. If you are just going to work, you should have a programmable thermostat to turn the system back on an hour or so before you come home, so yes much like your winter approach.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by calgarygeologist

I've been hearing a weird noise coming from my furnace over the last couple of nights. My house typically cools off enough overnight that the A/C doesn't kick in until around 2 in the afternoon at which point it runs pretty consistently until around 10pm to cool the house down to around 22c. Around 7 or so in the evening I start to hear a rattling noise coming from the furnace. It kind of sounds like something is in the duct and is floating in the air flow bouncing off the ducting walls. Anyone know what could be going on?

I'd ask the installer or an HVAC guy to look into it.

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

My installer has advised me to let the ac run constantly and not fiddle with the temps. I disagree. If the house isn't occupied I change the settings so it doesn't run, just as I do in winter with the heat settings. I'm away now for two weeks and the system is shut down. My daughter's house has the same make and they run it constantly using the same installer's questionable advice. I was alone at their house recently and they were at work. The place was cold and I wished I had had a sweater. We both have Lennox units. Comments?

I never received any such suggestion from my installer. He did mention the two main reasons for AC units to fail is setting the temperature too low and having a unit too small for the home.

I don't run AC when I'm not at home. I have a nest and away mode triggers. I turn it on around the time I get home and let it run until I hit the targeted temperature.

When I was away for a week, I set my thermostat on eco mode and AC was completely off all that time. The same happens in Winter, so it's not a big deal.

[justkidding]

Originally Posted by DoubleF

I'd ask the installer or an HVAC guy to look into it.



I never received any such suggestion from my installer. He did mention the two main reasons for AC units to fail is setting the temperature too low and having a unit too small for the home.

I don't run AC when I'm not at home. I have a nest and away mode triggers. I turn it on around the time I get home and let it run until I hit the targeted temperature.

When I was away for a week, I set my thermostat on eco mode and AC was completely off all that time. The same happens in Winter, so it's not a big deal.

What would be too low do you think? I have mine set at 23 deg but wouldn't mind a degree or two cooler.

[Cgycowboy]

I was just researching this today but established a window unit for the bedroom is all needed for the 2 weeks we need it

[Cgycowboy]

Does anyone know roughly what it costs for a unit for 1500sqft home

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by Cgycowboy

Does anyone know roughly what it costs for a unit for 1500sqft home

That's our house size and I don't recall the cost but it's a lot. We got a top-of-the-line Lennox unit. Might have been over $4,000 if I recall correctly.

[Cgycowboy]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

That's our house size and I don't recall the cost but it's a lot. We got a top-of-the-line Lennox unit. Might have been over $4,000 if I recall correctly.

4000 just doesn't seem worth it

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[Slava]

Originally Posted by Cgycowboy

4000 just doesn't seem worth it

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I agree with that...until you get it. Then it seems worth every penny to me. It's basically a one-time outlay.

[Cgycowboy]

Originally Posted by Slava

I agree with that...until you get it. Then it seems worth every penny to me. It's basically a one-time outlay.

But it's not. Now you have an extra monthly cost for the usage

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[MoneyGuy]

But aren't almost all CP'rs in the top 99 per cent of income earners anyway?

[Slava]

Originally Posted by Cgycowboy

But it's not. Now you have an extra monthly cost for the usage

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Yeah I suppose that is true. I had mine installed when I moved in so I basically never knew the difference to begin with. I'm not sure how much of an impact it makes in terms of usage as a result. But I can remember the impact it makes for things like sleeping!

[Calgary14]

I just had mine installed yesterday. I don't think I've ever slept so well at home in the summer