Installing Central Air?

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Author Message   Carol Anne Citizen Username: Carolanne Post Number: 7 Registered: 1-2004 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 2:19 pm:        I need some recomendations on who to call to install central air in our 1927 side hall colonial. It has steam heat, so we will need all the duct/vent work as well. Any one have a ballpark of how much this costs for a fairly small 3 bedroom? Thanks! Carol Anne   Walker Citizen Username: Fester Post Number: 258 Registered: 4-2003 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 2:36 pm:        There are new systems that do not require the running of duct work, The coolant line runs to the attic and a blower forces cold air down into the house through small vents in the ceiling on the upper floor.   HOMMELL Citizen Username: Hommell Post Number: 158 Registered: 11-2005 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 3:43 pm:        Call AirGroup and get an estimate. http://www.airgroupllc.com/   LilLB Citizen Username: Lillb Post Number: 1657 Registered: 10-2002 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 3:43 pm:        It cost us about $8000 5 years ago to install central air in our small 3 bedroom. That included running new ducts through the house. We have oil heat with steam radiators. We used Suburban 973-439-3939 to do the installation and were very happy. However, we haven't been happy with their customer service and switched to someone else for maintenance. So, the install was great, but I wouldn't recommend them from a customer service standpoint (although I do like their technicians -- they just don't have a good administrative office is what it comes down to I think). They push the Lennox line of AC units, but we pushed for a Trane unit and they agreed and installed it for us.   Tom Reingold Supporter Username: Noglider Post Number: 14096 Registered: 1-2003 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 4:12 pm:        What about running costs? I've heard that central air is more efficient than window units. That makes sense, since big machines are usually more efficient than small machines. But doesn't that comparison assume that we would use window units in every room and aim for uniform coolth (to coin a word)? We run window units in just a few rooms, since we have a few we rarely occupy. And my wife doesn't like things too cool, so uniform coolth is not necessarily even desired.   rssounds Citizen Username: Rssounds Post Number: 380 Registered: 5-2001 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 5:42 pm:        Tom R Depends on what your ultimate desired effect or need is. If all you need is AC in a couple of bedrooms so you can sleep on those dog days of August then window units work fine. In my case I prefer a lower hunidity level more than cooler temps and thus I prefer central. Plus the system helps filter out a lot of dust and pollen which helps my allergies.   mbb Citizen Username: Mbb Post Number: 17 Registered: 4-2006 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 6:09 pm:        Carol Anne, I have the same type of house. I instaleld central AC upstairs only, the way Walker described it, and kept my wall AC units downstairs. It works rather well because I have one of the ceiling vents over the stairway, which helps cool the stairs to the first floor. The cost in 2003 was was about $8K, but I got almost $2K back in refunds from PSE&G and from the manufacturer (Carrier). The latter was offered because I installed my system early in the season -- May. So, you might want to make some calls soon to see if you can save yourself some money. I used Air Group. They were very professional, and their price, after taking the Carrier refund into account, was competitive. They processed the manufacturer's refund for me.   Kibbegirl Citizen Username: Kibbegirl Post Number: 543 Registered: 5-2003 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 6:43 pm:        We have an old unit, installed in the 70's I'm guessing, which is serviced by AirGroup. They did the original installation under their old Polar Air name. We've never had a problem with our central air. It's wonderful! We just had it maintenanced for the summer and we needed a new belt and that's it. AirGroup is wonderful. We have a contract for boiler and central air service. I've always found their customer service to be excellent.   greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 7572 Registered: 5-2001 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 7:41 pm:        We love everything about Air Group. They installed a Unico system in 2004 and have serviced it the last two years. They were very accomodating to working around our renovation and doing the installation in phases as walls got opened up. We did the first and second floors for about $12k. The running cost isn't as bad as I'd feared. I can't remember what our electric bills were last year, but I remember being very relieved.   Zoesky1 Citizen Username: Zoesky1 Post Number: 1475 Registered: 6-2003 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 8:29 pm:        I had central air installed by Air Group last September, and it was great -- excellent company to work with (I had estimates from three other places). They did entire 3-to-4-bedroom house (all one story, ranch house) for $8K. I think it's a lot less, naturally, in a one-story house (the house is technically called a 4 bedroom but the 4th bedroom is quite small and we don't use it as such). Anyway, they did it all in one day, very efficient. We got big rebates from Carrier and from PSE&G. I have had central AC for many years in other houses, so I am accustomed to the running costs...to me, it's as important as heat in the winter. I usually expect to have PSE&G bills in the $250-300 range. But because the system I had newly installed is an ultra-efficient, non-freon system, and because there is no upstairs here, I expect that this house could be the cheapest to cool yet. I didn't really get an accurate sense of it last fall, since we had the system put in right at the end of the cooling season. Generally, the newer central air systems are less expensive to run than older ones.   