gwyz
Aug 18, 2009, 10:16 AM
First let me state that I am a ''Jack of all trades and an expert at nothing". The things that I can do, I frequently do better than most pros. It's a simple matter of having the time to waste, whereas a pro's time is serious money.
Ok, with that said...
My A/C system was (probably) 15 years old. Over the past two years I have replaced every wearable part inside my air handler, with the single exception of the A Coil. (I even replaced all of the intake ducting to the air handler). Over the past month I have noticed that when the outdoor compressor kicks on, the lights in our entire house ''brown-out'' and towards the end it even began tripping my computer backup unit.
To make a very very long story short, the unit could not be recharged (i.e. "leaky valves"), and in fact was not worth repairing due to obsolete parts and low efficiency. The question (decision) quickly became "Do I spend more than DOUBLE the amount of money to replace the air handler, thereby being able to upgrade to Puron?" The reason it involved "double" the price is because the attic is not up to code for a new installation. I would have to have paid for flooring to be installed, etc, etc, and more than one company told me it was questionable as to whether or not the old and new air handler parts would fit through the small opening in the attic. I had a hard time believing that the house was "built around the air handler", but more than one HVAC tech told me this was indeed the case. Obviously, a sawzall can take care of the removal of the old air handler, but (supposedly) the new unit was not going to fit through the opening in my attic ''door.''
In the end, I decided that between the cost of bringing the attic ''up to code" vs the fact that I had recently rebuilt everything inside the air handler, etc, etc, it just wasn't worth the cost of paying DOUBLE to replace that air handler. However, where I live (Central NJ) ALL of the HVAC companies have stopped maintaining THEIR access to new R-22 units. I discovered that the words "I cannot get an R-22 unit" actually means "I stopped paying for access to R-22 units." There was however one very well known contractor who still had access and offered me a reasonable price. I paid $4250 for complete installation of a 5yr parts AND labor 4 ton "Arcoaire", which I was assured "matches" my air handler.
To put this in perspective, my sister in law recently paid $10,000 for a complete 4 ton Puron system, and she just found out that it wasn't even installed up to code; (she hired the cheapest bid she got, and she therefore "got what she paid for"). Anyway, her receipt breaks down the cost of the outdoor compressor unit at $6500 bucks.
Our new unit has been running now for a week (and we're in a heat wave too!) and I am VERY HAPPY with my purchase. In fact, I could not possibly be happier. For the first time since we're living here (10 years) our house actually cools to the temperature we set the thermostat at, EVEN during a heat wave! Previously, even when the old unit was working properly (and fully charged), on a very hot day it would run all day and never cool the house to the temp set on the thermostat. If it was 90+ degrees outside, it would be 78 to 80 degrees inside at the coolest. Now, the system actually reaches 74 (where we set it) and shuts off at that satisfied temp! Like I said, I am VERY HAPPY with our purchase, and we spent $4250 instead of the $10,000+ everyone else quoted me; (the highest quote was $15,000 which included the plywood attic flooring and demolition/replacement of the "too small" attic door).
Ok, here comes the question, and please keep in mind that I am quite capable of removing the old A Coil and retrofitting a new one inside my old air handler, even if it involves fabricating brackets. Also, keep in mind that the company that installed my new outdoor unit took the time to pressure check (vacuum dry, etc) my A/C lines and found no problems.
(Question): Should I buy a "spare" 4 ton R-22 A Coil in anticipation of failure/leak of my old A Coil?
IF there is a genuine risk of 'A Coil' failure due to age, I would prefer to have a new A Coil sitting in the corner of the attic and ready for installation. And although it is not worth the cost of having an HVAC tech retrofit a new A Coil, IT IS WORTH MY TIME to do such a project.
(Note): I would FIRST pay an HVAC tech to evacuate the lines before attempting such a project, and then call him back to connect the lines and charge the system after I retrofit the new A Coil into the air handler.
By the way, I first got involved with repairing my air handler after EVERY HVAC tech I called told me that my bad Squirrel Cage was ''obsolete" and "can't be replaced." I found a new Squirrel Cage (an EXACT replacement) at the first supply house I checked into, (literally down the road from where I live). Total cost: $58 bucks. Since then I've rebuilt or replaced everything in that air handler except the A Coil.
I don't mean to speak badly of HVAC techs, but it seems to me that they ONLY want to do "R&R" type work ("removal and replacement"). At present I am giving them the benefit of the doubt that it is a simple matter of time being more valuable than the cost of replacement. But the value of their time vs MY TIME, are two very different issues.
I apologize for the length of this post, but I just know that if I didn't include all of these facts, I would get swamped with "It doesn't match" and "It's going to cost you in lost efficiency" type of replies. I am telling you, I couldn't possibly be happier with how this has worked out. I don't know about you, but I don't have an extra $5000 PLUS bucks to spend on something that doesn't HAVE TO be replaced. I am, however, willing to spend a few HUNDRED bucks for an A Coil that doesn't have to be replaced IF there is a likely risk of failure (i.e. "leakage").
Yes? No? Should I even worry about this or not?
