Opinions on these two systems?

[SouthJerseySam]

Hi all, we bought this house 5 years ago and after many problems (and cold North East winter nights) we are finally replacing the 32 year old electric heat pump system! The current system is a York, 6 SEER, 2.5 ton system, in a 2200 sq ft home. We are converting to a gas forced air furnace/AC system. We had five different contractors come and give us quotes and below are the two systems I am considering. I would appreciate some opinions on them before I pull the trigger. Thanks in advance for your help.
Sam

System 1:
Trane TUH2B060A9V3 XV95 furnace
Trane 4TTX5030A1000A XLI5 AC
ACE36D44175L015 EVAP COIL
Trane Cont602AF22MA thermostat
Honeywell HE265 Humidifier
New copper line set
new pad under AC
new outside disconnect box
Gas line to heater (gas already run into house for HW heater, so they are connecting from that line)
All venting to outside for heater
All necessary Permit costs
10 year warranty on parts & labor

System 2:
RHEEM RGRM06EMAES (heat)
RHEEM 14AJM030A01 (AC)
RHEEM RCQD3621 (Coil)
New Thermostat (didn't see model # in quote)
New copper line set
new pad under AC
new outside disconnect box
Gas line to heater (gas already run into house for HW heater, so they are connecting from that line)
All venting to outside for heater
All necessary Permit costs
10 year warranty on parts & 2 yr on labor

I'm waiting on a reply from the contractor of system 2 as I noticed last night that I forgot to ask him to add a humidifier and I want him to match the warranty on labor.

[BaldLoonie]

Just based on equipment, here are some observations. The furnaces are essentially identical. Deluxe 2 stage units with variable speed blowers. We sell both, either one will do you just fine. Rheem units can be a bit more limiting on how long their flue pipes run. Looks like the Trane dealer is including a 2 stage thermostat, which is good. Hopefully you'll find the Rheem dealer is too.

The A/Cs are where things differ. The Trane dealer is quoting a high end 15 SEER outdoor unit. Got the fancy top, compressor cover, pressure switches, etc. Quiet. The only part of it I don't like is the use of the Aspen brand coil rather than a genuine Trane coil. Never was a fan of Aspen. The new all aluminum Trane coils are great. Wonder why he is doing that? 3rd party coils sometimes get a smidge higher SEER since they aren't tested, just computer simulated.

The Rheem A/C is the "value" line. Bare bones, no compressor pressure switches, sound cover etc. The RAPM is much nicer but more money, more in line with the XL15i. I do like the Rheem dealer using a matching deluxe Rheem coil.

Ask dealers who is providing the long labor warranty. Trane has their own program which is solid. Not sure who Rheem is using, probably Service Net whose history is unknown. The last company they used had problems.

Be sure to register the equipment whichever brand you choose to get the 10 year parts warranty.

Back to the gas line, hopefully whomever ran it to the water heater originally sized it for a future gas furnace!

[SouthJerseySam]

Thanks for the reply! All five contractors that came out mentioned that whoever ran the gas line must have been thinking ahead as it's size would accommodate a furnace.

Someone else had mentioned in another forum not liking the idea of a 3rd party coil, and they also said that the thermostat for the Trane wasn't right and I should request a different model (Trane 803).

Both the Trane contractor and the Rheem contractor come highly recommended with very good local reviews. I don't want to base it just on the price difference (which is less than a grand; hope I can say that :whistle:), so I was hoping to base it on the equipment differences.

Which do you think is a bigger deal the third party coil or the difference between the two AC units?

[John D in CT]

Hi.

When I've tried to get opinions from HVAC professionals on what brands are good, all I've ever gotten is "they're all good". If that's true, maybe just go with the contractor you get the best feeling about; helpful attitude, competence, honesty, years in the business, all-around "vibe". Cheapest price isn't always the best deal, so I wouldn't even consider any prices difference unless it's off the charts. Ten year warranty on parts and labor sounds good too. Just on the information you've given I'd go with the Trane system, but you've dealt with the two guys and I haven't.

Also grill both of them about exactly what method they used to size the system. If neither of them mentions "Manual J", ask them about what it is. If neither of them knows, you might want to look for some additional contractors. Ditto if they both say they just went by square footage.

It seems to me that sizing systems, particularly the a/c, is very tricky. I think it's less of a problem oversizing heat than it is a/c. It also seems to me that a/c has to be sized really precisely so that the compressor will be running just about continuously on the hottest day(s) of the year, just barely able to keep up with the heat load, so that it isn't cycling on and off too much during the rest of the cooling season, thereby doing a bad job of dehumidifying the air, and also using more power than it would otherwise.

It seems to me that hitting that sweet spot requires a lot of skill, and not just an educated guess.

Good luck.

[catmanacman]

ask the trane contractor to reprice the system with the trane all aluminum coil , as already mentioned they are great . I also like the tcon 803 for the ease of programming it although the tcon602 is a good thermostat .as for the rheem I do not work with very often so i am not familiar with the model numbers

[BaldLoonie]

The only thing (besides the touchscreen) that the 803 will do is overcool if the humidity is higher than your setpoint.

The difference between the Trane coil price & the Aspen is meaningless. The difference between the Rheem A/C and the XL15i is considerable. It will cool just as well, just doesn't have near the bells & whistles.