Pricing tends to be regional ("whatever the market will bear"). The only way to get an idea if a quote is reasonable is to get multiple bids.

Before you can have a discussion about price, you should determine whether the systems that have proposed make sense for your house and climate.

Can you provide a little more information? Is one system for the original house, and the other for the addition? How large are the first and second floors of the original house, and how large is the addition? Is the addition a single story with a flat roof?

Are you going to use propane with the furnaces? Is natural gas available for a possible hook up?

Columbus can get very cold in the winter. Any reason why one furnace (XV80) is only 80% efficiency?

The XL18 may be overkill in terms of cooling in your climate. There may be other Trane heat pumps which may be a better value for heating and cooling.

Since this house is new to you, then a load calculation would be a good idea. You may also want to move in first and see how well the current system works (assuming it is operational) in case some duct work needs to be done.

What you have been quoted so far seems high to me given the sizes and equipment. You may be able to do better on pricing.

All good equipment...what size is each zone?....what size furnace and AC are you replacing?...I suspect you are being oversized on heating....furnace and ductwork for second floor is in attic?...I would want a load calc performed for both floors, get involved in the design temps, and request results in writing!

IMO

Thank you for the responses!

Mike: I will try my best to answer your questions. One furnace is in the basement (for the first floor) and one furnace is in the attic (for the second floor). Both floors are equal...around 1630 square feet...the addition was built to be seamless to the original house and is a two story. The house currently uses propane. There is no option for natural gas. The HVAC guy said that the heat pump would save on the propane cost. He also proposed the 80% efficiency furnace b/c heat rises...

Both AC and furnace systems are not operable so we could tough out a summer without AC, but obviously not a Central Ohio winter. Would we ask the HVAC company to do the load calculation or are there companies that specialize? I guess I could Google that.

Tigerdunes: I apologize, but I know nothing more than the current equipment is Lennox Pulse. The furnace and duct work is indeed in the attic. The house is brick if that makes a difference. The original house is exposed brick (how much does that matter?). The addition is brick as well, but has drywall so I really have no clue as to the insulation of the home.

Also, you can design temps? As in I would want my bedroom at 85 degrees and the rest of the house at 75? That would be amazing!

"Also, you can design temps? As in I would want my bedroom at 85 degrees and the rest of the house at 75? That would be amazing!"

You can do this as you suggest, but this is a complicated subject. This is typically done via zoning and in some cases "staging". To find out if this is feasible or not, you need a pro that specializes in zoning for your area. All too often zone systems are not done right.

Design Temps are more often referred to as the design temp of the area in which the home is located. These 'design temps' can vary from one location to another.

Air Conditioning Tips

B/c heat rises? A higher efficiency furnace in the basement uses less gas than a lower efficiency furnace in the basement. Actually it uses less fuel if u put it in the attic too.

You need a load calc for both heating and cooling...I would think the 60 K size both for XV95 and XV80 would be plenty of heating BTUs...and I don't understand the sizing of the XL18i heat pumps. I would want two 3 ton systems since the idea here is to keep off the more expensive propane as much as possible. I would like to know the evap coil model numbers. You want minimum 9 HSPF heating eff for the heat pumps.

IMO

Tiger and Mike: Once again, thank you for the responses. I truly wish I had a thorough understanding of HVAC and all of the terminology related to it. The information you provided has been eye opening. If either of you were in Central Ohio I would have you out to tell us what to do!

The science behind HVAC can be complicated, but the principles about sizing and installation are simple. Don't assume the contractor will propose the right equipment and with the correct sizes. Keeping asking questions and you will learn quickly.

We finally closed on our house and are underway with installs and renovations. I learned that the basement heater heats the entire first floor and the attic heater heats the entire second floor. We have had 5 additional HVAC folks out to the house and are up to our eyeballs with heat pumps and SEERS. Firstly, of the 6 HVAC folks that came out only 1 did a load calculation. The others rolled their eyes when we asked about it. Secondly, 3 of the 6 said the attic in the heater was a bad idea b/c of the water condensation since the temperature in the attic is not regulated; 3 said it was no big deal to have it in the attic. Three of the 6 have quoted us systems with heat pumps and 3 have quoted simply to replace the units with the same specs of what is currently there.

So, my questions are: 1. Are heat pumps worth it? I kind of feel like they're trying to sell us a Cadillac when we have a Honda budget. 2. Is having a heater in the attic okay or should we seriously consider moving it to the second floor?

Again, any advice is sincerely appreciated!

Congratulations on closing on your new house. Now the fun begins.

The contractor who took the time to do a load calculation should be at the top of your list. Hopefully he is going to propose a system that makes sense at a competitive price. Did he provide the heating and cooling loads for the two floors?

Upgrading to a dual fuel system (propane furnace and heat pump) is a good strategy in most parts of the country. If you post your propane and electricity charges a cost comparison can be calculated. Upgrading the AC condenser to a heat pump is not a big expense. I would not describe it as a Cadillac.

The attic is the worst place to install HVAC equipment and duct work. You could move it to the second floor but I think it is going to be very costly. Get a quote to satisfy your curiosity.

Furnaces which are 80% efficiency (the minimum allowed by federal allow) do not produce water condensate. There is no problem installing them in an attic that could freeze in the winter. High efficiency furnaces (90% and above) will produce a water condensate. If you choose that route then the contractor has to install a device (heat tape) which will prevent the water condensate from freezing. Some contractors don't want to do this and simply say it can't be done. I know Columbus has had extremely cold winters these past two years so the attic installation needs to be done correctly.

Attic and crawlspace installations are a fact of life. You just have to make sure everything is done correctly. Dual fuel with propane is the worst of all worlds. For what you're paying for propane and the two furnaces, you could buy a lifetime of backup electric heat!!!