I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or
hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency
furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace
room in the basement).
Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?
--
³Statistics are like bikinis. What they reveal is suggestive,
but what they conceal is vital.²
‹ Aaron Levenstein

On Tuesday, November 5, 2013 7:41:15 AM UTC-5, Kurt Ullman wrote:
I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or

hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency

furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace

room in the basement).

Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?

--

³Statistics are like bikinis. What they reveal is suggestive,

but what they conceal is vital.²

‹ Aaron Levenstein


I had a Ruud that was the original in the house, lasted for 28
years without any problems, at least for the last 18 that
I owned it. It was still working, just replaced it in 2010
to take advantage of the tax credit available. I replaced it
with a Rheem, high efficiency, which is made by the same company.
I'm very happy with it too. When I looked around back then,
from Consumer Reports and such, there didn't appear to be any
significant difference in complaints, problems, etc between
Rheem and what are perceived as probably better brands by
the consumer, eg Trane, etc.

Just curious what the problem is with being able to go with
a high efficiency? I'm guessing it's venting? If you're
located somewhere warm, probably won't such a big diff,
but if you're somewhere northern, a high eff would save
considerable money over the years, so I'd make sure I considered
every option for getting one in there. Also, I recall that
per EPA edict, only high efficiency can be installed in
the colder states now, so hope that ain't you

As for hybrid, not sure what the point would be. Nat gas
is usually the cheapest anyway, unless you went with something
like geothermal and have low electric rates, etc. Geo costs
a fortune to install. And I don't recall seeing a hybrid
anything that wasn't high efficiency, so you might be out
of luck there

On 11/5/2013 7:41 AM, Kurt Ullman wrote:
I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or
hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency
furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace
room in the basement).
Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?


As usual. Ask your friends who they recommend.
Get three or four quotes. Go with the one who is
NOT high pressure, and who makes sense when he
speaks.

As to brands, I don't think there is a lot of
difference. Trane uses proprietary parts that can
be expensive. Goodman (formerly Janitrol) is basic,
and reasonably dependable.

What's the deal with placement? Do you have drywall
ceilings in your cellar?

--
..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

On 11/5/2013 6:57 AM, wrote:
On Tuesday, November 5, 2013 7:41:15 AM UTC-5, Kurt Ullman wrote:
I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or

hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency

furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace

room in the basement).

Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?

Just curious what the problem is with being able to go with
a high efficiency? I'm guessing it's venting? If you're
located somewhere warm, probably won't such a big diff,
but if you're somewhere northern, a high eff would save
considerable money over the years, so I'd make sure I considered
every option for getting one in there. Also, I recall that
per EPA edict, only high efficiency can be installed in
the colder states now, so hope that ain't you


The Dept. of Energy cancelled its planned rule change after being sued
by a natural gas lobbying group. They're going to go through the whole
rulemaking process all over again to humor the lobbyists. In the
meantime, the US is still operating under the existing rule, which
dates back nearly twenty years. So nobody is required to install high
efficiency furnaces.

The gang back on alt.hvac in the old days consistently opined that the
brand of furnace didn't make much difference. What was important was
having it correctly sized and installed by a qualified hvac company.
Their point being, a hack install of a top-brand furnace wouldn't
perform any better than a cheap brand, and a correctly installed cheap
brand would perform as well as a top notch brand.

Per their advice, OP, screen your hvac contractors by their
willingness and ability to run a manual J to properly size your
furnace to your home. If they can't or won't do that, that's your
first indication that they're hacks.

On 11/05/2013 06:41 AM, Kurt Ullman wrote:
I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or
hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency
furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace
room in the basement).
Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?


I'd seriously consider a high efficiency type. If the contractor cannot
handle your specifics then it's time for one who can.
The venting is not rocket science.

On Tuesday, November 5, 2013 11:14:03 AM UTC-5, philo* wrote:
On 11/05/2013 06:41 AM, Kurt Ullman wrote:

I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or

hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency

furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace

room in the basement).

Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?





I'd seriously consider a high efficiency type. If the contractor cannot

handle your specifics then it's time for one who can.

The venting is not rocket science.

It's not rocket science but there are rules
as to mximum length of vent pipe runs, each
90 elbow reduces that length, rules as to how far
from corners, doors, windows, other vents, etc they can be.
And you don't have a choice to move the furnace,
unless you want to redo a lot of duct work for a
lot of $$$. There are some cases where it just
may not be worth the cost and trouble.

On 11/05/2013 03:07 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, November 5, 2013 11:14:03 AM UTC-5, philo wrote:
On 11/05/2013 06:41 AM, Kurt Ullman wrote:

I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or

hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency

furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace

room in the basement).

Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?





I'd seriously consider a high efficiency type. If the contractor cannot

handle your specifics then it's time for one who can.

The venting is not rocket science.

