Design temperatures NOAA lists for Youngstown
NOAA's engineering weather data lists a station named Youngstown, at an elevation of 1,184 feet. For that station NOAA gives a 99% winter design temperature of 4°F. On the cooling side, the Youngstown station's 1% summer design temperature is 85°F, with a mean coincident wet-bulb temperature of 71°F.
Youngstown's population, per QuickFacts
U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts gives a population estimate for Youngstown of 58,832 on July 1, 2025. The Census count on April 1, 2020 was 60,068.
Start with a written account of the house
A good estimate depends on what the estimator learns in a short visit, and you can make that visit far more useful. Spend a little time with a notebook first. Jot down which rooms run cold in January or warm in July, whether the trouble is drafts, noise, stale air, a dry nose in winter or a clammy feel in summer, and how the thermostat is set through the day. Note anything that has changed since the current equipment went in: a finished attic, a sealed-off porch, new siding or windows, a bedroom added over the garage. Photograph the data plates on the furnace, the air handler and the outdoor unit so the model and serial numbers are on hand. Make copies, and give every company the same pages.
What an estimate visit can cover
An unhurried visit tells you a lot about how the job itself will go. While the estimator is in the house, watch for and ask about:
- measurements taken room by room, rather than a glance at the old unit's label;
- a look at the attic, the basement or crawlspace, and the duct runs that can be reached;
- questions about your comfort complaints, not only about the equipment;
- a static pressure reading on the existing blower, if the system still runs;
- a check of the electrical panel and the gas line serving the equipment.
If the visit is over in minutes and the price arrives the same day, ask how the figures were reached.
How capacity gets chosen
Ask every bidder to explain the size they propose, in writing:
- Did you run a room-by-room heating and cooling load calculation, such as a Manual J, and can I have a copy?
- Which outdoor design temperatures went into it, and where did they come from?
- What did you assume about wall and attic insulation, window area and air leakage, and which of those did you measure?
- Is the new unit bigger, smaller or the same size as the one coming out, and why?
- Would air sealing or added attic insulation before the install change the answer?
A bidder who simply copies the old nameplate may land on a workable size, but ask how they know.
Heat sources worth pricing
Heating arrangements can vary a lot from one bid to the next, so have each company price every arrangement it would stand behind, one per line:
- Furnace and air conditioner. Find out the furnace's AFUE figure, whether its flame runs at one fixed rate, two rates or modulates, and what drives the blower.
- Heat pump plus backup. Request the maker's published output for the quoted model when it is cold outside, ask whether backup comes from electric strips or something else, and ask what triggers it.
- Heat pump and furnace together. Ask what outdoor temperature makes the controls switch from one to the other, who picks that setting, and whether you can move it after a winter of use.
Then ask each company to estimate what a year of running would cost on your actual gas and electric rates, and to show the math rather than a brochure figure.
The duct side of the job
New equipment can only move the air the ducts let through. Ask each bidder to write down what they find on the runs they can reach: loose or crushed sections, missing wrap on ducts that pass through unheated space, undersized returns, and rooms with no clear path for air to get back to the blower. Ask for sealing and repair as a priced line of its own, apart from the equipment. If a room has never been comfortable, ask whether a new return or a larger supply run belongs in the fix.
Gas venting and fresh air
With a gas furnace in the mix, venting deserves its own conversation. A high-efficiency model may exhaust through plastic pipe run out a side wall; ask the bidder to point to the spot where it would leave the house, explain what separates it from your windows, doors and grade, and say how you would keep it open under a drift. Where the present furnace and water heater share a chimney, ask what the plan is for the water heater once it vents alone. Request that the installer measure combustion and carbon monoxide when the new furnace first fires, and leave the numbers with you. Ask, too, which rooms would benefit from a carbon monoxide alarm.
Controls
Ask which thermostat is included and whether it is designed for the equipment being installed, particularly with a heat pump and backup heat. If upstairs and downstairs never agree, ask whether zoning with motorized dampers would help, what it adds to the price, and how the system protects airflow when only one zone is calling. Ask whether new thermostat wiring is needed.
Paperwork to ask about
- What state license or registration, if any, covers this work, and what is the number?
- Is a city permit part of this installation, who applies for it, and is an inspection scheduled?
- May I have a copy of your liability coverage and workers' compensation certificates? (Your insurer can explain what they show.)
- Are the installers on your payroll, or hired in for the job?
- What happens to the refrigerant from the old system?
Putting proposals side by side
Make a grid of your own, with one column per company. Rows to fill: each component's model number, the rated efficiency of the indoor and outdoor equipment as a pair, the result of the load calculation, the heating arrangement and how it is controlled, venting, duct work, the thermostat, removal of the old system, the permit, start-up test results, and how long parts and labor are covered in writing. An empty box is a question to send back to that company before any totals are compared, because a low price that leaves rows blank may be pricing a smaller job.