14 SEER and higher units under 3 tons

[54regcab]

How many A/C systems do you sell that are 14 SEER or higher and less than 3 tons? I never see them installed in our area. The high SEER units I find are normally 4 or 5 tons, the 3 and 3.5 ton high SEER units are rare.

[George2]

How many A/C systems do you sell that are 14 SEER or higher and less than 3 tons? I never see them installed in our area. The high SEER units I find are normally 4 or 5 tons, the 3 and 3.5 ton high SEER units are rare.

When I sold equipment, it was almost always 14+ SEER mainly because of the rebates from the utility company. The warmer the weather, of course, the more important the higher SEER.

[BaldLoonie]

Payback on high SEER is faster on big units. In our area, you might save $10-15 a year in a 2 ton going 14 over 13 which can translate to a non-existent ROI. If a utility rebate covers most of the cost of the upgrade, might be worth doing. Otherwise, not.

[54regcab]

I've seen a LOT of high SEER unit oversizing. Somehow people think they can have it all by oversizing the A/C to keep cool well beyond design conditions and the high SEER rating will save them on their power bill. Then people are wondering why their power bills haven't dropped...

[George2]

I've seen a LOT of high SEER unit oversizing. Somehow people think they can have it all by oversizing the A/C to keep cool well beyond design conditions and the high SEER rating will save them on their power bill. Then people are wondering why their power bills haven't dropped...

What I found was that most contractors size the new A/C the same as the old A/C without taking the time to see if it's the correct size.

It's much more critical to properly size the newer, higher efficiency units.

[54regcab]

What I found was that most contractors size the new A/C the same as the old A/C without taking the time to see if it's the correct size.

It's much more critical to properly size the newer, higher efficiency units.

That's what I was thinking. Ductwork is normally marginal for their old system, but may be plenty for a smaller system.

[dsprice]

Code in my area is minimum 14 seer. I mostly due RNC so duct work is designed accordingly.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

[54regcab]

Code in my area is minimum 14 seer. I mostly due RNC so duct work is designed accordingly.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2
Interesting code requires a minimum SEER but there is no limit on how many tons per sq ft can be used. If they were really interesting in reducing peak power demand, forcing smaller units would be more effective than increasing SEER IMHO.

[George2]

That's what I was thinking. Ductwork is normally marginal for their old system, but may be plenty for a smaller system.

Now you're opening a whole new can of worms........ductwork is the delivery system, no different (really) than vains and arteries in a body.

The problem is that the equipment is too forgiving. I'm sure we've all seen systems that shouldn't be working but the owner says, "It works fine."

[54regcab]

Now you're opening a whole new can of worms........ductwork is the delivery system, no different (really) than vains and arteries in a body.

The problem is that the equipment is too forgiving. I'm sure we've all seen systems that shouldn't be working but the owner says, "It works fine."
Sure an oversized unit keeps the house cool, it's just not very efficient when trying to cram 4 tons of A/C down 2 tons of ductwork.