I am trying to reconcile three estimates and would appreciate some help. I will be replacing an old furnace (~1989) and AC (~2003). I live in MD; the first two floors are approximately 3400sqft, and the basement is 1200sqft. I have two general questions.
First, is variable speed furnace worth the extra money vs. a two-stage PSC? As a reference point, consider Lennox EL280 vs. SL280v, at a little under $1,000 extra for the variable speed. Two contractors recommend the upgrade while the third felt it was not worth it.
Second, is there any risk if there was a BTUh miscalculation? Two of the estimates priced for a 110k system; the third priced for 132k; I believe the current one is 120k, but I'm not certain. Of note, the contractor who priced for 132k says that there is no Lennox Elite option at that size (because they discontinued the EL180?), so I was only given quotes for SL and ML.
Here are the model combos for the estimates, but note that the third was provided a couple of years ago and not refreshed yet, so models might be discontinued. It looks like the third is the only one that priced a 2-stage AC (at the time I thought we said Evolution furnace + Preferred AC, but that wasn't what was priced).
1. Lennox EL16XC1 / CX35-60C / EL280 (110k btuh)
2. Lennox EL16XC1 / CX35-60D / SL280v (132k btuh)
3. Bryant 187B / 315A / CNPVP6124ALA (110k btuh)
I've done all my homework and feel comfortable with all three companies, but leaning toward one. In case it matters, #2 and #3 were priced before the pandemic so they were in the house, whereas #1 didn't come inside.
Thanks!
First, is variable speed furnace worth the extra money vs. a two-stage PSC? As a reference point, consider Lennox EL280 vs. SL280v, at a little under $1,000 extra for the variable speed. Two contractors recommend the upgrade while the third felt it was not worth it.
Second, is there any risk if there was a BTUh miscalculation? Two of the estimates priced for a 110k system; the third priced for 132k; I believe the current one is 120k, but I'm not certain. Of note, the contractor who priced for 132k says that there is no Lennox Elite option at that size (because they discontinued the EL180?), so I was only given quotes for SL and ML.
Here are the model combos for the estimates, but note that the third was provided a couple of years ago and not refreshed yet, so models might be discontinued. It looks like the third is the only one that priced a 2-stage AC (at the time I thought we said Evolution furnace + Preferred AC, but that wasn't what was priced).
1. Lennox EL16XC1 / CX35-60C / EL280 (110k btuh)
2. Lennox EL16XC1 / CX35-60D / SL280v (132k btuh)
3. Bryant 187B / 315A / CNPVP6124ALA (110k btuh)
I've done all my homework and feel comfortable with all three companies, but leaning toward one. In case it matters, #2 and #3 were priced before the pandemic so they were in the house, whereas #1 didn't come inside.
Thanks!
source https://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?2223935-Variable-BTUs-Reconciling-estimates&goto=newpost
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