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Gas furnace recommendations?
QUESTION:We're replacing an old oil furnace with a modern gas furnace and I would like some advice. We have bids from two contractors, a Lennox dealer and a Carrier dealer.
First of all, any advice about high efficiency (90+%) vs medium efficiency?
Is one kind more reliable? One contractor told us that the high efficiency furnaces are now as reliable as the medium, though that was not always true.
To those with a high efficiency furnace: does the steam coming out low down (near the foundation) bother you?
Any strong feelings about variable output furnaces (which run cooler and longer) vs fixed output furnaces? One installer says variable output is superb, keeps the air mixed better, avoiding stratification. The other hates them, saying the blow cool air and so are less comfortable.
Also, any advice about brands? We've gotten bids from a Lennox dealer and a Carrier dealer. We could look farther. I'm looking for QUIET and reliable.
ANSWER: My brother is a contractor who is of the opinion that the QUALITY OF THE
INSTALL is MUCH more important than the brand of furnace.
Since many companies sell furnaces they don't actually make, brand names
aren't necessarily a good indicator. For example, one guy I spoke to said
Janitrol was a good name, but that Ducane was junk. But some
Janitrol-brand furnaces were made for them by Ducane.
This week I'm having a furnace installed by a contractor who is of the
same opinion.
By amazing coincidence, consumer reports did articles on gas furnaces and
central air last year, and they also said the same thing.
The concensus opinion seems to be "buy in the middle." Avoid the least
efficient and most efficient furnaces and A/Cs.
By law, gas furnaces must have an AFUE rating of 78%. Furnaces seem to
skip the entire 81 - 89 range. Cheaper furnaces were all rated 80.0, and
the next step up was a 90. Consumer Reports claim some furnaces are as
high as 97%, but they didn't name it, and nobody I spoke to heard of it.
An older HVAC contractor I spoke to thought all the new hi-efficiency (aka
90 plus) furnaces had too many parts and were unreliable. Everyone else I
spoke to said, "That was true 10 years ago, but not anymore."
You might want to ask around in alt.hvac, where all the HVAC
(Heating/Ventilation/Air Conditioning) contractors hang out.
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