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Rental AC and Furnace Question

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Oct 4, 2006
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Burlington

Rental AC and Furnace Question

I have a 1500-1600sqft house AC unit probably about 20 years old furnace about 10 years currently. We rent our water tank and the same company (National Home Services) came by and offered us the rental option for a new furnace and AC unit. The AC unit is a pretty old clunker and we've been considering replacing it for a while anyways but the furnace still appears to be in good working order. Neither are high efficiency pieces.

What they offered is:

Furnace 95% Dual Stage with "ultra quiet ecm motor" - $65.99/m
AC 14.5 Seer AC - $59.99/m

Both with Lennox. $1,300.00 rebate.

They don't offer model numbers or anything so I'm not really sure what the real cost would be to purchase and install these ourselves and was just looking to see if anyone had a rough idea price wise. From what I read while browsing the forum AC's can usually be installed for around $2500-2800 so paying $800.00 a year for rental seems unnecessary. Furnace wise I'm a bit clueless.

Just as an extra note we expect to be moving out of the house in under 5 years so I'm a bit reluctant to spend a ton up front to replace stuff just to move out later.
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Mar 25, 2003
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60 month x $65.99 = $3959.40
60 month x $55.99 = $3359.40
assuming they don't raise the price in 5 years

you better off buying your own. and you get rebates also for replacing old A/C and Furnace

you should call around and get some quotes
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About 5 years of renting would probably pay for the furnace.

If your furnace is in good shape you don't need to replace it, is it a chimney vent?
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Anyone recently had a furnace installed? Just looking for the cost upfront for something similar if we need to. Otherwise might just settle with the AC.
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Mar 31, 2009
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I would not rent AC or furnace. Keep in mind, they're only offering this to you because it would make them money. If it makes them money, it means you're losing money. I am 100% sure you're better off buying than renting.

If you buy an AC or furnace and it lasts more than 5 years, the math would go increasingly in favor of buying. Its highly unlikely that either would break in less than 5 years, meaning that you're just way better off buying than renting.
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Jun 27, 2007
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DarkMasterMX wrote: I have a 1500-1600sqft house AC unit probably about 20 years old furnace about 10 years currently. We rent our water tank and the same company (National Home Services) came by and offered us the rental option for a new furnace and AC unit. The AC unit is a pretty old clunker and we've been considering replacing it for a while anyways but the furnace still appears to be in good working order. Neither are high efficiency pieces.

What they offered is:

Furnace 95% Dual Stage with "ultra quiet ecm motor" - $65.99/m
AC 14.5 Seer AC - $59.99/m

Both with Lennox. $1,300.00 rebate.

They don't offer model numbers or anything so I'm not really sure what the real cost would be to purchase and install these ourselves and was just looking to see if anyone had a rough idea price wise. From what I read while browsing the forum AC's can usually be installed for around $2500-2800 so paying $800.00 a year for rental seems unnecessary. Furnace wise I'm a bit clueless.

Just as an extra note we expect to be moving out of the house in under 5 years so I'm a bit reluctant to spend a ton up front to replace stuff just to move out later.
Just replaced furnace, Lennox 2 stage with ECM (EL296E) - think you were quoted same. Cost is 3500 minus rebate ($250), total $3250. Do the math and decide... Renting is, surprisingly, for folks who cannot afford buying (upfront costs).
AC, by Lennox, obtained a quote - around 2000-2500 depending on size and model.
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My mom replaced her furnace back in Dec 2013
Carrier TP5 60K BTU $3200 tax included

your rental will still need to add tax
60 month x $65.99 = $3959.40 + tax = $4474.12
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Keigotw wrote: My mom replaced her furnace back in Dec 2013
Carrier TP5 60K BTU $3200 tax included

your rental will still need to add tax
60 month x $65.99 = $3959.40 + tax = $4474.12
You GTA people seem to pay a lot less for furnaces, my average 40k btu quote was about 4k
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Thanks for the info guys. Seeing the numbers laid out by other people will help me convince the wifey to avoid this for now. Sure there's some energy savings by upgrading but I didn't think this would be a good thing in the long term given the rental price.
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Keep in mind that more and more home buyers and realtors are becoming wise to rental equipment contracts that will be inherited by the new owner. If you are going to sell in 5 years as you say, a buyer may require you to discharge the rental contracts as a condition of sale, particularly it's a buyers' market and if the early termination fees are punitive and worth many more times than the actual value of the equipment.

As far as energy savings go, marketing loves to quote these numbers and "huge" energy savings, but in reality they are going to be incremental. Assuming you are going from something 80% efficient to 95% efficient, it only equates to around 10% savings because the 95% rated efficiency is really peak efficiency that does not occur continually. So is spending thousands of dollars worth it to save ~$100 a year of natural gas?
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Jun 27, 2007
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MacGyver wrote: As far as energy savings go, marketing loves to quote these numbers and "huge" energy savings, but in reality they are going to be incremental. Assuming you are going from something 80% efficient to 95% efficient, it only equates to around 10% savings because the 95% rated efficiency is really peak efficiency that does not occur continually. So is spending thousands of dollars worth it to save ~$100 a year of natural gas?
Not accurate, IMO.
First, 2 stage furnace starts at 67% capacity. There will be GAS savings as less gas supplied. It will be noticeable mid season. Second, ECM motors consume 45% less energy in regular cycle and up to 200% in continuous operation. Hydro consumption must be multiplied by at least 2 (factor in delivery costs), and you get nice savings.
Lastly, good furnace will last 15 years
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dlhunter wrote: Not accurate, IMO.
First, 2 stage furnace starts at 67% capacity. There will be GAS savings as less gas supplied. It will be noticeable mid season. Second, ECM motors consume 45% less energy in regular cycle and up to 200% in continuous operation. Hydro consumption must be multiplied by at least 2 (factor in delivery costs), and you get nice savings.
Lastly, good furnace will last 15 years
Two stage has nothing to do with savings, it is only for comfort. First stage will use less gas but furnace will run longer.

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