Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 384 posts · 109 votes
12y
Hi Eric - I have a duplex that has one of these octopus furnaces. I am pretty sure I will be replacing it next summer, so I went ahead and got an estimate. For the estimate I got there was about $1,400 additional cost because having this old furnace results in extra labor for disposal and removal and additional work to add new ducts.
Often an octopus may have ducts wrapped in asbestos - this will add additional costs for the removal process. In my case I was fortunate that asbestos was not used.
The skinny that I have learned so far is that this type of furnace can last a very long time because they are simpler and have fewer moving parts. The downside is that they don't have safety features that a modern furnace does, and in the words of one furnace expert, when they fail, they can fail spectacularly. So for that reason I decided to be satisfied with the eight addtional years I got out of it since I bought this place, and go ahead with replacing it.
Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 384 posts · 109 votes
12y
Hi Eric - I have a duplex that has one of these octopus furnaces. I am pretty sure I will be replacing it next summer, so I went ahead and got an estimate. For the estimate I got there was about $1,400 additional cost because having this old furnace results in extra labor for disposal and removal and additional work to add new ducts.
Often an octopus may have ducts wrapped in asbestos - this will add additional costs for the removal process. In my case I was fortunate that asbestos was not used.
The skinny that I have learned so far is that this type of furnace can last a very long time because they are simpler and have fewer moving parts. The downside is that they don't have safety features that a modern furnace does, and in the words of one furnace expert, when they fail, they can fail spectacularly. So for that reason I decided to be satisfied with the eight addtional years I got out of it since I bought this place, and go ahead with replacing it.
Real Estate Investor · Plymouth, WI · Member since 2013 · 28 posts · 10 votes
12y
I recently replaced a gravity furnace in an older cape cod, and mine still had asbestos-wrapped ducts. It cost right around $6K including removal, a new furnace with central air, and all new ductwork.
I've never dealt with asbestos before, so I paid a licensed abatement company $800 to remove and dispose of all the existing ducts. It only took them a few hours so I maybe could have found a better deal. Removing the old furnace cost nothing because I found a scrap metal guy who did it in exchange for the metal. He and his helper had it out in about 3 hours, and he got $160 for the cast iron. I then hired a local HVAC company to install the new furnace, AC, and all new ducts for $5,100.
Real Estate Investor · Plymouth, WI · Member since 2013 · 28 posts · 10 votes
12y
Forgot to mention - I probably saved $10-15K on the purchase of that house due to the ancient furnace and asbestos. Most retail buyers won't even consider a house with a major problem like that, but I look at it as a bonus. The seller is paying for a new furnace either way.
Rental Property Investor · Brookline, MA · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 777 votes
12y
$5k is a good estimate for a furnace. Don't be surprised if it comes in a bit higher.
I just replaced 1 for $5312 last winter. I'm looking at the bill now :)
Many states have rebate programs for high efficiency furnaces. http://www.efficiencyvermont.com/ is my go to for all things when I consider ANY sort of work in my buildings.