Thoughts on New Trane System

[allpar23]

I’m looking to replace my Trane 17 yr old Gas Furnace and AC with another Trane system and take advantage of the Fed Tax Credit. I had local reputable Trane rep come out to give me an estimate on a Gas Furnace / HP system. The following is his proposed system:

Furnace: XV95 2 Stage VS Gas Model # TUH2C1OOA9V4VA
HP: 4 ton 15 seer XR15 Model # 4TWR5O48E1OOOA
Coil: 5 ton coil Model # 4txad061bc3hua
T-Stat: Honeywell IAQ

So, after I got my quote I asked the rep why the XR15 was rated at 15 seer for this configuration since I noticed the XR15 HP is rated up to 16.5 seer. This is what the rep said:

“The seer rating has to do with the coil and furnace blend. But most important is the size of the system. A 2-ton or even 3-ton system could possible reach 16 seer. The XR15 with the furnace and coil quoted only reached 14 seer. There is not a 3.5 or 4 ton dual fuel system stat will reach the seer required for the federal tax credit”

So, my question is… Is there any validity to what this rep is telling me? I find is hard to believe I can’t get a XR15 HP matched up with the XV95 that would give me above 14 seer.

Does anyone have any recommendations as to what combination I should try?

NOTE: I thought the XL15i was not worth it for the money. Also, these forums helped me come to the conclusion to not go for the XL16i.

Thank you,

[drees]

Yep, the rep is right. Systems are rated by the sum of their parts, and not all combinations reach the top efficiency numbers - which is why Trane's website says "up to 16.00" for the XL15i and "up to 16.50" for the XR 15i.

I'm also looking for a heat-pump and in my first quote with a Trane dealer, the options seemed to be limited regarding qualifying systems in the 4-ton size. The Lennox rep I found had no issues finding a system that qualified, though. Got another Trane dealer coming by today, so we'll see if he comes up with any other options.

BTW - Why are you preferring the XR15 over the XL15i?

[allpar23]

Thanks for the reply drees… Honestly, price was main factor in leaning towards XR15 vs XL15i. I’ve read that the XL15i is very quite but the XR15 is loud, however, the XR15 HP is only 2db different.

The XL15i does have a 12 yr warranty on parts vs 10 yr for XR15 and the XL15i does get good reviews but doesn’t seem worth it since it’s still a single stage HP IMO. However, I'm still learning and am not a HVAC PRO.

[larobj63]

3 db is twice as loud. Decibals are a logrithmic scale.

[commerce48]

3 db is twice as loud. Decibals are a logrithmic scale.

"Loud" is a human perception. You are right that decibels are log scale, and 3 dB does represent a doubling of power, but don't forget the inverse square law. The difference between 50 dB and 60 dB with your ratio would be about 8 times as loud, not very likely. In fact, most people hearing an A/B test would hear a 10 dB difference as about twice as loud (at "midrange" frequencies). 3 dB is just barely perceptible to most people.

[golfer1512]

Commerce , I agree, 2-3 db not a big deal. I have an XR14 installed June and it is very quite and has compressor "cover". I have one neighbor with a Goodman loudest, 2 yrs old and the other side of me is a Ruud , mine is the quietest. I also got rid of a loud York.