After hiring a company to replace an aging furnace, one homeowner was left questioning the installation and shared their thoughts on Reddit. Commenters largely said the setup looked off.

Upgrading a heating and cooling system can be one of the best ways to cut utility bills and hedge against rising energy prices — but only if the equipment is installed properly.

Here's what to know

According to the post on Reddit, the home already had a heat pump installed by another company when a new HVAC contractor replaced a 15-year-old furnace with a new single-stage model rated at 96% efficiency. The original poster wrote, "I was told by this recent company that the new system would be a perfect fit with the existing heat pump coil."

For homeowners comparing replacement options, Palmetto can help explain HVAC choices and reduce energy bills with newer, more efficient HVACs and heat pumps. Its Comfort Plan network can also help people find efficient heating and cooling solutions for their home and connect them with vetted installers.

After the work was done, the homeowner said the new setup looked "quite different" from the previous one and called out a 4-inch overhang where the coil extended past the furnace. In the comments, several Reddit users said that kind of mismatch should have been handled with a transition piece instead of being left hanging over the cabinet.

"It's hilarious because I commented under a different post of a similar situation and got downvoted into oblivion because I said that the coil needed a transition and it looked like a hack job," one person shared.

Another commenter rated the workmanship "on a scale from 1 to 10" as "a 2."

More background

The homeowner said the contractor returned and changed the installation, but the update did not seem to resolve the concern. "This still doesn't look right," the OP wrote in a comment along with another photo. 

Several commenters focused more on whether air could move properly through the coil. 

One said the installer should have made "2 transitions, inlet and outlet to give full air flow through coil." 

Another Redditor shared what they described as an evaporator-coil manual and said newer r454b/r32 systems are more sensitive to airflow issues.

Not every commenter treated the overhang as an automatic defect. One person said they had seen a similar setup that was acceptable because "the part that hung over the side didn't have coil so it worked out fine." Even so, the OP said the company was licensed, which made the fit and finish seem more surprising.

What can be done?

The homeowner challenged the installation and got the contractor to come back and make revisions. Commenters said the next step should be a proper transition between the furnace and coil or a furnace size that better matched the existing heat pump coil.

For homeowners dealing with similar replacements, asking beforehand how a new furnace will connect to an existing coil — and checking the finished work before the crew leaves — can make it easier to catch fit and airflow problems while the job is still in progress.

If cost is the biggest hurdle, Palmetto's Comfort Plan includes $0-down options that can lower heating and cooling costs by up to 50%. Palmetto Comfort Plans also include 12 years of free maintenance, which can help newer systems keep performing efficiently over time.

Homeowners can also pair solar panels with electric appliances, including efficient HVACs, to push utility costs even lower. EnergySage makes it easy to compare solar options and find the best solar system and installer for a reader's home and budget, and it can help homeowners save up to $10,000 on solar installations.

Where can I learn more?

Learning about how other homeowners have weighed furnace quotes and other HVAC decisions could help you make your own.

• One homeowner was shocked after an HVAC tech recommended replacing a working furnace for nearly $30,000.

• Another homeowner went online after an HVAC rep offered strange advice on replacing a furnace.

• One homeowner sparked debate after considering ditching a gas furnace for a high-tech heat pump.

• In Ohio, a homeowner weighed ultra-modern HVAC systems after a furnace unexpectedly broke down.

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