Comments on: What is the best central air conditioner?

By: canadarocks

canadarocks — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 10:27:59 +0000

You cannot go wrong with any of the big 4 [Amana/Goodman, Carrier/Bryant, Lennox/Armstrong,Trane], but installation is the biggest concern to any systems performance and life expectancy.

There are refrigeration practices, which must be taken to insure performance and life expectancy.

Also, if your looking for quiet…up until a year ago, Lennox has the quietest Air Conditioner on the market. Its so quiet, you have to be standing over it to know its running.

In response to the gentle mans response just ahead of mine: Seer, or seasonal energy efficiency rating. The higher the seer, the more efficient the system is.

What makes a systems seer increase: The use of a thermal expansion valve or TXV. The surface space of both evaporator and condensor. Sometimes, the use of 2 stage compressors or condensor fan motors. I dont buy this gentlemans theory of increased seer equals increased problems. It might be true if you were to choose the wrong company to install your new system.

HVAC Service Tech
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By: DAN THE AC MAN

DAN THE AC MAN — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 09:46:59 +0000

right now i would go with carrier / bryant …they are the same unit,,similar to how a ford taurus and mercury sable are the same car….if you get a 16seer [ efficiency rating] system,carrier is offering 10 years on all parts,,sometimes 5-10 years on labor too…carrier / bryant units are quiet,relatively reliable,although the higher the seer rating,the more complex they [ any brand ] are…more complex units have a greater chance of having problems,therefore the long warrenty is desirable.. just my opinion,but i would stay away from "trane" units for now…the ones we’ve installed in the last several years have been more troublesome than the carriers that my company has installed….dan
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hvac tech

By: srvcontr87

srvcontr87 — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 09:08:59 +0000

You are asking a very important question.

Let me try to clear a few things up for you:
1) The Keeprite brand you mentioned is produced by ICP.
ICP is part of the Carrier brand name groups.
2) Most AC companies have preferences to the brand they sell. Examples being: York, Trane, Goodman/Amana, Carrier [ICP family], Nordyne and all their ‘brand names’, Lennox, etc.
I select Goodman because of value for dollar & warranty protection. Not all ‘brands’ are available in all parts of the country.

More important than any ‘brand name’ is the integrity of the contractor installing it.
If you hire a guy doing side jobs who is not licensed & insured as a legitimate contractor in business, you will end up with shoddy workmanship done by idiots that only want your money.

There are guidelines and protocols regarding the installation process of all HVAC equipment. When these are not followed, and cutting corners to ‘save time’ becomes the practice of a contractor, you end up with a machine which longevity has been compromised.

Brand is not near as important as the integrity of the installation from the very beginning.
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Correcting shoddy workmanship done by slap happy idiots that are not licensed or insured to perform this work to the general public.
Company Owner