Buyer Beware!!!!
We contacted Buie Heating and Air, it was based on their great 5-star rating, well, I wish I knew then what I know now. The install took place on March 2nd. Things went smoothly until it was time to connect the Line Set (one big pipe and one small one), the two pipes that connect the heat pump outside and the Air handler in the garage.
I told the installer that, based on my experience, the radius on the fitting looked too small based on 7/8 OD pipe size. I was also told that on the R32 systems, it was not a problem and that he had done lots of systems the same way. I found out the real answer the next day.
I get up the next morning, having my coffee, and hear a hummm coming from my garage. Guess where it is coming from, the suction line (big tube) from the line set vibrating to beat the band.
Real answer: A bend that is too small in a suction line on an R32 system can absolutely cause vibration, alongside reduced efficiency, noise, and potential compressor damage. R32 systems often have more aggressive start/stop cycles, making them sensitive to restrictions that cause pressure drops and turbulent flow, which lead to vibrating pipes.
So, it didn't take me long to come up with the right answer because I was afraid something like this might happen. contacted Alexthe owner, his answer was no, not an install problem, it was all done to spec, he said. So I took some time to put documentation together from both the Goodman installation manual from the new equipment and reliable sources on Google, sent it over, and again, nope, everything we did was in spec.
Finally, the owner agrees to rework the connections to the way I want them based on industry standards. Make a long story short, he pushed my repair date out to a date 2 weeks past my install date. Then on day three, I get up, and now I hear vibration in my kitchen ceiling from the Line Set that runs above my kitchen from my garage to the heat pump outside. So now, rather than take a chance of more areas being affected by the vibration, I turned the system off completely.
Now I have a new system, vibrating like crazy, I have to turn it off, but Buie has pushed out my repair date into Neverland. And I am deemed as confrontational; I bought the unit in good faith, and I just want it fixed right in a timely fashion. After sending proof that the manufacturer's installation instruction manual's minimum requirements are not being followed, and that I am sitting here with an over $10K unit I can not use. I got an email last night stating we will not be coming out on the 16th. The original work was completed according to industry standards. So now I get stuck with a repair bill on a brand new HVAC system. How many people who gave these guys a 5-star rating currently have improperly installed products? Because unless you check all your connections based on the installation manual, corners could have been cut, like with mine. But if vibration is not strong enough to alert you, there is still a host of things that can go wrong with these systems. You may not know until years down the road. Check out the documentation from the Goodman manual; it's a real eye-opener. The zoom in from the manual is a minimum requirement, states "NO CONNECTING JOINTS and NO BENDS with a centerline radius LESS THAN 2.5 times the external pipe diameter." .875 OD pipe x 2.5 = 2.187. You will see a template I did using the formula and drew a 2.187 radius. I then compare in the other picture the correct minimum radius cut out to the fitting used on my unit. Buie's radius is considerably smaller, and don't forget the template shows the center line! Also, in connecting the heat pump, the Goodman spec for connection of the main suction line calls out a 7/8 pipe connection. Buie crushed the 7/8 suction inlet valve to accept an undersized 3/4 pipe and brazed it in place. This would have voided the Goodman warranty! The suction line should have been a complete 7/8 pipe connection between the condenser (heat pump) and the air handler with NO REDUCTIONS IN PIPE SIZE, and it was not, not even close!!!! Both ends were plumbed with undersized 3/4 pipe. read more