Max Caddy questions

[Mgntnr]

Hi First post here...My name is Mike and im in need of some assistance. Ive been browsing the forums a bit over the past year trying to get some ideas for what to do with my house I bought last July. I live in CNY and the house currently has a forced air oil furnace. I want to put in a wood something. Im 32 bought the house with 35 acres and have 3 boys. Gathering and splitting will not be an issue. The house is pretty big, about 3600sqft between upstairs and down(working on renovating the downstairs at the moment then the upstairs)...it used to be a ski lodge back in the 70s for a short time. down stairs ceilings are about 10ft and upstairs is all cathedral ceiling. theres quite a few windows upstairs also...so it seemed like one of the larger units that would work would be the Max Caddy, which from what ive read around here can easily heat over the 3000sqft that it was rated for.

I happened to have a cousin near Plattsburgh New York that bought the max caddy for there house 2 years ago....doing the wood was too much work for them they decided, and they just got natural gas down there road so they decided going with a new furnace...so it seems like I might of lucked out into being able to pick up their unit which they want to get rid of for 3000. its the oil combo unit which seems like a pretty good price? I can do all the install myself but just not sure if the unit will be quite enough for the house....also i noticed that the new unit on the psg website now states it can do 3500sqft but I didnt notice any difference in any specs between the new one and the old one? any input would be greatly appreciated...

Thanks,

Mike

 

[lexybird]

I have a max caddy . I'm in pa about 1.5 hours north of Pittsburgh near Erie . If you like I would be willing to answer your questions and discuss the unit on the phone to help you make an informed decision if you'd like

 

[brenndatomu]

Sounds like a great deal on it for sure! As far as if it will do the job or not, depends on the heat load of your house...which square footage is only a part of the equation...air sealing and insulation level has as much...actually more, to do with heat load.
The Max would surely put a large dent in your heat bill, will it carry the whole house all on it's own...IMO, most of the time yes. Maybe on the very coldest of days it would need help, dunno for sure. That cathedral ceiling and all those windows can be a real heat suck in many houses. Could you leave the existing oil furnace in place and install the Max as an add-on? That way if it can't keep up, or you have a breakdown, the oil furnace can seamlessly pick up the slack.
Another option could be to install a wood stove elsewhere in the house to operate as a booster if needed. That's how my setup is currently...it works out really well.

 

[Highbeam]

I might of lucked out into being able to pick up their unit which they want to get rid of for 3000. its the oil combo unit

Already has the oil burner built in?