Building a New Home in Lake Havasu City? Choose Your HVAC Contractor Carefully!

[dezertrider]

If you're planning to build a new home in the Lake Havasu City area, finding the right HVAC contractor is crucial to ensure the comfort and efficiency of your new space. At Mission Accomplished Heating and Cooling, we've been in operation for six months, and we've already encountered some common mistakes made by other HVAC contractors during new construction.

One of the most prevalent issues is poor airflow, affecting around 90% of new homes in the area. Proper airflow is a fundamental aspect of HVAC installation, which boils down to correctly sizing the ductwork—a basic skill that has been taught for over a decade. Unfortunately, many contractors are still getting it wrong, leading to discomfort and higher energy costs for homeowners.

Part of the problem lies in the local regulations. The city only requires that HVAC contractors specify the location of the electrical disconnect; they don't regulate system design, leaving it entirely up to the contractor. As a result, even million-dollar homes can suffer from significant temperature differences—sometimes up to 10 degrees from one room to another. Shockingly, homeowners are often told that this is "normal."

What we're seeing is that inexperienced contractors who don’t know what they’re doing have passed on incorrect practices, teaching others to install AC units improperly. Even some of the more established companies are repeating these mistakes. The result? Many new homes in our area suffer from inefficient systems that don’t deliver the comfort and savings they should.

At Mission Accomplished, we are committed to getting it right the first time. We adhere to industry best practices and ensure that every installation is done to the highest standards, providing you with an HVAC system that works efficiently and effectively.

 

[HNL2LHC]

Was great meeting you at Desert Storm. I hope that one day we will be able to reach out and use your services.

 

[azsunfun]

If you're planning to build a new home in the Lake Havasu City area, finding the right HVAC contractor is crucial to ensure the comfort and efficiency of your new space. At Mission Accomplished Heating and Cooling, we've been in operation for six months, and we've already encountered some common mistakes made by other HVAC contractors during new construction.

One of the most prevalent issues is poor airflow, affecting around 90% of new homes in the area. Proper airflow is a fundamental aspect of HVAC installation, which boils down to correctly sizing the ductwork—a basic skill that has been taught for over a decade. Unfortunately, many contractors are still getting it wrong, leading to discomfort and higher energy costs for homeowners.

Part of the problem lies in the local regulations. The city only requires that HVAC contractors specify the location of the electrical disconnect; they don't regulate system design, leaving it entirely up to the contractor. As a result, even million-dollar homes can suffer from significant temperature differences—sometimes up to 10 degrees from one room to another. Shockingly, homeowners are often told that this is "normal."

What we're seeing is that inexperienced contractors who don’t know what they’re doing have passed on incorrect practices, teaching others to install AC units improperly. Even some of the more established companies are repeating these mistakes. The result? Many new homes in our area suffer from inefficient systems that don’t deliver the comfort and savings they should.

At Mission Accomplished, we are committed to getting it right the first time. We adhere to industry best practices and ensure that every installation is done to the highest standards, providing you with an HVAC system that works efficiently and effectively. View attachment 1428299

How true! Techs have actually asked what gauge I carried, they have no clue what a manometer is. All electronic meters now and still not used, daughter bought million doller house in el dorado hills, talk screwed, old owners were taken advantage of, now my recommendations for the airflow return and supply side thier looking at thousands to fix.

 

[DLC]

How true! Techs have actually asked what gauge I carried, they have no clue what a manometer is. All electronic meters now and still not used, daughter bought million doller house in el dorado hills, talk screwed, old owners were taken advantage of, now my recommendations for the airflow return and supply side thier looking at thousands to fix.

I Have a Man - O - Meter…

I call it a STUD SENSOR !

LoL

I’m here all week !

 

[dezertrider]

How true! Techs have actually asked what gauge I carried, they have no clue what a manometer is. All electronic meters now and still not used, daughter bought million doller house in el dorado hills, talk screwed, old owners were taken advantage of, now my recommendations for the airflow return and supply side thier looking at thousands to fix.

