Replacing your old, worn out air conditioning system doesn’t have to be a hair-pulling, gut wrenching experience. With a small amount of information and education, one can better navigate a market found confusing and full of industry “buzz” words used by air conditioning contractors. With knowledge comes power, and you will fare much better in purchasing anything you are informed about. I would like to give you a few tips and advice that might help you to achieve the “deal” you want on a new cooling system.
The first step of the process is to convince yourself that it is time to replace your old a/c system. Unlike some appliances in your home, it is NEVER a good idea to wait until your old air conditioner stops working, since it always picks the peak of the season and the hottest day of the year to die. That is the worst time to purchase when you’re hot and irritable, and air conditioning contractors are extremely busy. You don’t drive a car until it leaves you stranded on the side of 285 in rush hour traffic; don’t keep an air conditioner until it completely dies. Use common sense and investigate a new cooling unit purchase on your terms. People that have purchased a new roof, water heater, dishwasher or kitchen remodel seem to take delight in bragging that their old air conditioner is still running. What they fail to realize is tey alone could be responsible for electric-generating nuclear power plants being brought online to run their ancient dinosaur of a unit. The least efficient air conditioner available today is able to cut your cooling bill by over 50%. That is no hollow promise, but a real number you can cut out of your power budget, and you can most likely keep your home cool for the first time in a long time.
Starting in 2007, the federal government mandated that all air conditioners be a minimum of 13 SEER. A SEER rating is a numerical rating assigned to an air conditioner and its corresponding cooling coil that denotes how much electricity it will consume in an average season. The letters S-E-E-R stand for “Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio”, and the important thing to remember is that each SEER point represents approximately 10% additional energy savings over a lower SEER number unit.
The SEER rating is a product of a matched indoor cooling coil and specific outdoor unit. Both have to be purchased together. There are no outdoor air conditioners available today that should be installed with your old cooling coil. It does not matter how new it is or how good of shape you think it is in; it will not work properly with a new outdoor machine. A mismatched system will not cool well, will shorten the life span of the new unit, and will not achieve anything close to a 13 SEER rating. This is one of those times when government regulation has panned out to be good for the consumer. If everybody in the country installed a new 13 SEER A/C system, the energy crisis would not exist.
It is extremely important to buy a cooling coil made by the same manufacturer that produced the outdoor unit you pick, not an aftermarket or third-party company. Regardless of what some will tell you, these third-party coils are not as good as the OEM coils. Most leaks we see are in these cheaper-grade coils and they never last as long as the outdoor units. Insist your air conditioning contractor install a cooling coil made and tested by the same company that produced the outdoor machine. You should also Insist on a brand that has a “thermal expansion valve”. This valve is the best way to regulate the flow of refrigerant through the coil and will result in enhanced comfort and efficiency. Some of the lower priced air conditioning companies use cooling coils that have piston-metering devices that are not as precise as a thermal expansion valve. STAY AWAY from these units. There are numerous good brands on the market to choose from that make good cooling coils. Eliminate those that don’t from your selection process.
There is a lot of confusion and half-truths about the refrigerant issue when picking the unit, and the issue can be confusing. The “Freon” we have used for years in this country is called “R22″ and a number of years ago the government decided to phase out production of this refrigerant due to its ability to harm the ozone layer of our planet. Car “Freon” was phased out first and now home “Freon” is being replaced with a new refrigerant called R-410a or “Puron”.
Freon units will be produced until 2010 and freon itself will be made until 2020. After that, only recycled freon will be available. A air conditioner that uses freon cannot be converted to puron and there is no law or regulation requiring you to change. There is also no law requiring you to replace or repair and air conditioner that leaks refrigerant. Common sense cries out for you not to throw money into a leaking, inefficient air conditioner, but there is no law requiring it.
When your old air conditioner wears out after 2010, it will be replaced with the new refrigerant machine and it will perform fine. DO NOT be influenced by scare tactics involving freon. Either refrigerant you pick can be installed and supported for the life of the unit, and if you pick an air conditioner brand that is known not to leak, your 1st refrigerant charge will be your last. Freon and Puron do not wear out and never need to be replaced.
Some manufacturers only promote Puron , some have stayed with only freon, and some give consumers a choice. Both refrigerants work well, and cost and application should help guide you.
It’s always a good idea to replace the refrigerant lines when going to Puron and with the higher cost of Puron units, a 13 SEER freon air conditioner is usually $800 to $1000 less expensive-but comes with the same warranty and generates the same efficiency.
A few years ago, a good bit of my time was spent educating consumers about the advantages of upgrading to top-of-the-line, 13 or 14 SEER rate equipment. Now that the 13 SEER is our minimum, the manufacturers have pushed the SEER rating up to 20 SEER and above. Air conditioners with multiple compressors to allow 2-stage cooling for enhanced comfort and dehumidification are now commonplace. Thermostats that register humidity and temperature and actually control both can be added to your new cooling system to greatly enhance indoor air comfort in the muggy south.
Last but not least, some advice on how to get the best price on your new cooling system:
Get your estimates from however many contractors you like and approach the one you choose about scheduling your work. If your units is still cooling, you can tell your contractor he can install your system anytime he is slow and needs your job to fill in his work week. As a contractor, I will give the best price to this “will-call” customer due to the complexities of scheduling work crews. To have customers ready and waiting to fill in holes in a contractors schedule is invaluable, and by being proactive about replacing your old a/c, you too can achieve the best pricing and purchase on your terms.
