Confused and need some help

[pj06]

I am hoping you all can give me some advice. I am in need of a new heating and cooling system. I currently have a 20+ year horizontal Trane furnace and an 11 year old Lennox air conditioner. The furnace died at the end of the winter and the A/C has now given up the ghost. Currently the furnace is in a moist crawl space. I have had 4 companies out for quotes--Lennox, Bryant, American Standard and Century/ Goodman. Most have recommended that I move the furnace up into the garage area which there is room for though it will mean breaking through the concrete floor and then the cement block wall into the crawl space. Unfortunately cost is a major factor. That being the case I have had to eliminate the Lennox and American Standar Dealers. That leaves me with the Bryant or thethe Century/Goodman set up. The house is approx 2000 sq ft with fairly good insulation - new windows & doors as well. I live in Indiana where we have some cold winters. The Byrant has quoted a 80,000 BTU 93%(?) furnance and Century is quoting a 70,000 BTU 92%. The A/C quote is pretty much the same with 2.5 - 3 T 13 SEER units. The bottom line is I have never heard of Century furnances and I have seen the mixed report on the Goodman units. Are they comparable enough that I am comparing apples to apples??

[billva]

did you by any chance read this thread

http://www.hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthr...hreadid=110398

make sure they do a manual j to determine the proper size.

[phinncraft]

go with goodman i have installed them for ten years with very little problems.the new gas furnace is very quiet ,go with the 2 stage gas valve

[xv80satisfiedcust]

moist crawl space - wouldn't vapor barrier be cheaper? 20 years sounds like a reasonable longevity for furnace / ac.

[pj06]

Actually yes I have read through this site many times and have actually given the web site to each of the guys when they came to do their quotes. None of them had heard of it. I guess my main question is regarding the Century furnace. Has anyone had any experience with that company. I don't recall seeing that name in any of the discussions. Thanks again.

[xv80satisfiedcust]

pj06,

I guess what I'm asking just for your thought is - If you have a vapor barrier added to the crawlspace, then you might save some of the expense of relocating HVAC equipment to the garage, then you wouldn't have to get the Century name that you're not familiar with. (I'm just a homeowner / hadn't heard of it either). Would Rheem or Ruud give you a better price than American Standard?

Also, I would bet that a heatpump with electric backup would be cheaper total cost (purchase and operating costs) than furnace plus AC regardless of equipment brand.

If you are near Indianapolis, one of the HVAC Talk Pro's BaldLoonie is in that area. I have read many of his posts, he is knowledgeable about heat pumps. If he doesn't read this thread, do a search on his username, open the profile and send him an e-mail.

Pro's - do you consider it unwise to have an AC or heatpump installed in a crawlspace ???