| Murdentech 2006-05-25, 6:21 am |
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"AtlantaTom" <tom.christner@mac.com> wrote in message
news:1148471392.851168.120580@j55g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> Thank you for the replies.
>
> Can someone tell me if the heat pump heats the house similar to the way
> AC cools the house? If so, is it safe to assume that the "hot rooms"
> in the summer would be cold in the winter?
>
> The comments on the variable speed units make me nervous about buying a
> unit like that. On the other hand, all of my quotes included VS
> because of the uneven cooling in my house.
>
> My gut tells me that a standard system will make my house cool in the
> summer and warm in the winter. But, my gut also tells me that we wont
> have a glut of natural gas anytime soon.
>
> If I will have decent and even temperature with a heat pump, I will
> probably go that direction. With that said, would the VS haters
> continue to advise against that solution?
>
> Thanks again guys.
>
I am not a hater of variable speed... good idea, good technology. However,
it's the same pricing game as when 12 SEER hit the market.
The only difference in higher SEER equipment is extra coil surface, which
might cost the manufacturer $3 or $4 more per unit... throw on a couple of
$2 or $3 pressure switches and sell the equipment to the distributor for 50%
more than the standard unit. Distributor turns around and charges the
dealer 50% more than for standard equipment. Dealer turns around and charges
customer 50% more than standard system would cost, then doubles his labor to
install "higher efficiency" equipment (even though the installation process
is the same for any SEER rating).
You can't tell me that the Variable Speed motors should cost 6 times what a
standard PSC motor costs.... Period. That's my only gripe with Variable
Speed and multi stage equipment.
If you go with Variable Speed, your duct work is supposed to be sized at 70%
capacity of that for constant speed blower. This is to maintain proper
velocity in the ductwork during "normal" (less than full speed) operation.
If you are poorly conditioned areas in your home, you need to address the
ductwork issues in design with whatever system you choose. Now you are
talking air flow issues, this is regardless of type of equipment as a CFM is
a CFM no matter how it is heated, cooled or moved.
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