Sorry to hear of your lossâ¦

What are the electrical & propane costs in your area?

Might a geothermal heat pump be an option; are you having a well drilled?

ItâÂÂs presently 0F outside where we live, -14F with the wind chill, the backup hasnâÂÂt come on yet with our geothermal HP; at -17F without wind chill it will but probably not for too long.

Not a fan of Goodman.

SR

Also sorry about your loss.

Another option to explore is an arrangement known as dual fuel. Rather than electric heat strip backup, it can fire up a propane furnace when the heat pump itself is not efficient.

The contractors who have not done a load calculation on a brand new house should be eliminated. There is too much going on with a new house with no history of heating to just guess.

Can you talk to your neighbors? There is a lot to be said about doing the same thing that your neighbors do. That helps insure a steady stream of service contractors while a unique system would maybe only have limited service contractors.

Also, as far as Goodman or any other brand, my research leads me to believe that there is much more difference between a brand's "builder grade" line and its better lines than there is between brand A and brand B. Maybe a good starting point would be to post the complete model numbers and sizes of the bids you have so far.

This post was edited by Dovetonsils on Sat, Jan 31, 15 at 13:22

Sorry to hear about your loss. There are several posters that are here to give you good advice.

Does this house have a second floor and if so how large is it?

Two zones can either be two furnaces and AC condensers, or a single furnace/AC with zoning dampers. The quote you were given should have made this clear.

My perception is electric rates are low in Tennessee so I would not totally discount a heat pump with electric backup. Heat pumps have improved and have much better performance than they did a few years ago. The new generation of heat pumps which use inverter technology preform very well at low temperatures. The pricing would fall between a traditional heat pump and a geothermal unit. A good example is the Carrier Greenspeed or Bryant Evolution heat pump.

The propane would be a good option if you like cooking on a gas stove. The propane could then be used to fire the clothes dryer and hot water heater. A dual fuel heat pump with propane furnace would be good set up. If you go with propane you should buy your own tank so you will get better pricing per gallon.

Goodman equipment has had it share its problems. Do a search on this forum to see what others have said. If you plan to live in this home a long time I would rather see you get better equipment if the budget allows. Keep looking for a contractor who will do a load calculation. Anyone who says it is not necessary does not know what he is doing and should be avoided.

I want to thank all of you that have answered, I will do more research and hopefully I have answered your questions well enough to further the discussion.
The price for propane is $3.168/#
Greeneville L&P charges 8.769 per KH + 11.11 to read the meter
This is a ranch house with an exposed basement, 3' overhands and large Anderson windows with Sun Guard facing west
One neighbor lives in a converted school house & is dying of cancer, the other neighbor is a Wash. DC jerk whom I had to threaten to take to court before he would repair his fencing for cows that ruined $1000's of sprinkler system and landscaping! Not a good idea there!
This is country living and I am going to finish the house, put it on the market and move back to Washington State.
I have a gas stove that I had converted to use propane, so will have a tank of undetermined size at some point.
Yes, I have a well and two huge pressure tanks to run the landscaping water system. (Yes, I know, the cart before the horse, but I just couldn't help myself being a master gardener LOL)
I am also putting in a tankless water heater (have no idea which one yet), and then a small 3-4 gallon electric water heater in the kitchen.
I am interested in geo-thermo but have heard it is expensive.
The house is not a "normal" red brick Tennessee house, very Frank Lloyd Wright in looks, and what I call modern with an Asian twist in the interior. I will probably loose my fanny when it comes time to sell it but I absolutely have to leave this area. Something to think about when a person retires..stay near family or friends, its a real drag being by yourself!

If your plan is to finish the house and sell, then my recommendation would be to install the typical HVAC system that other new houses have in your area. Most new home buyers don't value better equipment and are unlikely to pay a premium. Therefore it will be difficult to get a return on the additional investment.

Having two tankless water heaters is a nice feature, but I am skeptical if you will be able to add that additional cost to the selling price. Consult with a realtor as to what features buyers will pay for in your market. Your cost of electricity is less than half than what I pay in NJ. The pay back on high efficiency is much longer and not as attractive.