It's not rocket science but there are rules
as to mximum length of vent pipe runs, each
90 elbow reduces that length, rules as to how far
from corners, doors, windows, other vents, etc they can be.
And you don't have a choice to move the furnace,
unless you want to redo a lot of duct work for a
lot of $$$. There are some cases where it just
may not be worth the cost and trouble.



Well, then I guess the OP could do what I did and put in one with a two
stage fan.

--
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS85K...ature=youtu.be

On Tuesday, November 5, 2013 7:14:24 PM UTC-5, philo* wrote:
On 11/05/2013 03:07 PM, wrote:

On Tuesday, November 5, 2013 11:14:03 AM UTC-5, philo wrote:

On 11/05/2013 06:41 AM, Kurt Ullman wrote:



I am needing a new furnace. I am looking at a regular gas furnace or



hybrid furnace (25 y/o house and I can't put in a high efficiency



furnace without major construction due to the placement of the furnace



room in the basement).



Any suggestions or things to think about, look for?











I'd seriously consider a high efficiency type. If the contractor cannot



handle your specifics then it's time for one who can.



The venting is not rocket science.



It's not rocket science but there are rules

as to mximum length of vent pipe runs, each

90 elbow reduces that length, rules as to how far

from corners, doors, windows, other vents, etc they can be.

And you don't have a choice to move the furnace,

unless you want to redo a lot of duct work for a

lot of $$$. There are some cases where it just

may not be worth the cost and trouble.







Well, then I guess the OP could do what I did and put in one with a two

stage fan.


I've seen two stage furnaces, but never a furnace with just a two
stage fan. Even a two stage furnace makes only a small difference,
if any in efficiency. They are more a factor of comfort, allegedly
giving the furnace more run time on moderate days to help even out
temps in the house. But I've had a single stage in several houses
for many years, the systems were properly balanced, and I never had
an issue with uneven heating. But I think it may be a moot point,
because two stage may only be made in high efficiency models.

On 11/06/2013 06:59 AM, wrote:
Xventing is not rocket science.



It's not rocket science but there are rules

as to mximum length of vent pipe runs, each

90 elbow reduces that length, rules as to how far

from corners, doors, windows, other vents, etc they can be.

And you don't have a choice to move the furnace,

unless you want to redo a lot of duct work for a

lot of $$$. There are some cases where it just

may not be worth the cost and trouble.







Well, then I guess the OP could do what I did and put in one with a two

stage fan.


I've seen two stage furnaces, but never a furnace with just a two
stage fan. Even a two stage furnace makes only a small difference,
if any in efficiency. They are more a factor of comfort, allegedly
giving the furnace more run time on moderate days to help even out
temps in the house. But I've had a single stage in several houses
for many years, the systems were properly balanced, and I never had
an issue with uneven heating. But I think it may be a moot point,
because two stage may only be made in high efficiency models.





Mine is a two stage and a medium efficiency furnace

On Wednesday, November 6, 2013 2:15:18 PM UTC-5, philo* wrote:
On 11/06/2013 06:59 AM, wrote:

Xventing is not rocket science.







It's not rocket science but there are rules



as to mximum length of vent pipe runs, each



90 elbow reduces that length, rules as to how far



from corners, doors, windows, other vents, etc they can be.



And you don't have a choice to move the furnace,



unless you want to redo a lot of duct work for a



lot of $$$. There are some cases where it just



may not be worth the cost and trouble.















Well, then I guess the OP could do what I did and put in one with a two



stage fan.





I've seen two stage furnaces, but never a furnace with just a two

stage fan. Even a two stage furnace makes only a small difference,

if any in efficiency. They are more a factor of comfort, allegedly

giving the furnace more run time on moderate days to help even out

temps in the house. But I've had a single stage in several houses

for many years, the systems were properly balanced, and I never had

an issue with uneven heating. But I think it may be a moot point,

because two stage may only be made in high efficiency models.











Mine is a two stage and a medium efficiency furnace

Two stage what? You initially said he should consider
a furnace with a two stage *fan*, whatever that is.
Do you mean you have a two stage furnace? A two stage
furnace fires at two different outputs. Also, medium
efficiency doens't mean much. 80% 95% does.

On 11/06/2013 03:08 PM, wrote:
On Wednesday, November 6, 2013 2:15:18 PM UTC-5, philo wrote:
On 11/06/2013 06:59 AM, wrote:

snip



Yes, the blower is two speeds not the furnace itself.


It's close to 20 years old now....probably 80% efficiency.


What did me the most good immediately was to insulate the attic.

Finally got around to having the windows replaced this year...the house
is 115 years old.

Coal furnace and gas lighting originally. The only other luxury was
running water. City records show it was electrified in 1932. The conduit
is almost like water pipe.



When I moved in here in 1979, the second thing I did was to disconnect
the gas pipes that were still going to ceiling lights, though they were
capped off.


The /first/ thing I did however, was to take the light switch out from
inside the shower stall!!!!!!