I have a 15 year old condo in which my health limited mother lives. Furnace tech recommends replacing furnace/ac at a cost of $4000, or I can replace relays and coil at a cost of $504 dollars and take my chances on lasting. Sadly, when my mother passes this condo will go on the market. What would you do?
A furnace should generally last more than 15 years. Are you sure the tech is being straight with you? It sounds like an upsell to me. I would replace the relays and coil for $500 and take my chances. You are only down $500 if it still fails later and you will have still gotten some more time out of the existing one so it wouldn’t be for nothing.
15 years isn’t all that old for a furnace and AC. A newer unit might increase the return on investment some with energy savings and a better selling price, but probably not all that much unless your mother lives there for another 10 years.
I think I’d spend the $500.
Correct. You wouldn’t get the $4000 back for a very long time if ever in this situation unless the existing furnace was completely irreparable and you had no choice but to replace the whole thing. The fix makes much more economic sense and practical sense as well because you don’t have to deal with a major installation.
Ask the tech why you would be ‘taking your chances’ with the repair? They are fairly simple and reliable devices that he should be able to evaluate and fix quite well himself. There isn’t a lot of chance to it unless the existing one has some fundamental design flaw.
I don’t know if it is really this simple. Furnace tech has come a long way in the last 20 years. New high efficiency furnaces are not as simple - they have an expensive board and processor that is quite vulnerable (dust can kill them), lots of sensors, higher tolerances and upwards of 98% efficiency! They are direct vented out of a abs plastic pipe - the exhaust isn’t even hot. Sadly I am not so sure they are likely to last as long as older furnaces. Your furnace is of an age range where it could be of this type.
It sounds to me like the HVAC contractor believes something else is likely to fail based on his experience. He should be able to tell you this in the detail you need to make a proper decision, but lets face it Tradesmen often are not the best communicators. I would consider a second opinion. The repair at $500 is pretty minor compared to the cost of the new furnace. He should be able to give you a good reason why it would be wise to spend $4000 for a new unit. Here in Calgary a high efficiency furnace can save enough to pay for itself in a few years, but we have cold winters. The $500 dollars sounds cheap even if it only lasts a couple more years.
I agree that a furnace should last longer than 15 years.
But before making either decision, I’d get a second opinion. Having another tech to look at it won’t be that expensive considering it could potentially save you thousands.