Validating HVAC costs
david_solar
| Posted in General Questions on
Building in CT, have completed HVAC design docs from Energy Vanguard. Quotes we got based on floorplan and Manual J only ran from 35-50K a few months back. Updated quotes with duct design in hand are now 50-80K!
I know costs have gone up a bit, but the size of the house hasn’t changed, and two of the quotes were previously designed around dedicated returns and now use central returns per EV, which you think would reduce the length of ductwork…
Trying to wrap my head around this, as another $15K out of pocket is a bummer to swallow – might have to remove the dedicated basement system.
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Replies
I think those costs are they don't want to do the work.
I would start with a quote for a standard furnace+AC instead. Once you get a reasonable price on something like that, ask for an upgrade to a cold climate heat pump instead of AC. Something like this tacked onto a furnace with an ECM blower is still pretty close to "standard" install and gets you a proper cold climate unit so you never have to run the fuel burner.
https://mylinkdrive.com/viewPdf?srcUrl=http://s3.amazonaws.com/enter.mehvac.com/DAMRoot/Original/10007/M_SUBMITTAL_PAA-A24AA1_PUZ-HA24NHA1-R1_en_M1.pdf
Thanks for the advice - I'll try that with some new HVAC contractors. Do you think I should just ask for single units w/ zoning, knowing full well that I'm going to then have them swap to multiple dedicated units?
We all want some control over costs, but just make sure that your efforts to do so do not result in losing the better HVAC contractors out there.
I think Akos’ advice is solid. Have the contractors bid on the design you have chosen with standard, high-quality equipment, and allow for further bids for upgraded mechanicals.