Lennox A/C Furnace Tax Credit

[moghan]

Hi there. Looking for someone who knows about the 30% energy tax credit to please answer a quick question. I am trying to make sure I am not getting ripped off.

I had a Lennox dealer come out and give me an estimate to replace my 25 year old furnace and A/C. I told him that I wanted to take advantage of the tax credit. He told me that the A/C standards were really high and its only the top few models that qualify. He suggested only getting a furnace that qualified. The total price came to $$. My first concern was that the furnace would not qualify for the full credit, he told me that as long as they can prove that the furnace accounts for %45 of the total value of the system I would get the full $1500 credit. I searched this on google and have not found anything that supports this. Has anyone heard of this before? I am also concerned that the system he quoted me for doesn't actually qualify at all. Here is what the proposal was for:

G61MPV-070-36B Furnace
XC 14-036 3 Ton A/C
C33-38A Coil

I have my A/C and Furnace vents in the ceiling if that makes a difference.
Does anyone know how to tell if this actually qualifies? His price was very low compared to all the other estimates and they said they would match any other offer we got. Thank you for any help you can provide.

Eric

[seatonheating]

Hi there. Looking for someone who knows about the 30% energy tax credit to please answer a quick question. I am trying to make sure I am not getting ripped off.

I had a Lennox dealer come out and give me an estimate to replace my 25 year old furnace and A/C. I told him that I wanted to take advantage of the tax credit. He told me that the A/C standards were really high and its only the top few models that qualify. He suggested only getting a furnace that qualified. The total price came to $ minus an $ discount they are giving for this combo (total price $, not including the tax credit). My first concern was that the furnace would not qualify for the full credit, he told me that as long as they can prove that the furnace accounts for %45 of the total value of the system I would get the full $1500 credit. I searched this on google and have not found anything that supports this. Has anyone heard of this before? I am also concerned that the system he quoted me for doesn't actually qualify at all. Here is what the proposal was for:

G61MPV-070-36B Furnace
XC 14-036 3 Ton A/C
C33-38A Coil

I have my A/C and Furnace vents in the ceiling if that makes a difference.
Does anyone know how to tell if this actually qualifies? His price was very low compared to all the other estimates and they said they would match any other offer we got. Thank you for any help you can provide.

Eric


Even if it does qualify I hardly bet you will get an install worthy of its rated efficiency.

Instead of looking at initial cost you should first look at if his value exceeds that cost. For starters, did he perform a manual J? My bet is that he didn't.

[moghan]

Very true. As far as I know he didn't do any calculations. He looked at the serial number of the existing AC and furnace and that is where he came up with the 3 ton size.

[seatonheating]

Very true. As far as I know he didn't do any calculations. He looked at the serial number of the existing AC and furnace and that is where he came up with the 3 ton size.


That's what a large portion of guys in our industry do as proper sizing, designing and servicing a proper system costs more money.

Tell us where you reside and we can let you know if a heat pump makes more sense in your area. Having your gas cost per therm and price per kw/hr on your electricity will help us.

[moghan]

Thanks for the fast reply. I live in Oklahoma. Looking at my last bills it looks like electric is 11.5 cents per KWH and gas is $7.13/Dth. I am serving in the military right now so I will probably only be at this house for another 3-4 years. I would assume that a new furnace and ac wouldn't increase the value of my house by a whole lot. I am replacing them just for the peace of mind that they wont break down in the next couple years. Do you think I would save more by getting a cheaper system that doesn't qualify for the credit? Not sure how much that extra 30% would really save me, most of the dealers here are trying hard to sell me the energy efficient models. Are there any brands you would recommend? So far I have quotes on lennox and trane systems. Thanks a lot for the help.

[seatonheating]

Thanks for the fast reply. I live in Oklahoma. Looking at my last bills it looks like electric is 11.5 cents per KWH and gas is $7.13/Dth. I am serving in the military right now so I will probably only be at this house for another 3-4 years. I would assume that a new furnace and ac wouldn't increase the value of my house by a whole lot. I am replacing them just for the peace of mind that they wont break down in the next couple years. Do you think I would save more by getting a cheaper system that doesn't qualify for the credit? Not sure how much that extra 30% would really save me, most of the dealers here are trying hard to sell me the energy efficient models. Are there any brands you would recommend? So far I have quotes on lennox and trane systems. Thanks a lot for the help.

Brand means very little to me, it's all about the install.

Being that you will be there at least 3-4 more years(which doesn't always happen), I would definitely go high efficiency. You will have peace of mind and an efficient system that you can reap the benefits of at least in this time frame.

[BaldLoonie]

I find no matches with that A/C and G61 furnace that get the tax credit.

[vtinknocker]

Usa a G61mpv-36b-071 for the tax credit. It is 95%. The model you listed is 94.1%.