5outta6

After reading many posts and threads here I have come to the conclusion that most AC units are "good" depending on the grade level and that the most important part of the quality and operating factors are based on the quality of the installation. Having said that,
Do you think one of these brands is "better " than another if the warranty on the equipment is the same?
Day & Night vs Heil vs Bryant vs Trane vs Coleman

jeremy-lvhm

It all depends on the grades which would be better. Your first three choices are all united technologies companies then tranewreck then york.

Even with warranties it all depends on the grade and I think for the most part the better grade units all have similar warranties. One thing Heil has is the no hassle warranties on some of their equipment that if you have a major component fail on a certain piece of equipment you have the choice of getting a whole new unit instead of the replacement part. So if your compressor goes you get a whole new condenser instead of just a compressor.

Miller257

Anyone you ask will tell you something different. ask a lennox deal which is best, he'll tell you lennox, ask a carrier dealer which is best, he'll say carrier. in my experiences, most of the time, you get what you pay for. we've installed a concord condenser (customers request), a factory solder join blew, leaked the refer and blew the compressor (as it didn't have a low limit) warranty process was a pain in the ass, labor wasn't covered. etc... things you should look out for are, warranty how long is it, what does it cover, and do they hassle you. parts availability and tech support. sure the part may be under warranty but if it takes 3-4 weeks to get it "cough york" what good is that.

carrier/bryant/payne have a good warranty and decent parts/tech support. if people are looking for a base line, good quality furnace or ac, i steer them to Payne. may not have all the bells and whistles as a high end carrier but it will last. if they want to spend the extra money, i suggest trane/american standard. i find them easier to work on, and better build quality (i'm talking mostly rooftops here, i don't see a lot of resi stuff"

what do i have in my house, an american standard. why, because i find trane rtu's easier to work on, better quality units, and i'm friends with the guy at the wholesale house and he got me a good deal on a scratch and dent :-)

jeremy-lvhm

[quote=Miller257;781185]
what do i have in my house, an american standard. why, because i find trane rtu's easier to work on, better quality units,[\quote]


wait If you ever get a blocked condenser coil

then you'll see just how easy they are.

Miller257

[quote=jeremy-lvhm;781328]spliting trane coils and cleaning them? we do probably 100-200 units yearly with preventive maintenance contracts. if you do them yearly, after the first year its not to bad.

jeremy-lvhm

[quote=Miller257;781579]
resi units are usually xmas tree spline coils. good luck with that.

westernhvac

I'm not a huge trane fan either but cleaning the coils ain't too bad. We just take a propane torch and light 'em up. After a nice rinse they are as good as new.

jeremy-lvhm

lol doesn't that melt the aluminum?

flashheatingand

I worked for a Trane dealer, although they broke down just as much as everybody else, they weren't bad. It's nice to be able to remove the panels on the condensing units easily. Also, I liked that one did not need to braze when replacing compressors.

Rheems I don't like because they are dirt traps, and the only way to properly clean the coils is to remove the whole cabinet. As a whole, I am not crazy about Rheem.

jeremy-lvhm

This would be great if it actually saved the customer money in the end. But the fact that their compressors are all proprietary and cost more doesn't do much. Easy to change, expensive as hell.

flashheatingand

Ever since venturing on my own, I never replaced a trane compressor, so I don't know how much they cost. If I found that they were quite high, it would bother me. I don't like it when a company goes out of their way to make it necessary to use oem versus a universal part.

jeremy-lvhm

I just quoted one a few months back on a unit that was about ten years old I'd say. Cost was 3-4 times the cost of a generic (copeland, tecumseh, bristol)

westernhvac

Nah, just use a little plumbers torch. Around here we get a lot of cottonwood seed and this is definitely the way to do it. The cottonwood can make a condensing unit look like it's wearing an angora sweater.

jeremy-lvhm

Yeah Ive heard that.

Those plastic permatron condenser filters are good for that type of problem. Might be a good thing to market to customers. Easier to clean than a packed condenser.