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Duct work....

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west_seth

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Symptom: Hot / cold rooms. Called an HVAC company.

So I called out the local HVAC company today and explained this to the tech.

I have some issues with the heat pump / system some rooms too hot some too cold. I have never had it checked out since I bought the house. I would like to view it as a short term/medium term/long term solution.


short term - the reason you are here today is to check the heat pumps / mechanicals and see if they are operating within specs. Also a look see at the duct work and everything else you wish to check. Make suggestions.

medium term - remedy any major problems such as duct work. Only with a written report and I will also get 2 more estimates.

long term - replace HVAC heat pump units but not until they expire. Currently Goodman very noisey.

So they checked the mechanicals:
freon okay maybe a little bit overcharged too cold to tell

voltages okay

filters too dense / restrictive replaced with a better solution.

One compressor is a little bit weak. Both have hard starts on them.

******************
duct work
flexi duct not done right
**no boots on register**
suggested dampers
suggested zoning certain rooms
*******************

and made a no charge appointment for the duct guy to come out on Friday....

My question is: How can there be registers without boots? They said without boots the air flow is restrictive.

This does not make sense to me.



 
#2 ·
the boot is what the register sits in.did he remove the register?this tech that evaluated your system determined you have duct problems and hes calling in his duct guy.that raises a red flag right there.i would call in another company most will give you a free estimate.
 
Discussion starter · #3 ·
I did not follow him around so I can't say...

Whether he removed the grill. I will do that.

You are right .. I think I will let him come out and give estimate.

Then I am calling his competetior.

One thing that really turned me off is how the Techs. slammed the competetion and talked about all of them about to go broke.

I don't like that.
 
#4 ·
Re: I did not follow him around so I can't say...

west_seth said:
One thing that really turned me off is how the Techs. slammed the competetion and talked about all of them about to go broke.

I don't like that.
Click to expand...
This industry is full of technicians that love to badmouth the competition. They think the more they talk bad about em, the better it makes them look. Same with equipment. You can scroll through some threads here & see how people love bashing certain brands. I dont blame you for being turned off.
 
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#6 ·
jeffshvac said:
the boot is what the register sits in.did he remove the register?this tech that evaluated your system determined you have duct problems and hes calling in his duct guy.that raises a red flag right there.i would call in another company most will give you a free estimate.
Click to expand...

Why a red flag?

Sounds fine to me!
 
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#7 ·
it just sounds as if this tech that inspected his duct system is unsure of himself if he has to call in a duct guy,i guess as a contractor i usually do this type of inspection myself and would never send a rookie tech to do sales and evaluations,and bashing other companies is something a rookie tech would do.jmo thanks
 
#8 ·
I'd think the first tech could tell there are issues,but needs someone else to provide the solution and the pricing.Sounds okay to me.

Now the bad mouthing ,that's not okay.
 
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#9 ·
thats exactly why i wouldnt send a rookie tech to do evaluations and sales,why would i pay him to do something hes not qualified for only to have to return myself.im sure this is something that belongs in the pro forum.thanks
 
#10 ·
I dont get it

So they checked the mechanicals:
Freon okay maybe a little bit overcharged too cold to tell

voltages okay

filters too dense / restrictive replaced with a better solution.

One compressor is a little bit weak. Both have hard starts on them.

Sounds like he did what you asked him to do.

******************
duct work
flexi duct not done right
**no boots on register**
suggested dampers
suggested zoning certain rooms
*******************

and made a no charge appointment for the duct guy to come out on Friday.

Sounds like he is having a sheet metal person come over to price the changes.

Why mess with some one that has done exactly what you wanted?

What flag and why? Think before you act or you could find your self on the bottom of the list and will see the service some time next fall with a price increase. People complain they can not get a good tech, and then they get some one that does what is asked and the customer want to play around with his competition.

Good luck,


 
Discussion starter · #11 ·
Thanks everyone...

First of all thanks for the input. I am happy I found this forum several years ago. I now know enough (to be dangerous and realize I am not any kind HVAC expert) to be able to effectively communicate with the HVAC people and ask not so many dumb questions.

The duct guy came out and I was very impressed. Laid back. I told him two things: 1-the techs tried to upsell me and I do not appreciate that. They were here to check the mechanicals and to provide options. 2-Bad mouthing the competetion is WRONG.

So the duct guy looked over the whole house and said it is really in pretty good shape. But it needs to be balanced. He gave me a price I can live with and a guarantee. He also apologized for the two guys who were here yesterday. I did tell them I am 100% happy in the mechanical check they performed freon voltages etc etc.

So moving forward the worse case problem is not so bad.

If they do a great job and I suspect they will then they will be number one company to bid out a new system when these heat pumps expire.

Thanks again.
 
#12 ·
Did they check the ESP(External Static Pressure),the resistance of the duct system to air flow??


You have hot/cold rooms,do they have returns or a "return path"(under the door,thru a wall with grilles on each side?

Do you normally keep interoir doors closed to the rooms that are too cool in the winter?



Balancing may be all you need ,but if you have high ESP or lack of return or return path,that must be corrected as well.
 
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#14 ·
Dont mean to sound sarcastic but just because the ductwork is in great shape doesnt mean that it's right. Just to give an example, if you dont put gauges on a unit then you cant properly troubleshoot it because you dont know what is going on inside. Wow, that unit looks like its in great shape!.....lol. I second what Dash said as well concerning static pres.


The whole picture needs to be revealed before any real diagnosis can be made..........l8r
 
#15 ·
Re: dash...

west_seth said:
Not sure about all that stuff...the doors my teens rooms are left closed almost all the time.
Click to expand...


If the door is closed and there's no return or return path,air flow to the room will be reduced.


Test it!

With the door closed and the system running,feel the air flow at the grille,then have someone open the door ,feel the difference.If there's a lot of difference try 24 hours with the doors open,if temps even out ,you may only need a return or return path,if not yo still need return/path ,but you also need more supply air.
 
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#16 ·
too cold to hot zone the home, its the only way to go and thats why i'm in business its efficient, user friendly and fun. Zonematrix/xci controls are the most comforting systems out there if you look at regular hvac plans they don't make sense. evry home should be zoned.
 
#17 ·
tony pelicano said:
too cold to hot zone the home, its the only way to go and thats why i'm in business its efficient, user friendly and fun. Zonematrix/xci controls are the most comforting systems out there if you look at regular hvac plans they don't make sense. evry home should be zoned.
Click to expand...
Tell us more about "zonematrix",is there a link to their website you could post?
 
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