Hello all,
I am currently a retired individual on a fixed income so I try to perform as much of my own maintenance as I can.
I am not asking for any guidance as to how to do what I am going to ask, just some guidance as to whether it can be done to help in lowering electricity bills on existing systems.
The background is that I have two HVAC's in my home.
System one is:
- AHU - Rheem 2-3 ton Air handler model 17j10nudai or rcba-3765as17 serial m1197-03141 R22 appears to be a fixed orifice.
- CU - Trane XR11 2.5 ton from 2004 don't really know what's in this one.
System 2 is a Goodman matched 2 ton unit from 2004/2005 (installed during a home renovation add-on after home purchase).
My question is about system 1.
The system runs and keeps our home cool currently. We typically keep our home at 76 degrees and our thermostat will usually track that it runs from 8.5 to approx 14-16 hours per day. It does not short cycle, when it turns on it will usually run for approx 1/2 to over 1 hour per cycle depending on the heat outside.It is never humid inside my home. Overall I will say it is very comfortable for us (household is 6 total, don't ask...).
Since we've had the home and have been using the units, aside from the typical Goodman quality control issues (No fuse on the board so it caught fire, faulty 5 KW heater, shitty Chinese capacitor failed twice replaced with USA unit, Condensor fan failed, and bent condensor fan blade, appears to be made from heavy duty Reynolds aluminum foil). I've really had no major issues.
Actually to be honest the only one that has given me any issues has been the Goodman unit.
The Trane/Rheem setup has only needed a capacitor once (Changed to USA made) in 20 years.
All the above items are relatively minor upkeep items for me. I additionally also clean the evap coils and condensor coils approx twice a year, more often on the condensor coils if there is a lot of construction in the area.
The running amp draw on the Trane unit is 13.9Amps and the Goodman is 10Amps.
Calculating the KwHr this is approx 3.31 and 2.38 KwHr based on my line voltage of 238v. Converting the energy used to calculate an estimated SEER (BTU/W) I get 9.08SEER for the Rheem/Trane and 10.0 SEER for the Goodman
I have been tracking daily run times of each unit over the last month and it seems that the 2 HVAC's account for approx 72% of my monthly $300-400+ electricity bill.
I contacted an several HVAC companies in the area to quote a new system(s) but with quotes in the multiple 10's of K for replacement we can't fit that into our budget, and the payback would be in the 15-25 year range.
I have contacted several companies and asked about installing a TXV in at least the Rheem/Trane unit since it is the one with the highest cost to run.
My question is, I know a bit long winded, but I'm old.. sorry, is it possible/prudent to upgrade that Rheem AHU to a TXV system? Will it actually save us any money? Is the $ savings, if any, going to be offset by service calls? I really enjoy the rock solid reliability but honestly, as we age i don't know if we will be able to afford the current bills with the declining value of the dollar.
And just in case anyone was wondering, while I am pretty good with plumbing, mechanical, electrical and things of that nature, installing a TXV is not something I would feel comfortable even attempting, which is why I had called several companies. But for various reasons, ining cluding their charging me several hundred dollars in service calls and telling me I had to change my systems, when in reality the issue I called for was resolved by my simply removing an airflow restriction I had unknowingly caused myself, (the solution which I found on this forum BTW... Thank you), they have left a bad taste in my mouth. I WILL need to find a reputable installer in Central, FL if this turns out to be a viable option.
Sorry for being long winded and if I was a little scatterbrained.
...Pape
I am currently a retired individual on a fixed income so I try to perform as much of my own maintenance as I can.
I am not asking for any guidance as to how to do what I am going to ask, just some guidance as to whether it can be done to help in lowering electricity bills on existing systems.
The background is that I have two HVAC's in my home.
System one is:
- AHU - Rheem 2-3 ton Air handler model 17j10nudai or rcba-3765as17 serial m1197-03141 R22 appears to be a fixed orifice.
- CU - Trane XR11 2.5 ton from 2004 don't really know what's in this one.
System 2 is a Goodman matched 2 ton unit from 2004/2005 (installed during a home renovation add-on after home purchase).
My question is about system 1.
The system runs and keeps our home cool currently. We typically keep our home at 76 degrees and our thermostat will usually track that it runs from 8.5 to approx 14-16 hours per day. It does not short cycle, when it turns on it will usually run for approx 1/2 to over 1 hour per cycle depending on the heat outside.It is never humid inside my home. Overall I will say it is very comfortable for us (household is 6 total, don't ask...).
Since we've had the home and have been using the units, aside from the typical Goodman quality control issues (No fuse on the board so it caught fire, faulty 5 KW heater, shitty Chinese capacitor failed twice replaced with USA unit, Condensor fan failed, and bent condensor fan blade, appears to be made from heavy duty Reynolds aluminum foil). I've really had no major issues.
Actually to be honest the only one that has given me any issues has been the Goodman unit.
The Trane/Rheem setup has only needed a capacitor once (Changed to USA made) in 20 years.
All the above items are relatively minor upkeep items for me. I additionally also clean the evap coils and condensor coils approx twice a year, more often on the condensor coils if there is a lot of construction in the area.
The running amp draw on the Trane unit is 13.9Amps and the Goodman is 10Amps.
Calculating the KwHr this is approx 3.31 and 2.38 KwHr based on my line voltage of 238v. Converting the energy used to calculate an estimated SEER (BTU/W) I get 9.08SEER for the Rheem/Trane and 10.0 SEER for the Goodman
I have been tracking daily run times of each unit over the last month and it seems that the 2 HVAC's account for approx 72% of my monthly $300-400+ electricity bill.
I contacted an several HVAC companies in the area to quote a new system(s) but with quotes in the multiple 10's of K for replacement we can't fit that into our budget, and the payback would be in the 15-25 year range.
I have contacted several companies and asked about installing a TXV in at least the Rheem/Trane unit since it is the one with the highest cost to run.
My question is, I know a bit long winded, but I'm old.. sorry, is it possible/prudent to upgrade that Rheem AHU to a TXV system? Will it actually save us any money? Is the $ savings, if any, going to be offset by service calls? I really enjoy the rock solid reliability but honestly, as we age i don't know if we will be able to afford the current bills with the declining value of the dollar.
And just in case anyone was wondering, while I am pretty good with plumbing, mechanical, electrical and things of that nature, installing a TXV is not something I would feel comfortable even attempting, which is why I had called several companies. But for various reasons, ining cluding their charging me several hundred dollars in service calls and telling me I had to change my systems, when in reality the issue I called for was resolved by my simply removing an airflow restriction I had unknowingly caused myself, (the solution which I found on this forum BTW... Thank you), they have left a bad taste in my mouth. I WILL need to find a reputable installer in Central, FL if this turns out to be a viable option.
Sorry for being long winded and if I was a little scatterbrained.
...Pape
source https://hvac-talk.com/vbb/threads/2243380-TXV-Upgrade-on-old-system?goto=newpost
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