Once the manometer breaks out of the tool box its allready to late. The duct work is intalled and undesized

 

[dezertrider]

Was great meeting you at Desert Storm. I hope that one day we will be able to reach out and use your services.

Nice meeting you too. I am looking forward to DS this year

 

[azsunfun]

Once the manometer breaks out of the tool box its allready to late. The duct work is intalled and undesized

That's basically what I said with daughters house. Undersized not in this case, t Stat and return location, supply and return sizes 2 12 x 4 and 1 6 x 12 900 sf room no return, hoping air gets to only return before tstat cycles, in her case ceiling should have to come down, no access to supply's at attic eves, when her realtor mentioned the ac to me I said equipment is top notch, then shook my head.

 

[Gonefishin5555]

My house is fucked beyond repair. I was just going to add a mini split to the mbr and call it a day. I figured it would be a lot cheaper than redoing the whole thing correctly.

 

[dezertrider]

My house is fucked beyond repair. I was just going to add a mini split to the mbr and call it a day. I figured it would be a lot cheaper than redoing the whole thing correctly.

Let us take a look. Those mini splits are a bit of an eye sore hanging on the wall.

 

[3queens]

Do you travel to BHC

 

[Boat 405]

Yep. Happens all the time. Customer says I don't like all the vents... Installer says well we have to have them that size and that many for correct air flow.... Customer says well make them smaller. Installer say ok but it will be noisy. Customer says I don't like the noise. Installer says ok well I'll turn down the air flow. Customer says my home isn't getting cool enough or doesnt work. Installer says well the vents and or ducts are too small. Customer says well you installed it make it work. Installer......

I have lost count how many times I've had this conversation with a homeowner or designer....

The worst cast scenario is when they turn down the fan speed and the coil turns into an ice block because of lack of air flow, then it overflows the pan and leaks out of the ceiling....

 

[dezertrider]

Do you travel to BHC

Yes we do.

 

[dezertrider]

Yep. Happens all the time. Customer says I don't like all the vents... Installer says well we have to have them that size and that many for correct air flow.... Customer says well make them smaller. Installer say ok but it will be noisy. Customer says I don't like the noise. Installer says ok well I'll turn down the air flow. Customer says my home isn't getting cool enough or doesnt work. Installer says well the vents and or ducts are too small. Customer says well you installed it make it work. Installer......

I have lost count how many times I've had this conversation with a homeowner or designer....

The worst cast scenario is when they turn down the fan speed and the coil turns into an ice block because of lack of air flow, then it overflows the pan and leaks out of the ceiling....

The house we purchased is one of the worse. 1100 CFM for a 5 ton unit. Master bedroom is 72 degrees and the office is 84 degrees. Builder says its normal. Installing AC company attempted to solve the problem and didnt make enough $$ to come back and fix it right. The wife wont let them back in the house so we are tearing the entire thing out this fall and replaceing it correctly

 

[77charger]

The house we purchased is one of the worse. 1100 CFM for a 5 ton unit. Master bedroom is 72 degrees and the office is 84 degrees. Builder says its normal. Installing AC company attempted to solve the problem and didnt make enough $$ to come back and fix it right. The wife wont let them back in the house so we are tearing the entire thing out this fall and replaceing it correctly

Almost sounds like my home in Peoria. One side of house the flow is not that great.

Whoever remodeled before we bought figured they will just add more vents for the living room kitchen. It’s one big room. I can tell right now they didn’t properly t off from the original ducting which is sheet metal to the rooms and half living room.

The return is 16 inch for a 5 ton. I’m in water proofing and know that’s undersized. I don’t think the ducting currently is even r6 it’s plastic coated little insulation.

