Anyone know the cost of a furnace/AC replacement?

[Auggie]

26-year old RUUD furnace / AC unit. The blower motor is definitely worn out and needs to be replaced -- at $376 that's not a big deal. But to have the whole unit replaced, which I am considering, is estimated at over $7000.00!

I'll get other estimates, of course, but just wondered if anyone here has had similar experiences. Seven grand seems way over the top to me, even for a heating/AC combo. And fixing the blower motor alone doesn't mean something else can go down the road, like the relay.

Thoughts, anyone?

[leftyohiolib]

1. that's what it cost me

i have a heat pump w/ac the air handler inside was 7000 and the chiller outside was 8000 . yeah. had it done about 3 years ago

[Melissa G]

2. About that in cost..

Depends on your tonnage and brands. American Standard is pretty cost effective.

Your electric company/city may be running low interest loans for hi efficiency units. I have done this 3 times for my homes. we have even gotten 0 percent loans.

[shanti]

4. yes

my local electric company, SMUD, offers no interest loans for new HVAC units. it's a great deal. i got a new high efficiency unit in 2001, american standard, and it cost me at the time, about $5000. the new unit lowered my utility bill (i'm all electric) significantly. they also gave me a loan for new vinyl windows for the whole house a few years ago.

utility loans are definitely worth looking into if you don't have the money up front for this necessity.

[sinkingfeeling]

3. Depends on the efficiency of the units. I just replaced my smaller, upstairs

furnance and AC for $5300. The cost to replace it with a super high efficient unit would have been $7600.

[Ruby the Liberal]

5. Please do get more estimates.

I replaced my AC/Heat Pump with a 13 SEER Carrier for $4k. Of course, I only have 1,500 SF to worry about, but $7k seems like a lot.

[LiberalEsto]

6. See if you can qualify for an energy saving rebate or tax deduction

Check federal, state and local agencies.
Last year we had a new roof put up with high reflectivity white shingles. Got a nice federal tax deduction on it.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

7. Are you doing both furnace and AC at once?

If it's just the furnace blower you might consider squeaking by with just a furnace replacement for now. (assuming yours is a conventional set-up with the AC coil in the plenum above the furnace)

It would be nice to have a new efficient AC but sometimes the budget is the boss.

My friend just had to have a new furnace installed. She went with the furnace only and kept the old AC for now. She had to go high efficiency (IIRC 95%) because a cheaper low (80%)efficiency unit would have required an inspection and most likely re-lining of the 80 year old chimney. A 95% unit gets vented via PVC pipe through the wall (no chimney).

My friend's bill was $3300 installed for a Lenox 95%. Ottawa IL. This was, IIRC, a 150k BTU unit.

My neighbor in out condo just had furnace and AC done for $4,000 for a lower end 80% efficient unit. Don't remember the btus.

[Coyote_Bandit]

9. I spent about $8000 a few years back

The price will vary depending on how energy efficient the unit is and how much capacity you require to heat and cool your home.

I opted for the high efficiency unit and have reduced my energy usage by about a third.

I got my unit in February when local contractors offer off-season discounts. Saved about $1000 that way.

Financed the cost for 12 months with no interest and paid it all off before interest accrued.

[Auggie]

10. Thanks everybody

We decided to replace the blower motor and save up for a complete replacement sometime in the future. The furnace and AC are tied into each other, so both had to be upgraded at the same time. I could have lowered the replacement estimate with less efficient units -- we're in California, not New England, and don't need superpowered heating and cooling -- but that's defeating the purpose, IMO.

In an ideal world -- one in rich I'm really wealthy -- I'd look into solar electricity and/or geothermal heating and consider redoing the whole darn house.

I really appreciate the time each of you took in responding. D.U. is the best.

[roody]

11. Rebates are good on solar electric

in California right now.

[Stinky The Clown]

12. That's square in the ballpark. They're not cheap

We're glad we did ours.