Dear Experts I was looking at replacing the central AC with a packaged air conditioner 4ton dual stage that also has gas heat dual stage. Goodman was one brand I looked at. I am planning to install it outside the house and sacrifice a basement window to pass the air ducts to the interior. Are these units efficient to run? OK ducts will be insulated obviously but I am concerned about efficiency because the units sits outside and takes on outdoor temperature when sitting idle. I want to use the fan function to ventilate the house, so that was one concern. Any ideas/suggestions!? Thanks a million!

Package units are all very good.  there are better ones than Goodmans though.  When do have it installed ask the installer to bolt it down on to concrete. if you don't have a slab make a small one  just for the unit. These Packaged units and AC condenser units are being stole by the hundreds everyday for the metal to make quick cash,  bolt In down , might even install  a metal gate around it. like I did with my own. Also get a good lock for the power box next to it.  I know this sounds extreme, but were taking thousands of dollars in equipment.

York make a very good packaged unit.

question: how on earth can they steal a 500+ pound box just like that?
I would have bought it already if I knew how to move such a heavy weight around the house to the back side. Renting a fork lift seems to be one option
any ideas?

Renting a fork lift seems to be one option
any ideas?

An appliance dolly and a couple of guys might be easier than renting a forklift.

I have heard that some packaged units with gas heat place the heater heat exchanger in the air conditioner cold air stream, and that this causes the heat exchanger to  corode and fail prematurely.  My guess would be that the cold air causes acid precipitation in the heat exchanger. 

I am not an expert.  I would talk to an HVAC service person who works on different brands to get an opinion about which ones are better than others.

All companies have their skeletons in the closet.
York among them with failing temp. limits that made the insulation around the heat exchanger smoke enough to have people call the fire department in some cases (to my knowledge York never acknowledged a problem but they did have a new limit kit they advised us to install).
Frankly I don't see a lot of difference in modern package units. Suggesting Goodman is inferior or York superior is uninformed.

The downside to the equipment you are looking at Sav, is it is considered commercial. ergo parts are more expensive, repairs can be trickier and more costly and efficiency can be lower than resi. equipment.

thanks for your input. one of the reasons i want to install it rather than a split system is to do it myself.


The cheapest quote for a roughly equivalent split system is 2.5x the cost of the packaged unit! Like $3000 compared to almost $10,000.

Apparently I live in a rip-off area ;-)


I figured use the thing for 10 years and then trash instead of repair, again it's not green but what the hell, why trash green money, right?

It may be less efficient but the difference in up front costs appears to justify going with a packaged unit.

Posted By Sav on 11 Jun 2012 09:54 AM


The cheapest quote for a roughly equivalent split system is 2.5x the cost of the packaged unit! Like $3000 compared to almost $10,000.

Apparently I live in a rip-off area ;-)

Apologies for not getting back here sooner.

I think you are over simplifying and being a tad naive or disingenuous.

If you count a pro's cost of permits (both mechanical and electrical) as well as skilled labor, custom sheet metal, refrigerant recovery and disposal and have them offer you the lower efficiency that comes with the package system, I think you may find there is significantly less than a $7,000 price difference.
 
DIY equity is always available. It also often requires comprimises (in your case, lower efficiency), and often involves breaking the rules (say skipping the pesky permit process or waving bye-bye to the R22 in your old system as it is "accidently" leaked into our air).

To suggest every contractor in your area is dishonest ("I apparently live in a rip-off area") without itemizing the differences is unkind at best.

I was under the impression that you wanted floor heat......

If not, and you have a really low heat loss, I tear a page out of Dana's book and put in a couple of multi head ductless splits. You will never get the efficiency out of packaged unit doing it that way.