Mine are on brackets and didn’t notice any extra noise/vibrations personally. Even when I’m in my office which is directly inside the wall where it’s mounted I don’t notice anything.
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How are you finding the Carrer Performance 14 slim unit after a few months? Is it quiet operation and sufficient airflow for your needs? I am getting the same exact model and in 3 ton by W&J next week. Seemed like a nice option for newer developments with the 4 ft space. Thanks.
Been happy with it so far.
It's quiet and the only time I hear it in the house is when I stand by the opposite wall. Even then the noise is minimal. When I'm in the backyard I don't hear it at all.
Air flow is good. I have my furnace fan on 24/7 so the temperature in the whole house is pretty even.
Tried not running the fan and just played around with the vents but I noticed a considerable difference in temperature between the main floor and 2nd floor.
I was worth it for me as I was able to shove my unit on the slimmer side of the house and still be able to walk around it.
Being quieter is a big bonus.
My house is a single furnace single zone with the thermostat located on the main floor. It's just under 2100 sq. ft. and south facing.
Do you guys turn your ventilation fan on when you turn on the A/C or leave it on auto?
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Loving life right now, went with Armstrong Air (Lennox)
Bump.
I just got an AC quote and the units were a Lennox Merit Series (78dB) and a Lennox Elite series (71dB). Does anyone here have either of these? I'm really concerned with how loud they are, but the ~50dB ones are crazy expensive so I'm hoping I can get away with 71dB. Does anyone have a sense for how loud is too loud with an AC unit in terms of decibels? I know there are other factors such as how close it is to windows, but just generally speaking. Both are single stage units, 3 ton.
Also, for those of you what have brackets on the side of the house, does any vibration transfer into the house? I was surprised to see they don't seem to use any foam, rubber, or other dampening material on the brackets.
10db difference will be sound as twice as loud. That said, unless its directly in the back of the house near common areas, it wont really be a problem. 78db is not much and you can have a conversation over it.
As for the brackets, yes, it transfers vibration but its dampened and not too bad. Havent had both in difference houses, id go with the brackets again
I have the an Elite series (EL16XC1) and when i was shopping around the noise was one of the main reasons i went with this over the Merit series (13ACX). I have it mounted to the side of the house on brackets without any other dampening material and my home office is right on the other side. I can hear it when it kicks on, but once its on it's not noticeable at all. It's the same thing when i am in the back yard - can hear a tiny sound when it turns on but after that it's essentially silent. Can't feel the vibration at all even sitting in my office.
Overall i am very happy with the noise on the Elite series, but since i haven't heard the Merit series in person i can't really tell you its worth the extra cost. I will say that my installer was very honest (he doesn't care about upselling as his margin is the same on every model) and told me nobody has ever complained/regretted the Merit series for being too loud, so i think you would be happy either way.
Another thing to watch out for is that if you have a newer home (built after 2015) you aren't even technically allowed to put in an a/c with lower than 14.5 SEER, so you may need to go with the Elite or better anyways:
http://plumbingandhvac.ca/new-albert...s-take-effect/
Thanks - I knew about the 10dB being a factor of double, but I was having trouble imaging what it sounds like. AC guy told me 71dB is like a microwave, which doesn't sound too bad. I feel like 71dB is louder than that, but the type of sound also matters and a low hum is probably the least offensive. 78dB I think is too loud, so I've pretty much written that one off. The unit will in fact be on the back of my house below both my and my neighbors master bedroom window (15-20ft below I guess), so I do want to make sure I get something quiet enough as to not be a nuisance. I've never seen them open their windows overnight before, but that may change when it gets hotter. I've also seen sound deadening shrouds people have installed after the fact but I have no idea how well they work or if they're necessary.
I'm surprised they don't use some kind of rubber or foam to try and eliminate any vibrations from the brackets, but it doesn't sound like it's too bad. The AC guy said it's a non-issue but I wanted to get some opinions from owners so thanks for that.
The "EL16XC" is the unit I was quoted. Not sure what the "1" on the end of yours means but maybe it was just a typo on the quote and it's the same unit.
I didn't know about the SEER requirement, but that's good to know. Sounds like the Elite units don't have an issue there anyway.
I'm pretty much sold on the Elite series, I was mostly hoping I didn't have to pay another $2K for the Signature series.
That's great info though thanks.
I've got the guy who installed my furnace when my house was built doing the work, so I think I am getting a decent price and he's already familiar with the house and the furnace.
FWIW my Trane unit is 75db, and it's definitely not a noticeable noise level. You can have a normal discussion when you're standing right on top of it, and if you walk away from it around the corner of the house it's very difficult to hear it at all.
If I've learned anything from shopping and install of AC this year, it's that paying more for higher efficiency and reduced noise of an AC unit would totally not be worth it for me. So glad I went with the entry level model.
That's good to know - 71dB should be pretty reasonable then if you can barely hear 75. Thanks.
The really high end models all seem to be dual stage (I only have a 1 stage furnace) or variable speed, which to my knowledge are designed to run constantly rather than as-needed, so the sweet spot seems to be the entry-mid range models for Calgary usage.
Yeah you def don’t need a 2 stage a/c in Calgary. Only places like Arizona where you need the second stage for the summer heat while running only first stage in the winter.
My AC guy actually talked me out of the more expensive unit. Noise doesn't bother anyone.
Just got a single Lennox Elite installed - the cheap Merit systems dont come with a 10 year warranty as an option.
ALso because we are going to end up with 2 units outside (dual furnace) we wanted to keep the over all noise down.
I got a new quote and it looks like it's only $895 to go from the Elite EL16XC1 (71dB) to the Signature SL18XC1 (65dB) - do you guys think that's worth it? Would be about a 60% drop in noise if I am not mistaken, which at least on paper sounds significant. It's quite a bit cheaper than I was expecting so I am considering it now.
I'd get the quieter unit if it was me today.