Isn't your climate mild? Do you really need 3 tons or maybe 2.5 tons would be better for cooling? I keep hearing about mild California weather. Same goes for the furnace.

I ask these questions since you have upgraded windows.
How did the old system perform comfort wise?

FYI: some people don't like the 3rd party coils and prefer the ones made by the company.

The temp. range here is from a low in the 30's to highs in the 100's. The heating of the old unit was good, however the A/C could not keep up on a tripple digit day. It could have been low on freon or just not very effiecent .

Durchevous

Rheem/Rudd depending on mdl/system configuration is probably the most overlooked and underrated HVAC mfgs in the residential market.

I would want to see a load calc in writing for both heating and cooling.

You have been quoted very good Rudd HVAC.

Suggestions

I am not a fan of third party evap coils. Ask for the best matched Rudd coil.

The Rudd furnace quoted comes in a smaller size-06 mdl. That would be more than enough heating BTUs for your location/climate plus would save you in operating costs.

New refrigerant lineset is included? It should be.

I recommend a good pleated filter media cabinet.

Not certain about that thermostat. You want a good two stg thermostat that controls the staging of the furnace, not from the furnace control board. This is important and will save you in operating costs.

IMO

From time to time as I lurk here I see that most everyone are not in favor of 3rd party coils etc... question WHY NOT ?

Are they not build as good .. just wondering

Regarding 3rd party coils, I can't speak to their quality. With 'brand' manufacturers, efficiency ratings are based on actual laboratory tests. Because of the great number of combinations using 3rd party coils with various brands of furnaces/air handlers, and condensers, the ratings are based on computer simulations.

With regard to Rheem quality, I had an oversized, builders quality furnace and a/c for 20 years, which never saw a service person and never failed.

My new Prestige system (mod furnace and 2 stage a/c) has just completed their 4th heating and cooling seasons. They get annual service and haven't missed a beat.

V

There are a few reasons. The third party coil will not be covered under the warranty of the condenser/heat pump. The warranty period may be the same, but you have to deal with two warranties instead of one.

I also think the AHRI rating with the third party coils are done by simulation and not actual testing. It is questionable how accurate this is.

Comments were posted by "Tigerdunes" see below:

1. New refrigerant lineset is included? It should be.

2. I recommend a good pleated filter media cabinet

Please explain both

Thanks

durchevous

The refrigerant lineset has to be sized correctly. It handles the refrigerant between your evap coil and outside AC condenser. Since you are changing refrigerants to the new 410a refrigerant, you don't want any contamination. I always prefer a new and correctly sized lineset over flushing unless you have some type of building obstacle.

A whole house air filter cabinet mounted at the return end of your furnace protects your evap coil and your blower motor. Also it filters dust from your home. Changeout is easy and filters normally last up to one year before replacement.

Discuss both with your dealer. Not to be overlooked.

IMO

"the A/C could not keep up on a tripple digit day. It could have been low on freon or just not very effiecent ."

Efficiency rarely is the problem.

The unit MUST be sized correctly for the load.

An 80% efficient 2 ton units delivers the same cooling as a 90% efficient 2 ton unit.

2 tons of cooling.

How much electricity it takes to produce the cooling is the difference.

If the unit cannot hold temperature on high heat days it is most likely not large enough.

The same size at higher efficiency will likely have the same problem. Not enough capacity. it will just cost less to not be comfortable (less electricity used).

Wide swings between peak days and more 'regular' days are a real problem for residential AC systems.
They do not have an actual accumulator to hold liquified refrigerant and a good way of varying the capacity of the system based on the actual load.

TXVs help some, but still cannot reduce range enough.
Large commercial work uses staging to match system output to the load.
Residential work is much more price conscious.

There are multi speed units for residential, and even some equipment that actually uses two sizes of compressor to vary capacity.
It costs more, and often needs to be hooked to a variable capacity blower to work well.