Thank you in advance for replies, and again I apologize for the length, but there are facts here that needed to be stated in advance.
Sincerely,
Gregg
Ok, with that said...
My A/C system was (probably) 15 years old. Over the past two years I have replaced every wearable part inside my air handler, with the single exception of the A Coil. (I even replaced all of the intake ducting to the air handler). Over the past month I have noticed that when the outdoor compressor kicks on, the lights in our entire house ''brown-out'' and towards the end it even began tripping my computer backup unit.
To make a very very long story short, the unit could not be recharged (i.e. "leaky valves"), and in fact was not worth repairing due to obsolete parts and low efficiency. The question (decision) quickly became "Do I spend more than DOUBLE the amount of money to replace the air handler, thereby being able to upgrade to Puron?" The reason it involved "double" the price is because the attic is not up to code for a new installation. I would have to have paid for flooring to be installed, etc, etc, and more than one company told me it was questionable as to whether or not the old and new air handler parts would fit through the small opening in the attic. I had a hard time believing that the house was "built around the air handler", but more than one HVAC tech told me this was indeed the case. Obviously, a sawzall can take care of the removal of the old air handler, but (supposedly) the new unit was not going to fit through the opening in my attic ''door.''
In the end, I decided that between the cost of bringing the attic ''up to code" vs the fact that I had recently rebuilt everything inside the air handler, etc, etc, it just wasn't worth the cost of paying DOUBLE to replace that air handler. However, where I live (Central NJ) ALL of the HVAC companies have stopped maintaining THEIR access to new R-22 units. I discovered that the words "I cannot get an R-22 unit" actually means "I stopped paying for access to R-22 units." There was however one very well known contractor who still had access and offered me a reasonable price. I paid $4250 for complete installation of a 5yr parts AND labor 4 ton "Arcoaire", which I was assured "matches" my air handler.
To put this in perspective, my sister in law recently paid $10,000 for a complete 4 ton Puron system, and she just found out that it wasn't even installed up to code; (she hired the cheapest bid she got, and she therefore "got what she paid for"). Anyway, her receipt breaks down the cost of the outdoor compressor unit at $6500 bucks.
Our new unit has been running now for a week (and we're in a heat wave too!) and I am VERY HAPPY with my purchase. In fact, I could not possibly be happier. For the first time since we're living here (10 years) our house actually cools to the temperature we set the thermostat at, EVEN during a heat wave! Previously, even when the old unit was working properly (and fully charged), on a very hot day it would run all day and never cool the house to the temp set on the thermostat. If it was 90+ degrees outside, it would be 78 to 80 degrees inside at the coolest. Now, the system actually reaches 74 (where we set it) and shuts off at that satisfied temp! Like I said, I am VERY HAPPY with our purchase, and we spent $4250 instead of the $10,000+ everyone else quoted me; (the highest quote was $15,000 which included the plywood attic flooring and demolition/replacement of the "too small" attic door).
Ok, here comes the question, and please keep in mind that I am quite capable of removing the old A Coil and retrofitting a new one inside my old air handler, even if it involves fabricating brackets. Also, keep in mind that the company that installed my new outdoor unit took the time to pressure check (vacuum dry, etc) my A/C lines and found no problems.
(Question): Should I buy a "spare" 4 ton R-22 A Coil in anticipation of failure/leak of my old A Coil?
IF there is a genuine risk of 'A Coil' failure due to age, I would prefer to have a new A Coil sitting in the corner of the attic and ready for installation. And although it is not worth the cost of having an HVAC tech retrofit a new A Coil, IT IS WORTH MY TIME to do such a project.
(Note): I would FIRST pay an HVAC tech to evacuate the lines before attempting such a project, and then call him back to connect the lines and charge the system after I retrofit the new A Coil into the air handler.
By the way, I first got involved with repairing my air handler after EVERY HVAC tech I called told me that my bad Squirrel Cage was ''obsolete" and "can't be replaced." I found a new Squirrel Cage (an EXACT replacement) at the first supply house I checked into, (literally down the road from where I live). Total cost: $58 bucks. Since then I've rebuilt or replaced everything in that air handler except the A Coil.
I don't mean to speak badly of HVAC techs, but it seems to me that they ONLY want to do "R&R" type work ("removal and replacement"). At present I am giving them the benefit of the doubt that it is a simple matter of time being more valuable than the cost of replacement. But the value of their time vs MY TIME, are two very different issues.
I apologize for the length of this post, but I just know that if I didn't include all of these facts, I would get swamped with "It doesn't match" and "It's going to cost you in lost efficiency" type of replies. I am telling you, I couldn't possibly be happier with how this has worked out. I don't know about you, but I don't have an extra $5000 PLUS bucks to spend on something that doesn't HAVE TO be replaced. I am, however, willing to spend a few HUNDRED bucks for an A Coil that doesn't have to be replaced IF there is a likely risk of failure (i.e. "leakage").
Yes? No? Should I even worry about this or not?
Thank you in advance for replies, and again I apologize for the length, but there are facts here that needed to be stated in advance.
Sincerely,
Gregg