So upstairs heat stopped working. Super efficient, natural gas heater, unit is a Bryant, 13 years old.
Had big company come out yesterday. He opens it up and spins the motor, and it starts right up, but says he smells something. Goes and gets CO2 meter and says he is getting low level CO2 readings. Checks for cracks. Can't find anything.
Says that anything 10 and under on the CO2 reading is what they consider safe. Said he got readings of 14 at one vent, and one reading as high as 42 at another upstairs. He said 200-400 is what can kill you.
Gives me two options:
1st Option, replace both heat exchanges, but this is a temporary fix he says, to get us through 2 or 3 years.
2nd Option: Replace whole thing for 9000. Says since it's 13 years old and we are staying here for awhile this is the best option.
Getting a second opinion today.
Told my brother in law, and he said this same thing happened to him almost identically, but his wife got so freaked out about the CO2 thing she called the fire department. The fire department came out and said that some of the bigger companies were doing this in order to get people to replace their furnaces. He said he got the fix done much cheaper than what the first place initially quoted and with no CO2 danger.
I've got an independent guy coming today for a second opinion.
You can't put a price on your life, but how do you know who to trust if companies are using fear tactics to sell you a new furnace?
Anybody had a similar situation?
If your wife is anything like mind, maybe buying a CO2 meter would put her mind at ease. Unsure if you would want to go that route, but a couple of hundred bucks on a portable meter would put her mind at ease.
If your wife is anything like mind, maybe buying a CO2 meter would put her mind at ease. Unsure if you would want to go that route, but a couple of hundred bucks on a portable meter would put her mind at ease.
We have a C02 alarm/monitor downstairs, but not upstairs. Think I will install one regardless.
Good luck.
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but CO2 is odorless unless it's at super high concentrations so if he's implying that what he was smelling was CO2, I'm calling BS on that. Sounds funny to me, I'd definitely get a 2nd opinion based on that alone.
+1
You're following the right path by getting multiple estimates and having a couple of technicians check it out.
I’m guessing what you actually have are CO meters.
There are two heat exchanges that they would replace.
My bet is that the first guy was screwing you with a hard sell. Shitty tactics don't give him your business.
My bet is that the first guy was screwing you with a hard sell. Shitty tactics don't give him your business.
Again, that would be a combo Smoke/CO detector. — carbon monoxide. They’re talking about CO2 - carbon dioxide, which is not a typical alarm sensor for home use.
There are two heat exchanges that they would replace.
What model is your furnace?
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you think I'm far enough along to just replace that and kick it down the road a ways, or just go ahead and replace it.
There are two heat exchanges that they would replace.
What model is your furnace?
2005 Bryant Plus 90 High Efficiency Gas Furnace from the Legacy Line
Can't help you from here. If you lived closer I could take a look at it for you.
$9k seems ridiculous. Being scared is good because you will take action but don’t get scared into possibly making a choice you don’t need to.
Also, for you 2nd and 3rd opinions, don’t tell them what the first guy said. Go in with a clean slate with each new estimate.
Thanks for asking. As a matter of fact, I just got off the phone with my wife.
We had another independent guy coming tomorrow, but today, we had a bigger company scheduled.
They came out, said there is nothing wrong with either heat exchange that they could find, they replaced the capacitor and it started right up. $200 fix. They said in the future, the blower motor might need to be repaired, but that this particular unit should be good for 20-25 years, and we're only at year 13.
They also said that they were not concerned about CO at all. Didn't even measure despite what we told them. They said get a couple of CO monitors upstairs for peace of mind.
The wholesale price on your furnace is probably less than 3k. 30% mark up doesn't get you anywhere near the price that would justify the estimate you got.
9K for a swap out job is ludicrous.
9k would include new ducting, not a simple swap out of one unit to a new one.
Thanks for the advice guys.
Glad you didn't get taken to the cleaners, Britt.
Of course you're going to freak out.