How much $ can we expect to pay for central air?

[floridafam]

We are probably going to have it installed. I believe the coil is already in place-they did this 3 years ago when they installed our new furnace.

1200 sq. foot home.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

 

[floridafam]

I should mention that we hope to be selling our home soon and we want to get this for some relief now and to improve the resale value of our home.

 

[zurgswife]

Depends on the tonage of your coil...but I just priced for our house...about 1600sq ft. the coil is also there....So, the cost for condensor and to hook everything up was about $2500 rough estimate....I'm waiting...

 

[Serena]

It probably will pay for itself with the sale. The new furnace and c/a it did cost quite a bit. I forget exactly what. But I remember it paid for itself within a year.

 

[zurgswife]

For got to mention ours was 3 tons

 

[jrydberg]

I just replaced the whole thing (ac, not furnace) for $2700 (3 ton unit)

 

[Kimberle]

It really depends on your home and how much duck work they have to do. The same square foot home can vary greatly in price.

My dh is an engineer. When we replaced our unit after we bought our home, it was around $2000, wholesale, for the unit only. Dh did all the instalation work. The ducks were already present. This was 7 years ago. (1500 square foot home with 20 foot cealings and skylights.)

Make sure you get several estimates (detailed).

 

[southernclass]

My parents had to pay around ten grand to have theirs installed and their electric bill is around 250-300 per month but their house is close to 4000 sq. feet. Our apartment is only 1850 and our bill is around 130 a month and we live on the third floor and have huge windows so that is REALLY cheap. I think it depends on how well insulated the home is but the installation of the actual unit I would check with an AC tech for an estimate first.

 

[my3kids]

We've done it twice. First time installed duct work and removed radiators, replaced heat and added AC. That was something over $10K. Second time replaced existing heat/ac with a new heat pump, and that was about $3,500.

 

[sha_lyn]

wow I'm shocked at how much some have paid. 6 yrs ago we paid about 4k (might have been 4,500) for duct work, heating, air and 40 gal gas water heater for a 1250 sq ft house. the house is older and had electric baseboard heat and window units when we bought it.

We just added 750 sq ft. I'll ask DH when he gets home if he knoew where the H&A paperwork on the addition is. I think we gave just under 2K for heat, air and duct work.

 

[grinningghost]

As a person who lived an entire lifetime without central air, and finally got it when we bought our house (it was already there) - I think it would be worth every penny of whatever it cost.

I always said I'd go into serious debt, but I'll never live without it.

 

[floridafam]

The company that installed our new furnace and water heater is coming out tomorrow to do an estimate.

I'm hopeful it will be less than $2500.

 

[Tiggeroo]

Probably around $1800. if you have the duct work. Get several prices and don't go with the lowest unless you really know the person.

 

[CindyKansas]

We have about the same square footage and we all ready had the duct work but our Central Air was approx. $2000. I had never had Central Air before getting married. Always a window unit or none and I don't know how I did it. It is worth every penny.

 

[floridafam]

Okay, here's the scoop.

Had 2 people come out for estimates.

First guy-Bryant 2 ton unit. Total estimate $2164

I was honest with him and told him I had other people coming today. He called about 2 hours later and said he had made an error in addition and the price was only $2009 (I guess he thinks I have a tiny brain) I'm sure he went back to the office, told them we had other people coming and got the okay to knock $150 off the price.


Second guy-Lennox 2 ton unit. Total estimate $1901-$100 rebate for a total of $1801

Any pros or cons to these two different units?

 

[Bildmouse]

Check warranties on both units and then decide. Both are reliable companies but warranties can be quite different. My DH sells Amana and can beat most warranties with his equipment.

 

[zurgswife]

I was told it was best to match your furnace maker to the condensor....Mine is a York so I should get a York condenser....not sure if it's true or not..

 

[Pooh Girl 71]

less than $2000? Wow I had no idea it was so cheap. I was thinking it was in the $10K range. I may have to look into this.

 

[huey duey & luey]

We are currently getting estimates to add a second zone to our upstairs and I think the cheapest est was about $4000, so those prices sound great to me.
Tara