During my recent replacement of a heat pump I was shown a chart of available Rheem heat pumps. It had 4 columns with different options and pricing. I wish I had taken a picture of it, but my wife and I both remember that it showed in decreasing prices: 17SEER, 15SEER, 14SEER, and 13SEER.
I was told the 13 SEER is no longer available because the minimum is 14 SEER now. I don't believe any model numbers were listed explicitly on the chart, but we talked about various things related to "comfort" as I made my decision.
One particular thing that I remember clearly is that the salesman pushed me toward a variable speed air handler which I could get on both the 14 and 15 SEER units (I completely ignored the 17SEER because of the price was not in our budget.) The main difference I could see from the headlines of the columns for the 14 and 15 were that the 15 SEER mentioned something about a second stage very clearly at the top in the heading....I can't be 100% sure about the exact wording, but I believe it was in reference to the compressor.
Fast forward to the install I was talking to the tech about the 2nd stage compressors and he said I made a good choice and went on to explain the benefits of the unit. Much later he came back down and told me he was sorry, but there was some confusion and the unit that was delivered and they installed did NOT have a 2-stage compressor on it. So I called the service manager and he told me that I was confused because any mention of a second stage "whatever" during the purchasing was totally in relation to the air handler and NOT the compressor and that to get a 2nd stage compressor I would've needed to get a 16SEER unit. BUT 16 SEER wasn't even an option at the time of purchase?!
What the hell is going on here? Because the sheet showed 13 SEER makes me think it was an old sales sheet being used (with probably wrong pricing?) and I clearly remember the 15 SEER column heading mention 2-stage (or second stage), but nothing about a variable speed air handler was ever mentioned in the sheet because it was offered verbally as an add-on I could purchase for either 14 or 15 SEER units.
I got sold a bill of goods didn't I or at a minimum paid more than I should have for a unit? Does anyone know if Rheem has ever offered a 15 SEER 2-stage unit in recent years? I can't find any information on this from their website.
Also, in this field would anyone ever refer to a variable speed air handler as a "2-stage" or "second stage" air handler and try to pass that off as something more special than just an air handler with an ECM?
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