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Proactively replace furnace or A/C?

pete6032

pete6032

Diamond Member
I just bought a new home and the furnance and A/C are both 18 years old (we knew this going into purchase and included this consideration in our offer price). Inspector said they were in completely fine working order. Would it make sense to replace these before they need to be replaced, or should I just ride it out until they break?
 
pete6032 said:
I just bought a new home and the furnance and A/C are both 18 years old (we knew this going into purchase and included this consideration in our offer price). Inspector said they were in completely fine working order. Would it make sense to replace these before they need to be replaced, or should I just ride it out until they break?
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Look at the difference in efficiency vs the cost of replacement, then toss in something for increased comfort if the system is properly designed. I'd also note that there really isn't any reason to think a new system will be any more reliable than what you have.
 
The AC and furnace in my current house are 17 years old, but they still work. If you regularly change air filter, have professional perform annual maintenance, and make sure the drain line is not clogged by pouring vinegar solution before you start using the AC.
Unless you want a high efficient one to replace the old unit, I would say you can keep using it for a few more years, and have enough time to save money to replace the unit.
 
This may be an extreme case so I'm not recommending you copy this. We have a high-efficiency forced-air gas furnace that replaced a very old system of an oil conversion gun in a gravity-circulation unit designed for burning coal. So we already have been enjoying the benefit of much higher efficiency. We have no AC in our system. The unit is now 36 years old, which certainly is beyond the normal life expectancy of a furnace. I have done all the cleaning and maintenance of it - I'm pretty handy - including replacing over the years the induced draft (exhaust) fan assembly, the motor for the main circulating fan, many fan belts and air filters, and a couple of power drum humidifiers. If an inspection by someone well qualified says your system is perfectly good now, I would not expect it to fail on you suddenly in the near future. Of course you don't want that to happen in mid-winter, but normal yearly maintenance usually will alert you to components that become so worn you need to replace them AND to any situation that is major to suggest complete replacement. Timely warnings like that will allow you to plan replacement before a major problem comes up.
 
pete6032 said:
I just bought a new home and the furnance and A/C are both 18 years old (we knew this going into purchase and included this consideration in our offer price). Inspector said they were in completely fine working order. Would it make sense to replace these before they need to be replaced, or should I just ride it out until they break?
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Just wait til they go. Mine are from 1986.
 
We replaced our 1968 natural gas/forced air furnace after 45 years only because we added central air. It was running strong.
 
i would not replace until you start having issues. save your money and wait for a good price on a nice system installed by someone good. if you live in a place without extreme cold, i would consider replacing with a heat pump system.
 
herm0016 said:
i would not replace until you start having issues. save your money and wait for a good price on a nice system installed by someone good. if you live in a place without extreme cold, i would consider replacing with a heat pump system.
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Heat pumps are hard to beat in moderate climates.
In Berkeley they're just about the only heat source allowed in new construction.
 
We have zero natural gas available here. The only "gas appliances" are propane...and that gets hella expensive.
 
Greenman said:
Berkeley decided to reduce the city's carbon footprint by banning gas appliances in all new construction.
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Is there no natural gas available in Berkley? It's a byproduct of fracking for oil, so it is essentially "free" in carbon footprinting as I see it.
Heck, they can't sell it fast enough, they have to burn the excees. Just look at a satellite night shot of the Dakotas, lit up light NYC.
 
Micrornd said:
Is there no natural gas available in Berkley? It's a byproduct of fracking for oil, so it is essentially "free" in carbon footprinting as I see it.
Heck, they can't sell it fast enough, they have to burn the excees. Just look at a satellite night shot of the Dakotas, lit up light NYC.
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Natural gas is all they have in berkeley, I doubt you'd be able to get a permit for a LPG tank. The point is that it releases carbon when burned, that's all that matters.
 
FWIW, our gas furnace was recalled and replaced with a 96% efficient model around 1990. I recollect that the igniter on the gas furnace has failed twice, which is a simple cheap fix.

It is the backup (<40F) for our heat pump installed in 1987. The only problem we've ever had with the heat pump was when someone we hired to do an inspection tried to fix a noise that he did not like. He finally managed to get it running again, but the noise is still there. I understand that replacement will require a change in refrigerant that also means new piping between the compressor and heat exchanger.

I'm letting them both run until they fail.
 
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