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Frankenstein systems, not recommended but I love building monsters..

cantankerous
cantankerous Member Posts: 2
in A-C, Heat Pumps & Refrigeration

My old wall furnace died and a heating contractor was selling a Trane 3 ton heat pump and air handler real cheap, taken out of a remodel that now needed a larger 5 ton. It is old but a good brand and he said it was working fine when retired but it needed a new coil in the air handler.

I have been looking t some supply stores on line and various brands are selling for $X amount of dollars (Not sure if allowed to put rough figures here) and I contacted one for the exact model number match and the Trane one was 4 times more expensive. Since I would not be able to get a warranty for a mismatched system, would rather gamble on the much cheaper "Brand X" as long as the same 3 ton, 410 refridgerant and size to fit inside the air handler would work.

Anyone know which brands are compatible with Trane? Also, what is the difference between a TXV and Piston type with the coils and what is their function? I will be having a professional HVAC contractor doing the hook ups but would like some opinions before I get them out here. Thanks

Comments

  • pecmsg
    pecmsg Member Posts: 5,528

    why are you messing with a 20-year-old piece of equipment.

    Who are you gonna get to pipe it in and charge it?

    when it doesn’t work, who will be responsible?

  • londonrefrig
    londonrefrig Member Posts: 4

    Cantankerous, get a reputable hvac company. I dont sell used for a reason, it always bites me in the ****. Could it work, yes. Should it work, probably. Will it work, not likely. Then you will be pissed off, the buddy who hooked it up will be pissed off, and you still wont have heat and out a thousand or more.

    Experience tells me over 10 years old, its almost dead. If its sat for any length of time, especially if lines werent welded, compressor is probably junk.

    Txv vs piston, its an efficiency thing. They meter the refrigerant into the coil creating a pressure drop causing a change in state absorbing btus. Experience will tell you what is better depending on the situation.

    The trane vs off brand. Doesnt matter, if the system runs, trane likely wont warranty it anyways.

  • cantankerous
    cantankerous Member Posts: 2

    Sure, this thing is a huge gamble if it will work and as far as who is responsible if it does not it obviously will be me. Rest assured, I will not be pissed off. I just got a few hundred in this and if the compressor dies, it can be replaced. The only thing that could really go out on the air handler is the blower motor, also replaceable.

    I just have to hope the HVAC guy who sold me this was honest and reputable and we all know 99.99% of them are….

    I did my own duct work and as far as the line set, it is only a 17' run, can get 25' new for less than couple hundred.. I have a retired HVAC guy who can solder/braze the lines, evacuate and charge.

    Am I going to lose money if it all crashes, yes but not that much and you would be astonished how much I lose each year on mechanical repairs to my vehicles not to mention the thousands on depreciation on them each year…..Gambling, yes but the odds are much better than buying lottery tickets which so many people do (not me).

    I am old and retired but enjoy trying out new things, learning new things, (like the difference between TXV and piston) ,got my own duct system put in just buying materials from Lowe's, local sheet metal co. built my supply box for the top of the Air handler.

    This house is old (80) and moving this year. I had the wiring upgraded with Cadet wall heaters in the bedrooms and bathrooms installed, and have a gas ductless fireplace heating the great room.

    I could put in 2 more Cadet wall heaters since we put in a 200 amp breaker box new system in and just sell the house with plenty of heating capacity but more expensive to heat than a heat pump.

    The only nasty part of my DIY plan is running that lineset in the crawl space. I went down there last week and not much room to work in but was able to slither under the floor joist beams to make sure the line install has no obstacles. Looks good, one straight line between the Pump and air handler, just the issue of bending that 3/4" suction line coming up from there to the Handler. Guess standard pipe bender would work for this which I will need to borrow from my plumber, just want to make sure these lines do not kink.

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