Michael K. Mc Kell Citizen Username: Greenerose Post Number: 878 Registered: 9-2003 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 9:45 pm:        We just had Air Group do a job for us in Jersey City (3 story Brown stone) $25,000.00 UNICO system. The best!   Amanda Citizen Username: Amandalavin Post Number: 17 Registered: 1-2006 Posted on Friday, May 5, 2006 - 10:32 pm:        I'm working with Custom Air now. About 18K after rebates for a 4 BR house. Two zones. 4 1/2 tons.   Travis Citizen Username: Travis Post Number: 414 Registered: 6-2004 Posted on Saturday, May 6, 2006 - 7:27 am:        Quote: What about running costs? Tom R, with the projected trajectory in energy prices, I think one's first priority should be proper insulation. A good installer will do Manual/J calculations to properly size your unit, and for that you need to properly consider how well insulated the house is. I know of one building scientist in Texas who made his house sufficiently tight that, when he goes out for the day, the temperature only goes up a couple of degrees by the time he returns home, in the height of Texas summer. That's how you keep running costs down. Although CAC is overall more efficient than a window unit, as has been observed I doubt that people are cooling as much of a space with window units and so running costs are probably on aggregate less, maybe much less. But I personally don't like window units. People leave them in their windows all year and then wonder why they have high heating bills in winter. Also only cooling certain parts of the house has potential problems, since warm moist air in uncooled parts of the house eventually meets the cooled air and condensation results. Enough of that and you get mold. No question that cooling the entire house (including the part that has the air handler and ducts) then is going to be more expensive than cooling a couple of rooms with window units. Maybe a lot more. Proper insulation is the only way to control that cost.   Travis Citizen Username: Travis Post Number: 415 Registered: 6-2004 Posted on Saturday, May 6, 2006 - 7:35 am:        Quote: I prefer a lower hunidity level more than cooler temps You might be interested in the Aprilaire ducted dehumidifier from Thermastor. Running costs much less then CAC.   Shanabana Citizen Username: Shanabana Post Number: 370 Registered: 10-2005 Posted on Saturday, May 6, 2006 - 10:14 am:        It would cost a bundle to make a 1929 colonial as air tight and thoroughly insulated as the Texas guy's, home, I bet.   Carol Anne Citizen Username: Carolanne Post Number: 9 Registered: 1-2004 Posted on Saturday, May 6, 2006 - 10:45 am:        Thank you all so much! Its interesting a friend told me "absolutely DO NOT use Air Group" as she has heard many horrendous stories about them, and yet they get many recomendations here. Finding good people to work on one's home is so confusing! I think I will at least call them for an estimate. Thanks all for the info!   Pat Scanlan Citizen Username: Squarehead Post Number: 10 Registered: 4-2006 Posted on Sunday, May 7, 2006 - 8:59 am:        I know a friend who is using an air conditioning company to install central air (2 zones 4.5 tons). They are getting totally ripped off, but too stupid to realize it. I have told them but they wont listen. Anyways, they are paying $18k. seems very high, especially given his wife is always cold anyways -- so why air condition?   HOMMELL Citizen Username: Hommell Post Number: 159 Registered: 11-2005 Posted on Sunday, May 7, 2006 - 11:28 am:        We had Air Group install in March. They were fast and top quality.   Earlster Supporter Username: Earlster Post Number: 1536 Registered: 8-2003 Posted on Monday, May 8, 2006 - 3:38 pm:        We used a company out of Rahway about 3 years ago. We have a 3BRM and paid a little less then 10k. I wouldn't recommend that particular company, but have seen the work that Air Group has done in neighbors houses and that's solid work. Now that we are having central air, I don't know how we were able to survive before. As others have mentioned, the less humidity makes such a huge difference in comfort. We don't even run it all that cold usually around 78 in the summer.   Cedar Citizen Username: Cedar Post Number: 184 Registered: 10-2002 Posted on Monday, May 8, 2006 - 4:33 pm:        I have to chime in. We had Custom Air in last week to install a two zone, 4.5 ton system in a 4BR home (4th is on the 3rd floor.) They and their installation crew were pretty awesome. They scheduled three days to install and were done a little bit shy of the end of a second full day. I'm dying for one day, just one, hot enough for it to kick on, now! As has been pointed out in the past, they know their way around these older homes and, in addition to the temperature control flexibility where you need it, their two zone system prevented eating up precious closet space.   Former Cowgirl Citizen Username: Formercowgirl Post Number: 57 Registered: 3-2006 Posted on Monday, May 8, 2006 - 5:21 pm:        Anyone have any comments on allergies improving going from window units to central air? I won't know til we live one summer how the window units will do in terms of cooling. The house seems pretty well-insulated so far, but I do wonder about the difference in allergy suffering with central air., Thanks!