Q: How do you become the coolest kids on the block?
A: By installing the best and the newest central AC!
LOL I know, this is lame. But I am apparently very excited about the new central AC and you can definitely tell by how my voice raised in this house tour when I mentioned the condenser! There were tons of decisions we had to make during the installation process, and I am looking forward to sharing them with you today. We learned so much during the process about the house and ourselves, I think it is worth to memorize the whole process here since this blog is more or less a renovation dairy.
1. Do we really need an AC, NOW?
The first decision we needed to make was whether or not to install central AC this summer. We knew that adding a central AC would make our house more valuable, and we definitely planned to do it as some point. But we also knew that we would likely have to replace the furnace when we install the AC, and we have a handy one-year insurance on our furnace. So it is more economical to wait until the furnace fail, which will probably happen in the next year or two.
Then this historical heat wave hit us in July, just a couple weeks after we moved in. We thought it would not be a big deal – it is 5280 feet at where we live, and there is always cool breeze at night from the mountains. We also have a basement that is at least 5 degree cooler than the main floor. It actually worked for me, since I am comfortable in 80 degree range. But for Slav, this heat wave was a nightmare. It was literally a “night”mare because this guy just could not get a good night sleep. Even though he hid in the coolest room in the basement with a mattress on the floor, the night temperature was just a few degrees above what he needed to sleep soundly.
We all knew it was just a few weeks and he could probably be fine after that. But I still brought up the topic on getting it done THIS SUMMER – why wait another year if we could make Slav more comfortable now? After all, we did not buy our house to slave for it. We bought it to ENJOY it. So our (including the pups’) happiness and comfort should always be the first priority in all the renovation decisions we make.
2. Decision on choosing a local installer
We researched all the big box stores and found that they actually do not have their own tech team, so all the installation and future services would be done by local contractors. Then why not being local companies to begin with? City of Arvada actually gives rebates for installing high-efficiency units, and a few local companies are listed as trusted installers. So I made calls to four local companies for free estimates. They all came in within a few days and we picked one appearing to be the most knowledgeable, the most detail orientated, the most customizable, and with the best customer reviews – Go Green heating and air conditioning. They are not the one with the lowest quote, but they provide high efficiency units which are worth the price.
We also picked this company for the spectrum of their services – they not only install central AC, but also furnace and water heaters. Since these three units are very much connected and compacted in a small space, we would like to have one company to replace/service them all.
3. Picking the features of the central AC
One other thing that made us feel better about the company we went with, was that they performed a load calculation during the free estimate visit. I know that our house is simple and a lot of people probably can tell what size of AC we need based on experience, but seeing a load calculation done made us feel that these guys were thorough.
Apparently, per Square footage has very little relevance with what size furnace or air conditioner you need. The relevant factors are your attic, wall insulation, the quality/size of your windows, the orientation of windows and doors and the whole house, and how many appliances you have in your home that give off heat. The ceiling height also matters, which indicates the overall volume of your home in “cubic” feet. Equipped with information in the load calculations, we felt much more confidence to go with a 2-ton AC with specific features that would benefit our size/type of house the most. At the end, we went with a 2 ton, 1600 seer, high efficiency TXV indoor coil AC, paired with a 60000 BTU, 95% AFUE, single stage furnace but with ECM motor. We think it is a good balance for our small house with limited amount of people, and it is the most efficient and environmental friendly combo that we could afford.
4. Decision on replacing our furnace at the same time
Our furnace is about 17 years old and it is on its last legs. During house inspection, we were notified that it needs a cleaning/tone-up, which will cost us a few hundred bucks. Even through it could handle a central AC unit we wanted to install, we still decided to take the opportunity to replace our furnace at the same time. It does not only give us the peace of mind about our furnace, but also insures that our central AC is properly powered and performs as it should be. Changing both of them also saves us money on the service time, since replacing a furnace with an existing central AC on top of it would require much more work than replacing a standing-along furnace itself.
5. Location, location, location.
During the free estimate, we were asked where we would like the AC condenser unit to be, and whether we wished to relocate the furnace/AC. We totally choked – did not think we had the choice of either! Apparently, we can locate the condenser unit anywhere around the house – it is just a matter of running a longer refrigerant line. Same thing for the furnace and AC cooling unit, it is just a matter of adding duct and connect to the gas line.
We tossed lots of ideas around, and decided that we are fine with where the furnace was. As I’ve shown you in the basement tour, the furnace, water heater, washer and drier are all side by side along one basement wall, so it is very easy to enclose all into a utility closet down the road. Remaining the furnace at its original location also saved us a lot of duct work (and money!).
But for the location of the condenser, Slav has a very clear demand – it has to be out of sight from our back patio. All the AC estimate guys told us that we could just put it under the kitchen window (which is ON our back patio) to save money, but Slav insists to have it on the side of the house. Fortunately, the distance is just under the limit for additional charge, so it did not cost more money. The unit we chose is also pretty quite. So even it is just on the other side of our bedroom wall, we hardly noticed it.
Here are the biggest five decisions we made before the installation started. Did you have to make these decisions? I will come back to show you the demo and installation process. At meanwhile, Roxie and Charlie are enjoying this:
Lucky pups!
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