Couple months I’m going into attic and ripping it all out opening to 20 inch r8 for return and run r8 for rest of the house. Cousin is retired ac guy he told me give him room measurements duct locations etc and draw it out and he will point me in right direction. Pointed out to me about proper sealing the ducting to the vents etc too. Not looking foward to it but needs to be done

 

[82daytona]

Yes we do.

been seeing the trucks all over! even saw Bronzilla out front of your house today.

 

[Gonefishin5555]

Almost sounds like my home in Peoria. One side of house the flow is not that great.

Whoever remodeled before we bought figured they will just add more vents for the living room kitchen. It’s one big room. I can tell right now they didn’t properly t off from the original ducting which is sheet metal to the rooms and half living room.

The return is 16 inch for a 5 ton. I’m in water proofing and know that’s undersized. I don’t think the ducting currently is even r6 it’s plastic coated little insulation.

Couple months I’m going into attic and ripping it all out opening to 20 inch r8 for return and run r8 for rest of the house. Cousin is retired ac guy he told me give him room measurements duct locations etc and draw it out and he will point me in right direction. Pointed out to me about proper sealing the ducting to the vents etc too. Not looking foward to it but needs to be done

The house we purchased is one of the worse. 1100 CFM for a 5 ton unit. Master bedroom is 72 degrees and the office is 84 degrees. Builder says its normal. Installing AC company attempted to solve the problem and didnt make enough $$ to come back and fix it right. The wife wont let them back in the house so we are tearing the entire thing out this fall and replaceing it correctly

The stuff you guys are describing is what I imagine is wrong with mine. I'm in BHC I'll call you next week. You can do service call/inspection at your leisure since summer is about over now.

 

[crzy2bealive]

Yah sounds about right for my new home build. My front two bedrooms are blazing hot. Partly due to it being the sun setting side.

 

[Looking Glass]

Yah sounds about right for my new home build. My front two bedrooms are blazing hot. Partly due to it being the sun setting side.

''Awnings", do wonders.

 

[Javajoe]

Older House I just bought had new unit and ducts installed. Seems to be cool in every room. Guess I lucked out

 

[dspracing]

Had to wing it and do my A/C myself. What’s the typical temp variance per room? My great room runs 1-1.5 degrees cooler and it irritates me.

 

[DLC]

MY shack is ICY COLD !

Thanks to Mission Accomplished maintaining a 20 year roof top unit !!

 

[dezertrider]

Almost sounds like my home in Peoria. One side of house the flow is not that great.

Whoever remodeled before we bought figured they will just add more vents for the living room kitchen. It’s one big room. I can tell right now they didn’t properly t off from the original ducting which is sheet metal to the rooms and half living room.

The return is 16 inch for a 5 ton. I’m in water proofing and know that’s undersized. I don’t think the ducting currently is even r6 it’s plastic coated little insulation.

Couple months I’m going into attic and ripping it all out opening to 20 inch r8 for return and run r8 for rest of the house. Cousin is retired ac guy he told me give him room measurements duct locations etc and draw it out and he will point me in right direction. Pointed out to me about proper sealing the ducting to the vents etc too. Not looking foward to it but needs to be done

Sounds like he knows what hes doing. 20" is better as long as the duct is short. Oversizing the return duct will help

 

[dezertrider]

Had to wing it and do my A/C myself. What’s the typical temp variance per room? My great room runs 1-1.5 degrees cooler and it irritates me.

Builders would say 3 degree difference is acceptable. 1-1.5 is pretty good. Have you tried running your fan to circulate the air?

 

[riverroyal]

Dez racer correct. The reality is a poor design really doesn't cost less for the home owner. You still pay the same.
Our house has 2 systems. It works good, not great. The return air and Stat locations could be better.

The other big problem is consistency. Meaning showing up when scheduled.
Next big problem is pride in craftsmanship. If you find the right company with the right attitude it make a big deference.

 

[dspracing]

Builders would say 3 degree difference is acceptable. 1-1.5 is pretty good. Have you tried running your fan to circulate the air?

Ceiling fans or the blower fan?

