Purchasing a replacement furnace

fearless

My present furnace is 12 years old mid-efficiency furnace. It is time to replace same with a high-efficiency model. I was told that my house 1800 sq ft requires a minimum 64,000 BTU unit.
Features that I want include 1. 2 stage operation 2. Variable speed ECM blower (DC motor) 3.Stainless Steel heat exchanger 4. minmum 94% Afue.
Price wise, Sears seems to be best. I have narrowed my choices down to 3 and wonder if any professional HVAC people could comment?

1. Lennox 70,000 BTU model G61V elite series 94% Afue $4,200 (sold by Lennox Dealer)
2. Kenmore (made by Heil) 80000 BTU 76150 series 80000 BTU 95% Afue $3800 (sold by Sears)
3. Carrier 80,000 BTU Model 26150 series, 94% Afue $4,100(sold by Sears)

I am presently leaning towards the Kenmore . COMMENTS Please

yuri

The last 2 are oversized for your house. A G61V-70 is actually a 66,000 BTU unit which closely matches your needs. Has been around for 7 years with a very good track record. I have sold and worked on hundreds of them. If the Lennox dealer is well establieshed and reputable I would consider them. Sears uses subcontractors where I am and they are like the "flavor of the day". They always pick the lowest bidder for their contracts and that doesn't always attract the best talent from what I have seen.

Plumber101

The lennox looks good to me as well.

The only advise I would give you is stay away from sears and get a couple more estimates from local companies.

fearless

Thanks Yuri
I know proper installation is important. Have you heard much about the Kenmore (Heil) Brand?

fearless

Thanks Plumber101, I've got 2 more local guys coming around tomorrow. The Lennox dealer is new in the area, so I don't know his track record

Plumber101

Heil is not a Kenmore Brand. It is made by ICP. International Cooling Products

AND

SO is Carrier, Comfortmaker, Tempstar and Arcoaire

www.goheil.com

Chemist1961

Fearless, couple of things , I went thru the same last fall and Sears is on the econo end versus Lennox and Carrier. Sears in Kitchener was pathetic to deal with... they were all too busy thinking of Xmas to get serious about business and couldn't gaurantee service response thru their contactors...

Our private Carrier contractor came in 12% lower than Sears Carrier quote...
Kenmore I believe matches up with KeepRite,and several builder grades etc... look closely... even the brochures are matching in ratings and wodring

Sears has HUGE markup in their housebrand so they push it interest free

Get a home energy audit done and you will get some fed and provincial money back in addition to the 15% tax credit. I upgraded a 35 year old unit and will get over $1000 plus Hydro rebate ,plus 15% Fed Tax credit at tax time. Gas consumption has dropped 35%. Gota Carrier, have the Carrier Stat and General humidifier

If Yuri lived in Ontario I would pay him mileage to do the install and grab the Lennox. Since Winterpeg is too far away, I had to shop local.
I looked at York and Lennox both in addition to Carrier. Didn't like the York Dealer..".AIR ONE" and my Carrier guy and I had done business before, but Lennox was Excellent and York looked very good to my eye as well.



In the end, all other things being equal installation and service reputation would be my deciding factors. I have a fridge from Sears with issues and they are a pain to deal with but I still tried.

Support the independants. Yuri's endorsement should tell you something...

yuri

There must be more than 1 Lennox dealer in Barrie? Shop around. I am not a big fan of ICP (International Comfort Products) due to there emphasis on cost rather than quality and reputation. Builder grade units IMO (Sorry Clover). If they are installed properly and maintained they can work well. Their tech support in Canada sucks and Lennox is far better for that, Carrier fairly good.

Plumber101

Hate to do this Yuri but, Since I dropped my Lennox dealer account and went to ICP I have had no problems..again it goes to install.

I install $2-3000 less than the local Lennox dealer and offer 10 yr warr

Lennox still have the 5 yr warr?

hvac122

Lennox is the way to go. They have a 10 year warranty and lifetime heat exchanger. ICP to me lacks in quality as said and goes more for price.

Stay away from Sears. Around here they use the lowest quality contractors and do not stand behind there installs.

Plumber101

So ICP goes more for price?

I don't understand evertime I priced a Lennox to an ICP furnace say,

100K BTU, 95%, 2-stage, Var speed, the base cost of a Lennox was more than $400 compared to an ICP. 10yr parts and Lifetime HE to orignal customer.

So who pays the $400 contractor or customer?

hvac122

Just as with anything else in this world you get what you pay for.

dac122

Just curious what is your reason for upgrading, and what is the AFUE of your existing furnace? Has anyone checked your ducts to be sure the units you're looking at with VS blowers will work adequately?

fearless

My original furnace is a 12 year old York Diamond Mid-Efficiency 80,000 BTU.
Last winter it gave us problems, such that I'm nervous about leaving on an extended vacation in the winter. I've been told to expect a 15 year lifespan for the original furnace.
This year in Ontario, the Canadian Gov and Provincial Ontario Government are offering $790 each to upgrade to a 94% Afue High-Efficiency furnace.
Seems like a good time to upgrade.

yuri

Lennox cost us more but as a servicetech I rather work on them. Much easier to pull the blower on the larger units with their sloped guide rails etc. A much finer detailed furnace IMO. Kind of like a Buick vs a Malibu. Usually quieter and that a homeowner can appreciate and be willing to pay more for.