Heat pump anyone

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Cup of Joe

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My heat pump is running on borrowed time (compressor). This unit has been a complete pile so I don't want to buy a unit with the same kind of problems again. What is a good unit and size for a 2500 sqft single story home in a very hummid area?

I was thinking of a Trane since the same HVAC company that installed and has been doing the warranty work on this pile also installs Trane. That and the FOL works for Trane I may be able to get some kind of discount.

Any reccomendation? Or what I should stay away from.
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Definitely go with a name brand, American Standard, Trane, Carrier, etc.

Buy the one your local dealer reccommends, as they will prolly be servicing it as well.
 
Originally Posted By: sprintman
You got Daikin in the U.S?


or Mitsubishi Heavy Industries ? (possibly better than Daikin)

The Japanese manufacturers dominate the domestic and commercial market here and their gear is excellent.

Only exposure to Trane is on commercial/industrial gear where they have a heavy presence here.
 
I've got a York Heat Pump here that is going on 23 years. Not a problem with it. I've thought about replacing it something more modern and efficient.

Geographically, this is questionable area for heat pumps (southern Ontario, Canada). The climate here is considerably more moderate than the rest of Canada but we still have a good 3 - 4 months of the year where it is too cold for a heat pump to work well. Spring and fall are no problem.
 
York, Trane, Rheem, Ruud, Carrier, Goodman, Janitrol, that about covers it for what I've seen in recently-made equipment. My furnace/AC is a 15-year-old York that still works fine. Even had a serviceguy comment on how clean it looked.
 
One of my Yorks failed after 4 years, had to get a new compressor. I have 2 units on a 2400 square ft home. It is very humid here as well, and now it works fine. I read a consumers report about Heat pumps several years ago and the Yorks were rated pretty low, of course who knows how good the research was.
 
Originally Posted By: Gary Allan
Just don't get too big a unit. You need a substantial air exchange to dehumidify.

Yea Gary..that's one of my pet peeves. You need a smaller unit running a higher percentage of the time to dehumidify which means you can choose a higher set temperature and feel the same comfort level as several degrees lower.

But we are talking to the choir. Mentioned that to the neighbor and they bought a 3 ton unit when a 2 ton would have been fine.

I would guess a 2 ton unit would fit the bill here but. Installers error on the size of installing too much capacity. They will always add .5 to 1 Ton extra.
 
Carrier Infinity is the cadillac system right now (or its sister product the Bryant Evolution. I would not shy away from a Trane either. Either way, you want a 2 stage, variable speed system. I would be more concered with the competency of the contractor and whether or not they perform a Manual J calc to determine the correct size of the unit.
 
Originally Posted By: rshaw125
There are some good tax credits taking effect for 2009. You may want to investigate those and put your puchase off till then.


We are nursing the compressor along for hopefully another 4-6 months so this could be very good.
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Quote:
One of my Yorks failed after 4 years, had to get a new compressor


I'm actually glad to hear that. This unit will be 6 years old in January. Knowing that its not just this pile of **it breaking down in only a couple years makes me feel better. It's been to problematic to bother replacing the compressor.

Quote:
I would guess a 2 ton unit would fit the bill here but. Installers error on the size of installing too much capacity. They will always add .5 to 1 Ton extra


I think its a 2.5 or possibly 3 ton unit
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If I was more informed 6-7 years ago I would have worried more about the HVAC and less about the counter tops.
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I don't know how it works for heat pumps, but my new home is just a bit larger than that (two story) and it has two HVAC units. (Gas furnace and AC).

I like being able to set the temps different in each zone. So you might see if it's possible to use two smaller units, so you have a bit more control over which areas are conditioned.

I wouldn't have chosen that option. Since we bought a 'spec home' I'm glad the builder did!
 
I agree with Brett Miller that the contractor is more important than the components to a large degree. Manual J calculation & a competent installer is required. Do you have metal duct work or flex? Any cold/hot spots in the house?
 
My Rheem unit died a few months ago. It's less than 6 years old.

I'm remodeling, and I'm dumping the heat pump for a separate AC/furnace system. That stupid heat pump NEVER worked right. It didn't keep the house cool in the summer and it definitely didn't keep the house warm in the winter. Never, ever, ever again will I have a home with a heat pump.
 
brettmiller : Carrier has a three stage 95% variable speed furnace now. and it can be matched to their heat pump. i have this system in my own home. coupled with a zone system. The cats meow!

Minivanmauler: seriously a heat pump is a great idea for your part of the country, i would suggest that the installing company didnt do a good job of installing your system or installed your heat pump with out looking at the exsiting duct system, which is quite common, friends of mine in Seattle had all the load calculations done for a proper sized system and discovered that the duct system couldnt support the system, in their case the duct could only handle 2/3rds of the heating and a/c required to take care of the home.

i am a heating and a/c contractor, thats what i do for a living.
i sure dont know everything, but after thirty years i am starting to get the hang of things.

one problem in our industry, is that our service techs dont always know a good duct system from a bad one, so they look at the problem as a equipment challenge it broke i need to fix that, instead of why did it break and asking a number of probing questions that can revile other problems or other symptoms.

the flip side of that coin is the installers have a half idea how things should be installed and never hear about the related installation problems so they can correct their installation practices.

i love what i do for a living and love the opportunities to continue to learn along the way.

if i can help any of the folks here, just pm me i would be happy to share my two cents!
 
a further note, if you dont have a contractor recommendation from some one with personal experience, i would suggest looking at a Lennox, Trane, Bryant or Carrier dealer.

there is quite a screening process to become a dealer for the above line of equipment. that being said, talk to some of the folks that have used there services, check the local BBB. and of course trust your gut feelings as to the person your dealing with.

hope this helps a bit.
Sincerely
Duane
 
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