school me on HVAC retrofit

newbieowner

Hello all,

I did not see a FAQ for the HVAC forum so if there are already threads with answers for me, please point me in the right direction.

I live in Long Island, NY. My 1165 sq. ft. 2 story home has been made more energy efficient by way of the GreenHomes program. My wire and I are ready to upgrade to Central Air as the window units just aren't doing it for us anymore. especially with a 7 month old in the house.

What questions should we be asking a hvac contractor? How do we not get ripped off?
What things can we do on our own to lessen the costs?

thanks.

yuri

Do you have a full basement and a forced air furnace or is it hot water heat with radiators?
A proper heat load calculation which you should do yourself:Load Calculator
is necessary to get the proper sized unit. Lots of contractors don't do them or properly. Getting 4-5 quotes from long term reputable (check BBB) contractors is recommended as well as talking to your neighbors, co-workers, friends to see if they can recommend someone is the best way to go. Check back here once you have more details, we don't do pricing as it varies all over the country according to cost of living etc.

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beenthere

Screen them over the phone. If they don't do load calcs. Thank them for their time, and keep calling companies.


PS: Moved to off topic forum. Doesn't fit the DIY theme.

newbieowner

No basement but I have a 6.5ft cellar which houses my oil fired burner. The house uses baseboard heating. Thanks for the load calculation link.