Heat Pump Cost (Manassas, Purcellville, Clifton: 2013, how much, house)

[billp1]

I just moved into my two story home in Ashburn and my First floor heat pump is going to have to be replaced. Any idea how much a unit with labor will cost?

[ChristineVA]

I just replaced my main floor AC and gas furnace with a fairly top of the line Trane. Since I didn't finance through Trane, they gave me $500 off and my total price was $7500. I have a few names of good companies I can give you if interested. There are some companies that will charge double of what it should cost (the guy on the back of the truck one for instance).

[billp1]

Thanks, Any help is appreciated.

[ChristineVA]

The company that did my work was C.B. Lucas. I got a 16 Seer Trane which included a humidifier and new, fancy thermostat. They arrived on time for the install, kept the house very clean, and even had to remove some bushes because the outside unit was much bigger. Still, the bill was $7500. They did a spot check of my upstairs (attic) unit that I replaced 3 years ago and did not charge me. I can't say enough good things.

The second estimate was done on the recommendation of a friend who used this company. Shaw (they are in Manassas). They could not beat the price for the Trane. The matched it but could not give me the extra $500 off for not financing. They said they could maybe do better with a Carrier unit but, in the end, they could not. They also wanted to charge me $75 to come out and measure and other places did not. But, my friend and his neighbors have great things to say about them and they apparently beat out any of the estimates they had (but he lives in Clifton and maybe he got some high end estimates just because of where he lives!!).

[JfromReston]

Cascade Comfort Systems is a small company out your way. They do all the work on my system.
HVAC Contractor Purcellville, VA | HVAC Contractor 20132 | Cascades Comfort Services LLC

[z28lt1]

Part of the cost will depend upon what type of refrigerant is used in your old heat pump. If it uses R22, you likely need to replace both the heat pump and the air handler. If it uses 410A, you probably only need to replace the pump, which will lower the costs some.

There is a wide range of costs from single-stage 'lowest"* efficency, to multi-stage, high efficiency, communicating models. Other features include noise isolation, outside materials (for durability of "looks") and such. My quotes for heat pump and air handler for our upstairs ranged from around $5-6k for "builder"to over $10 depending upon model/features, etc....

*I have "lowest" in quotes above for efficiency, because even the least efficient heat pumps sold today are much more efficient than builder models installed 10-15 years ago, and may save energy by 20% or more. So, you'll have to decide if extra costs for more efficient models is worth it to you (and will likely be only financially worth it if you will be in your current location for a while. For us, the payoff was 5-15 years, depending upon what model we "upgraded" to We ended with a pretty big upgrade on efficiency and comfort from the base model, but, couldn't justify the very top of the line/most efficient models.

Finally, one thing to note is that manufacturers quote maximum SEER/ HSPF rating. But adding a different air handler, will change that number, so if you compare quotes from different contractors, ask for the rated SEER/HSPF for the matching heat pump/handler unit they are proposing. Since it is the first floor, you'll probably have more room to put in the matched/rated air handler versus the smaller ones that go in the attic that will impact the ratings.

[ACWhite]

I just had to choose between a heat pump and a gas furnace and separate AC. The gas furnace quote was considerably more expensive than the heat pump. So you should be able to get it done for less than the quote Christine mentioned.