A lot of customers ask what is better to Repair or Replace. There is also a lot of discussion within the industry about which is better.
If you talk to an old timer, they always repair because they (we) take it as an insult that they could not fix it.
If you talk to the supply houses, they always replace because that is what they do, sell equipment.
As a rule, most residential Furnaces last an average of 15-20 years; Air Conditioners 10-15 years, Water Heaters 10 years, and Boilers 15-20 years.
If comfort and efficiency were not a factor, it would simply be a math problem.
Cost to repair might be $500.00 and the cost to replace $5000.00; this is 10% so maybe the repair is a good investment. If the repair is $1000.00, now it 20% of the replacement cost and so on.
See where this goes, but what if this is the 3rd service call in 2 years
A couple of years ago we came up with a chart.
BELOW IS A GUIDE TO UPGRADING EQUIPMENT BASED ON EFFICIENCY AND AGE. SINCE ALL JOBS ARE DIFFERENT, THE GUIDE IS BASED ON ENERGY USAGE, LONG TERM SERVICE COSTS, COMFORT, AND RELIABILITY.
I don’t think this helps either.
At Joyce Cooling & Heating Inc. we try to give you options based on age, efficiency, conditioning of system, cost of repair, type of repair, future ownership of the home, current use, and position to purchase a new system.
We will point out future saving, cost of future maintenance, increase in comfort, benefits of an air cleaner, benefits of a humidifier, benefits of better controls, and so on.
I like to ask a couple of simple questions:
1. Is this unit going to fail someday?
2. Is it going to cost more or less to change it in the future?
3. When it does fail, will it be at a convenient time or will it be in the middle of winter, on a weekend, in the middle of a snowstorm?
4. Do you want to start saving money now or later?
5. Do you want to pay for a new system for the future owners of your home?
In summary, there is no perfect way to determine when a functioning system will fail, but with proper planning, upgrading to modern, efficient, reliable, and comfortable Heating and Cooling System will add value to your home, lower your heating and cooling bills, and allow you piece of mind that it is not going to fail at the worst possible time.
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