Seeking advice on electric heat pump v. Natural gas furnace

[K8lollyh]

I have a few questions but first, I'll give you the backstory .

My home has a central AC system and heat pump with electric emergency heat, kenmore brand installed in 2008. This week our AC went out so we called a tech out. It's the compressor - needs completely replaced and our outside electrical box has some melting around the wires. The tech said he could not fix it himself, it's a big project and will cost upwards of $ plus the cost of fixing the wiring. The tech also suggested that our heat pump has been broken for years, using only emergency heat, which would explain our yearly average usage of 25,000kwh. (The house is all electric, no gas.) If the heat pump is shot, then the repair cost is even higher.

Given the high price tag, we are considering replacing the whole outdoor unit, so I called a contractor to get an estimate. I'm uncertain of the size/power of units of our system but the contractor said for central Ohio weather and the size of our home (2300ish sq ft) we need a 12-15 seer unit both inside and out. The units installed in 2008 are both 7 seers.

First of all, is this correct? Do we really need a system twice as powerful?

Second, can we simply replace the entire outside unit, AC + heat pump and leave the old indoor system?

Third, if we need to replace both indoor and outdoor units, is it better to go with natural gas heat? I live in central Ohio where winter temps average below 40, most of the time and the house is already plumbed for natural gas heat with a pipe going just up to the heater. So, I think, it wouldn't take much to connect to a new system.

Thanks for any guidance that you can provide.

[Bazooka Joe]

The minimum standard nationwide for heat pumps is 14 SEER, not the 12 you mentioned. If you have gas piped to your residence, I would go with a condensing gas furnace ( upwards of 98% efficient ,starting at around 92% ) you can go either all gas for your winter and straight A/C or a Hybrid system going with a Heat Pump and gas, the Heat Pump can run when the OD temperature is warm, then it switches to gas as the OD temperature drops. There is a federal tax credit until 31 Dec. 2016 and your state may offer a rebate ( money in your pocket ) for installing energy star rated equiptment. I believe it's 16 SEER minimum for straight A/C and 15 SEER for a heat pump. The gas furnace needs to be 95% minimum.

Highly recommend getting a load calculation done to see what size equiptment you would need. Also have them check your existing ductwork ( sealing, modifications, etc.) to make sure it compatible with the new system. Make sure they register the equiptment for you so you can take full advantage of the manufacture warranty. Your also looking at the very minimum a one year labor warranty from the Installing Contractor.

https://www.energystar.gov/about/federal_tax_credits

[K8lollyh]

[QUOTE=Bazooka Joey;22850911]"The minimum standard nationwide for heat pumps is 14 SEER, not the 12 you mentioned."

So then we have an 8 seer system and he recommended 14-16 seer system. Thanks. Why would the previous owners installed half of what is needed? Are these standards newer than 2008?

Also, if it were your home, would you stick with all electric to save a few bucks in instillation, or go for the natural gas and save money over the long run? I want natural gas, husband wants to stay all electric.

[Bazooka Joe]

[QUOTE=K8lollyh;22851001]

"The minimum standard nationwide for heat pumps is 14 SEER, not the 12 you mentioned."
So then we have an 8 seer system and he recommended 14-16 seer system. Thanks. Why would the previous owners installed half of what is needed? Are these standards newer than 2008?

Minimum SEER standard in 1992 was 10 , they bumped it up to 13 in 2006, it's still 13 SEER in the Northern States for straight split A/C . Heat Pumps ( nationwide ) and Straight split A/C for the rest of the country went to 14 SEER in 2015

[K8lollyh]

If it were your house, would you go natural gas or stay all electric?

And you might be right- it might be 10 seers but the Sears tech and salesman said it was much too small/inefficient for our needs by at least half. I just wanted to be sure that he was telling the truth about what we need v what we have. Thanks for your help!

[Bazooka Joe]

Me,....hands down I would go with a 92%+ condensing gas furnace.

If it was actually installed in 2008 then to me it's at least a 13 SEER as the minimum standard for 13 SEER was in 2006, it could be a 10 or 12 SEER but it would have to be built prior to 2006, the serial number ( if you know how to read it ) will tell you the month and year built.

http://www.buildingcenter.org/conten...uction-dateage

This site will tell you how to read the serial number to find the age of your OD unit

[jpsmith1cm]

Edit pricing

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[martyinlincoln]

Just to clear things up a bit a higher seer rating is not more powerful than a low seer. It does the same amount of cooling but at a lower electric consumption rate. With that said a 2008 would have been at least a 13 seer .

Dad lives south of Canton a few miles. Based on his electric rate I'd suggest a 95ish efficient gas furnace with a 14-15 seer AC. Your super hot time of summer isn't long enough to justify a really high seer AC.

[catmanacman]

I would get a second opinion on the compressor as this guy is not being truthful also have to wonder if the burnt wire gas anything to do with the compressor not running.
i am a fan of gas heat

[K8lollyh]

We are getting a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th opinion tomorrow. Unfortunately, no one was willing to come over the holiday weekend. And of course this is the hottest Memorial Day weekend we've had in years.