4 Questions To Ask About Your Air Conditioning Unit
When it's the middle of the summer and your air conditioner dies, the understandable impulse is to find any contractor who can get out to your home and get a new system up and running as fast as possible.
While this makes sense in the spur of the moment, buying an air conditioning system is actually a long term decision.
You need to make sure that the company you choose to install your new system has the best interest of your home in mind.
Most contractors, however, are aware that the average homeowner understands little about the AC installation process, and they will use this fact to their advantage to cut costs and seal the deal quickly.
Below are four key questions that you can ask any contractor, to not only show them their not dealing with any average client, but also to ensure that they know what their doing.
Have you done a load calculation? By law, any new installation requires a heat loss/heat gain load calculation.
This is a mathematical process that requires the contractor to measure the height and perimeter of the home (factoring windows, square footage, ceiling height, appliances, insulation, etc).
The calculation tells the contractor what size air conditioner your home needs in order to cool effectively.
Choose a unit too small and the system will never stop running.
Install one that is too big and the system will short cycle, causing it to break down much more quickly.
The formula requires a fair amount of tedious measuring, and lazy contractors will usually just guess.
Ask about the load calculation to ensure that the company you choose is doing things by the book.
What electrical work are you legally permitted to do? Every install requires some amount of electrical work, but the standard HVAC license does not include an electrical license.
In order to even plug in the air conditioner, the company must have someone on staff with a limited electrical permit.
If the company does not have an electrical license, they cannot fully install new air conditioning equipment and pass an inspection.
Can I get a 10 year labor warranty? Companies have to pay for extended labor warranties, and any contractor who knows his unit won't last that long will not spend good money on an extended labor warranty.
If a company won't even talk about letting you purchase an extended warranty, it's a good sign that they expect the unit to need major repairs within 5 years, and they hope to make money off that repair.
What is the SEER rating? SEER stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio.
It is the miles per gallon of air conditioning.
The higher the number, the more efficient the system.
A low end unit nowadays operates at around 13 SEER, while high quality units start typically around 16 SEER.
It is illegal to sell any equipment under 13 SEER, and in 2015 the minimum is going up across the country.
Getting this information (along with the size of the unit from the load calculation) will help you accurately compare estimates from multiple companies.
While this makes sense in the spur of the moment, buying an air conditioning system is actually a long term decision.
You need to make sure that the company you choose to install your new system has the best interest of your home in mind.
Most contractors, however, are aware that the average homeowner understands little about the AC installation process, and they will use this fact to their advantage to cut costs and seal the deal quickly.
Below are four key questions that you can ask any contractor, to not only show them their not dealing with any average client, but also to ensure that they know what their doing.
Have you done a load calculation? By law, any new installation requires a heat loss/heat gain load calculation.
This is a mathematical process that requires the contractor to measure the height and perimeter of the home (factoring windows, square footage, ceiling height, appliances, insulation, etc).
The calculation tells the contractor what size air conditioner your home needs in order to cool effectively.
Choose a unit too small and the system will never stop running.
Install one that is too big and the system will short cycle, causing it to break down much more quickly.
The formula requires a fair amount of tedious measuring, and lazy contractors will usually just guess.
Ask about the load calculation to ensure that the company you choose is doing things by the book.
What electrical work are you legally permitted to do? Every install requires some amount of electrical work, but the standard HVAC license does not include an electrical license.
In order to even plug in the air conditioner, the company must have someone on staff with a limited electrical permit.
If the company does not have an electrical license, they cannot fully install new air conditioning equipment and pass an inspection.
Can I get a 10 year labor warranty? Companies have to pay for extended labor warranties, and any contractor who knows his unit won't last that long will not spend good money on an extended labor warranty.
If a company won't even talk about letting you purchase an extended warranty, it's a good sign that they expect the unit to need major repairs within 5 years, and they hope to make money off that repair.
What is the SEER rating? SEER stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio.
It is the miles per gallon of air conditioning.
The higher the number, the more efficient the system.
A low end unit nowadays operates at around 13 SEER, while high quality units start typically around 16 SEER.
It is illegal to sell any equipment under 13 SEER, and in 2015 the minimum is going up across the country.
Getting this information (along with the size of the unit from the load calculation) will help you accurately compare estimates from multiple companies.
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