I live in the Chicago area.  I have a 1911 home with a 1989 addition.  The home 
has forced air heat.  I would like to purchase new equipment, including a 
humidifier, air cleaner (electrostatic), air conditioner, and heater.  I would 
prefer to purchase a premium system that will last, rather than a less expensive 
system that may fail after only a few years.  My early research suggests that the 
two top suppliers (in terms of quality, and, I suppose not surprisingly, in terms 
of price too) are Lennox and Trane.  Which should I buy?

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Request for Question Clarification by trailhead-ga on 18 Apr 2002 19:51 PDT

What is the square footage of your home (including your 1989 addition)?

Hello from Google!

Lennox and Trane do appear to be the top contenders for quality home HVAC; as 
you may have found, it is difficult to find comparative information about these 
expensive units. This is because companies which make these comparisons 
generally buy the items they’re comparing and run short- and long-term tests on 
them, but central air and heating systems are very expensive and to then test 
them under identical situations would be cost prohibitive. The Suburban Library 
Reference System in Illinois offers this article explaining more about this 
difficulty and offering some assistance:

Evaluating Central Air Conditioners and Furnaces
http://www.sls.lib.il.us/reference/por/features/98/heatcool.html

That article points to several other resources to use to evaluate home HVAC 
systems, such as:

Your Guide to Gas Furnaces
http://www.trane.com/residential/library/HCI/guide_g.asp

Your Guide to Cooling
http://www.trane.com/residential/library/HCI/guide_c.asp

Your initial research, which brings you to Trane and Lennox, is sound, and in 
1993 Consumer Reports did rate Trane and Lennox as having the best repair 
records, according to:

Products Available at Princeton Air
http://www.princetonair.com/brandnam.html

and a 1993 Usenet post corroborates that and says that Trane was rated above 
Lennox; that post is available at:
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&selm=C8M655.Eqx%40wang.com

Essentially, you are unlikely to go too far wrong with either of these 
manufacturers, and you would do best to find a reliable contractor who will get 
the work done on time and competently, and use whichever brand that contractor 
is most comfortable installing and servicing. Only an experienced HVAC 
contractor can make specific model recommendations for your home and location; 
you may be able to get competitive estimates from contractors in your area for 
each of the brands you are interested in.

Thanks for using Google!

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Request for Answer Clarification by nl-ga on 19 Apr 2002 11:45 PDT

There was a request for clarification of the question, which I hadn't had a 
chance to respond to before the answer came in.  The house with the addition is 
about 2200 sq.  Does this make any difference by manufacturer, or will it 
simply be relevant to the model type?

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Clarification of Answer by jaq-ga on 19 Apr 2002 18:26 PDT

Hello, again.

Both Lennox and Trane have systems for a house that size, which is the average 
size for a home in the United States, according to this website:

Information Please:U.S. Home Size
http://www.infoplease.com/askeds/5-15-01askeds.html

Your house’s size and design (construction materials, windows and their 
placement, etc), as well as your requirements for efficiency and features, will 
affect which models are appropriate, and these are things a good contractor 
will work with you personally to determine.

Hope that helps!

A thoughtful and helpful answer.  Thanks!

I recently purchased a Trane air conditioner. The guy that we bought it from
said that Trane builds their own compressors while Lennox purchases their
compressors from the same companies that many other air conditioning
manufacturers buy from. Another company that came to do an estimate for us told
us that the Lennox air conditioners are especially quiet because their
compressors are shielded more.

2200 sq. ft. will require at least a 36,000 BTU (3 ton) heat pump if, and this 
is important, your home is well-insulated, and is does not have air leaks.  The 
previous poster is correct.  It will require a field inspection to size the 
unit. You may find that 3 1/2 to 4 tons are required, especially in an older 
home. (Do not oversize, or the unit will not be efficient).  In any event, you 
definitely do not want to go lower than 3 tons. You should also consider having 
the ventilation system cleaned by a NADCA certified air duct cleaning service.  
<http://www.nadca.com/join.asp>   The ducts should be tested for leaks and 
proper insulation by the duct cleaning service company.  

Of the two, I prefer a Trane, and I would locate the air handler in an area 
where it is not exposed to outside air temperatures.  This will make it much 
more efficient.  Trane also has two different versions of air handler, and one 
is tighter and better insulated than the other.  That is the one you want. The 
model number is BAYHTR1410 for a 3 ton unit.  The condenser unit should be 
sized to fit, and the SEER rating should match your budget, but should exceed a 
rating of 10.  

Do not use fiberglass filters.  Use pleated filters, or the washable 
electrostatic variety.  The best filter available is manufactured by 3M.  It is 
the Ultra-Allergen filter listed here:  <http://www.filters-
now.com/ld3mspec.htm#products>

This filter may be purchased at Home Depot, and lasts 3 months.  It will keep 
you and your equipment in good shape.

Trane recently upgraded their warranty to 10 years.  Make sure the installer 
passes this onto you.