 

[dirtslinger2]

The house we just bought was owned by an AC company owner. The AC kicks ass in every room except one of the guest bedrooms, it's hot as balls, and the airflow seems crappy.

I would assume he knew what he was doing on the install since it was his house and his company that did the work.

 

[dezertrider]

Ceiling fans or the blower fan?

The blower fan. Some newer thermostats have a recirculation setting allowing the indoor fan to run a % of every hour

 

[Taboma]

The blower fan. Some newer thermostats have a recirculation setting allowing the indoor fan to run a % of every hour

Just wondering if you've had experience with the older (Now 14 years) Honeywell HZ432 zone controllers and how well they interface with newer model zone stats ?
We built this house in 2010. It has three zones and the system is using a Honeywell HZ432 zone controller. The three zone stats are Honeywell Vision Pro TH8000 series communicating with the HZ432.
It in turn is controlling the 5 ton heat pump with 2 stage cool, 1 stage heat.
Everything works fine, but I don't like the difficulty of reading the tiny settings display or UI of the TH8000, but we've lived with it.
I Looked at a couple over the weekend, liked the HW RTH9585, actually preferring the RTH9320 in white. I find the display easier to read and I prefer the settings UI.
I realize these newer ones are " Control from Anywhere "app friendly and WiFi etc, which I honestly don't care about and may or may not even utilize.
What I'm having trouble finding is information regarding it's compatibility with the HZ432.

Of course if you have any others that might be compatible and you prefer, I'd welcome your thoughts.
Thanks

 

[LHC Kirby]

You described my house; I'm looking to get up and check in the attic. I'm thinking the ducting was pulled into a wedge of the truss and has it collapsed because there is very little air coming out vent. With blown insulation I can't see it, but I suspect it.

 

[dezertrider]

Just wondering if you've had experience with the older (Now 14 years) Honeywell HZ432 zone controllers and how well they interface with newer model zone stats ?
We built this house in 2010. It has three zones and the system is using a Honeywell HZ432 zone controller. The three zone stats are Honeywell Vision Pro TH8000 series communicating with the HZ432.
It in turn is controlling the 5 ton heat pump with 2 stage cool, 1 stage heat.
Everything works fine, but I don't like the difficulty of reading the tiny settings display or UI of the TH8000, but we've lived with it.
I Looked at a couple over the weekend, liked the HW RTH9585, actually preferring the RTH9320 in white. I find the display easier to read and I prefer the settings UI.
I realize these newer ones are " Control from Anywhere "app friendly and WiFi etc, which I honestly don't care about and may or may not even utilize.
What I'm having trouble finding is information regarding it's compatibility with the HZ432.

Of course if you have any others that might be compatible and you prefer, I'd welcome your thoughts.
Thanks

Any thermostat will work with the HZ432. The zone control board just reads conventional thermostats inputs and powers the zone dampers, air handler and condenser as needed for the demand from the thermostats

We have had good luck with the Honeywell T-6 Pro, T-10 Pro and Ecoobee thermostats. The T-6 Pro comes in a non WiFi version. They are simple and easy to use

 

[Taboma]

Any thermostat will work with the HZ432. The zone control board just reads conventional thermostats inputs and powers the zone dampers, air handler and condenser as needed for the demand from the thermostats

We have had good luck with the Honeywell T-6 Pro, T-10 Pro and Ecoobee thermostats. The T-6 Pro comes in a non WiFi version. They are simple and easy to use

Thank you, I'll check out the T-6 pros

 

[mjc]

Well Ethan just left my house and thing are screwed up. Ducting is all home runs and my dead swamp cooler has a massive leak from air flow around the movable damper. So I just half gutted the swamp and plugged the hole until I can swap it out.

 

[dezertrider]

Well Ethan just left my house and thing are screwed up. Ducting is all home runs and my dead swamp cooler has a massive leak from air flow around the movable damper. So I just half gutted the swamp and plugged the hole until I can swap it out.

You were just trying to cool the entire town of Lake Havasu