When replacement is genuinely the right call
Four things decide it, and we will go through all four with you:
- Age. Most systems run ten to fifteen years here. A fifteen-year-old unit facing a major repair is telling you something; an eight-year-old one with a failed capacitor is not.
- Repair cost against replacement cost. One large repair is rarely the deciding factor on its own — a pattern of them is.
- Efficiency. The gap between a twenty-year-old system and a current one is large enough to matter on every bill.
- Whether it ever worked properly. Some systems were wrong from the day they were installed. Replacing like for like just buys the same problem again.
If a repair buys you another five good years, we will say so. We would rather earn the replacement later than sell it today.
Sizing: the part that gets skipped
The most common fault we find in existing systems is that they were sized by rule of thumb per square foot. That produces oversized equipment, which short-cycles, never runs long enough to dehumidify, wears out early, and leaves the house both clammy and unevenly conditioned.
We size against an actual load calculation — square footage, ceiling heights, window area and orientation, insulation levels, air leakage, ductwork, and the elevation and exposure of your particular site. In these mountains that last part is not a formality: cold air pools in the coves overnight, and a house in a hollow sees a different winter than one on the ridge above it.
What we look at before quoting
- The ductwork. New equipment moves air differently. Undersized or leaky ducts will strangle a good system, and attic ducts commonly lose twenty to thirty percent of what passes through them. We measure static pressure rather than assume.
- The electrical service and what the new equipment will need.
- The envelope. Sometimes insulation and air sealing would do more for your comfort than a larger system, and we will tell you when that is the case even though it is not work we are selling.
- The site. Where the outdoor unit can sit, drainage, drip lines, and how snow moves across it.
- What you actually want fixed. If one room has always been unbearable, a bigger system will not solve it — a ductless mini-split or duct work might.
Options, not a single price
You get written options with the trade-offs explained: a straightforward like-for-like replacement, a higher-efficiency variable-speed option, and where it is relevant a dual-fuel or ductless alternative. Each with what it costs, what it saves, and what it will and will not fix. Then you decide, on your timescale.
Ask about current rebates and seasonal specials — utility and manufacturer incentives change through the year and we will tell you what is available when you are buying rather than after.
Installation and commissioning
The install is where the efficiency on the label either materialises or does not. Every system we put in gets its charge verified, airflow measured, static pressure read, staging and balance points configured, and the numbers documented and left with you. We register the manufacturer warranty on your behalf, and we set you up on a maintenance plan so that warranty stays valid.
