I;m looking for duel heating advice.

[fatherdano]

Ill try to condense my situation.

I've added a 900 square foot addition to my home, it will be heated/cooled with it's own system(york-gas furnace/ac)

The main house uses a trane heat pump tied in with a trane gas furnace.

My utility bills are consistantly the lowest in our neighborhood(by alot)

In order to build the addition i had the heat pump disconnected and moved to temporary storage.
Upon trying to re install said system(17years old) the idea of a replacement heat pump has come.
Can i combine a york heat pump with a trane furnace?
Is the dual heating cooling still a valid option?(i get a reduced rate on my electricity having the heat pump.)
Would you spend the money on new lines and labor to have the old heat pump reinstalled?


I appreciate your time in reading this and responding.

Thanks
Dano

[vstech]

combining differing brands in not the issue you are going to face, it's efficiency and capacity. you should be fine getting quotes from contractors that can match a new unit to your furnace and keep the dual fuel capabilities. (now adays, dual fuel can be managed by the thermostat alone) changing out the 17y0 furnace would be wise if for no other reason than better options are available that way. condensing gas furnaces are quite efficient, and unless you already have a 90% or greater furnace (do you have a metal vent or a plastic one?) a new 95% model with a VS motor will aid your loads!

[fatherdano]

The gas furnace is a high efficency, the existing heat pump was an expensive (big unit)trane. Is york a comparable unit to trane?

[vstech]

a 17 year old TOP OF THE LINE trane is not going to be comparable to even the builder model current lineup of any brand. 17 years ago, I don't think 12 seer was even available. 13 seer is the current minimum. mid efficiency 15seer is available with dual speed compressors and other energy saving devices that just simply did not exist then.
I do not sell york, so I really cant comment on the equipment itself, but I am confident that if it's a reputable installation company, and the proper size equipment is installed it will be an improvement in the system.

[garya505]

Ill try to condense my situation.

I've added a 900 square foot addition to my home, it will be heated/cooled with it's own system(york-gas furnace/ac)

The main house uses a trane heat pump tied in with a trane gas furnace.

My utility bills are consistantly the lowest in our neighborhood(by alot)

In order to build the addition i had the heat pump disconnected and moved to temporary storage.
Upon trying to re install said system(17years old) the idea of a replacement heat pump has come.
Can i combine a york heat pump with a trane furnace?
Is the dual heating cooling still a valid option?(i get a reduced rate on my electricity having the heat pump.)
Would you spend the money on new lines and labor to have the old heat pump reinstalled?


I appreciate your time in reading this and responding.

Thanks
Dano

Dano, I'm not a pro but I've been studying this a lot so I'll give you my $.02 anyway. I think dual fuel is the best way to go for most homes in the US, unless you're in a climate that has small annual temperature changes. To save yourself a lot of potential problems, I would stick with a matched system. I would also just go ahead and get a new furnace. Modern 80% and 95% furnaces are way better than your 17 year old equipment, and if you get a 2-stage furnace it will save you money and increase comfort by running on low heat most of the time. If you get a furnace with VS blower, this can help to even out temperatures in your house.