Pulaski

Most of this "owned by/ made by" stuff is BS (no offence, Michael, I could have quoted any of several posts in this thread, and I am not having a dig at anyone). ..... A few years ago there was some major recall on HVAC units (I don't recall the exact problem, but it wasn't some minor component) and it turned out that units made be several DOZEN brands, including some well known "premium" brands, had units made by the same manufacturer in China!

Jerseygirl

We had a quote from the company that operate within the Costco stores...almost $30K for two units.

MMcD

....and FWIW - when comparing prices - those last 5 or 6 numbers indicate the actual date of manufacture.
In this case, the units were both manufactured over a decade ago ( ?)

Michael

Is that is the date they were first manufactured?

Michael

I agree. I just thought the list of brands with ratings, short reviews, and warranties was interesting. It is impossible to know if the list is accurate or biased considering they rate the Lennox brand very low.

paddingtongreen

I have a different approach, I looked at the firms that contract servicing and maintenance of the units, with installation as a support, I asked around the neighborhood for experiences. I found that the guys who service, on contract, make sure they instal properly to minimize their contract work.

MMcD

No, I believe it's the date when "your" specific model was manufactured. In other words a given model manufactured one year later will end in, for instance, dd/mm/13 rather than /12.

Michael

It seems hard to believe that they manufactured all those units over a decade ago. I don't know of any business that would tie up that much capital for inventory for over a decade. Most prefer to do "just in time" shipments to save on interest payments to borrow from their revolving credit loan.

Michael

I just checked Goodman's model numbers and the last 5-6 digits don't make sense for a date such as 130241, 160241, 160241, 160361, and 180481. It appears that the first 2 digits is the seer, the second 2 digits appears to be the BTU to the nearest ten thousand, and the last two digits I don't know. They use GSX, SSX, and DSCX in front of the digits to define whether the unit is basic, premium, or premium 2 stage.

MMcD

+
That's cause I "misspoke".....should have said SERIAL number, not MODEL number.
Sorry, Michael.....

and it looks like it can vary by Mfr. (I was recalling info given to me re: my own system)

http://www.localinspectioncompany.co...les/acdata.pdf

Michael

You are forgiven since the link has useful information.

Beaverstate

My BE pop up ads keep recommending you call Sears. Never needed an AC but have always had good results from them.

tinman0

Where is the asbestos? Siding?

Installs here are about $4.5k absolute maximum and that's ducting and inside/outside unit (plus everything that's needed). The breakdown is $1300 for ducting (about $1sqft) and the rest for a 2.5ton unit.

However, price goes up in summer (when they are busy) and down in the winter when they literally have nothing to do. You have probably asked for a quote just at the wrong time.

You will also discover that aircon companies make second hand car dealers look trustworthy.

Wouldn't get too concentrated on a poured concrete pad as it's a $50 job.

(State dependent): However, the concrete pad must extend to the house, and ideally be up against the wall of the house. In the event of a repossession, an outside air con unit that is attached (by way of pad) to the house becomes part of the house and therefore can't be repossessed or taken away in lieu of a debt. But if the pad is not joined to the house, the outside unit can be taken to pay off a debt.

Not many people know that. (Wife was a realtor broker a few years ago).

Michael

I'm not sure where you live but $50 for a concrete slab wouldn't pay for the cost of concrete and form in CA and not including the labor.

First you'd need to prepare the site for the slab. It would be too expensive to have premixed concrete delivered for such a small amount but mixing and poring that much concrete is not an easy task even with a portable mixer.

A concrete slab is about a 1/4th to 1/3rd of a cubic yard or about 10-14 80 pound bags at a minimum cost of $3.29 per bag for the cheapest mix.

$4.5K may be the maximum cost if you do all the labor yourself but in California, it is the labor that costs $$$. For most home remodeling projects, labor is typically about $2-$3 for every $1 of materials butg that can vary depending on the project (very high for ratio for painting but relatively low for installing a garage door or water heater). If you can find a reliable inexpensive handyman or use day laborers and manage the project yourself, the ratio can be reduced.

Although I agree that an air conditioner not attached to a home can be repossessed, in California I've never heard of anyone repossessing an air conditioner (too much work and little resale value) but instead the contractor would put a lien on the home.