Size question

[flyer6851]

My home is a typical Philadelphia row house. It has two floors, a finished basement with a total square footage of approximately 1100 sq. ft. and has limited exposure since its in the middle of a row.

Contractor A is offering a Carrier 45,000 BTU two stage multi speed furnace paired with a Carrier Performance 2 ton condensing unit with a 13/14.5 SEER rating. Contractor B is also offering Carrier equipment. In this case it's a 70,000 BTU two stage multi speed furnace paired with a 3 ton condensing unit with a 14/15.5 SEER rating.

Without getting into pricing, am I correct in assuming contractor B is recommending equipment that is too large for the job?

[Ed Janowiak]

Going solely on the info you provided, I'd say the smaller the equipment the better :).

[makinmoney]

What do you have there now? The contractors should be able to tell you the size of the system you have. Then ask why the deviation from whats already in place and why.

[beenthere]

3 tons sounds grossly oversized.

The 70,000btu furnace sounds big also.

Or don't you have any insulation in your exposed walls.
Or are they just glaas walls.

[flyer6851]

Current furnace is a Bryant that came with the house when it was built in 1951. I do not currently have central air conditioning.

[BaldLoonie]

B does sound grossly oversized!

I lived in a 1200 sq ft rental townhome. Meaning cheaply built, lousy windows. 1.5 ton would keep it in the 60s when mid 90s out and 50K furnace would keep it toasty way below zero. Condos are the most likely we see oversized. Nobody considers that common walls mean no heat loss/gain. Basements have no heat gain and little loss.