How much does RTU replacement cost in Draper?

Indicative ranges: a 3-ton gas-electric RTU replacement (new unit, existing roof curb retained, permit, altitude derate commissioning) typically runs $8,500–$12,500 installed. A 5-ton RTU replacement runs $12,000–$18,000. A 10-ton RTU replacement requiring crane assistance runs $22,000–$32,000. The altitude derate manifold pressure correction and combustion analysis are included in the installation scope, not add-on charges.

My RTU is heating but not reaching temperature — is the altitude derate the issue?

Possibly. An RTU installed without altitude derate at the Draper valley floor (4,500 feet) is delivering approximately 18% less heating capacity than its nameplate BTU rating. If the unit has been running at sea-level manifold pressure since installation, the capacity shortfall has been present since day one. We verify manifold pressure against the altitude-corrected target during the diagnostic visit; if the correction was not applied, the manifold pressure adjustment is a same-visit repair that restores the unit's correct fuel delivery rate and rated capacity.

Does my RTU need a crane for replacement?

Most RTUs in the 2–7.5 ton range can be placed on the roof by a two- or three-person crew without crane assistance. RTUs above 7.5 tons, or units in locations where roof access does not permit manual handling, require crane assistance. We assess crane requirement during the estimate visit and include crane coordination in the replacement quote. Crane mobilization cost is typically $800–$1,800 for a single-unit replacement; we coordinate multi-unit replacements on a single mobilization where possible.

How do I know when my RTU needs replacement versus repair?

The repair-versus-replace analysis for commercial RTUs considers: the repair cost relative to replacement cost, the heat exchanger condition (a confirmed cracked heat exchanger on a 12-year-old RTU is a replacement indicator), the refrigerant type (R-22 units face increasing refrigerant cost and supply constraints), and the efficiency gap between the existing unit and current-generation equipment. We provide a parallel replacement quote at any diagnostic visit where the repair cost on an aging RTU warrants it, so the building owner or property manager has both numbers for comparison.

Rooftop Unit (RTU) Service in Draper, Utah

The packaged rooftop unit is the dominant commercial HVAC configuration in the south Salt Lake Valley’s retail, restaurant, and office building stock. Virtually every strip mall on Lone Peak Parkway, every restaurant pad on Bangerter Highway, and most single-story office buildings on the 9000–11000 South Sandy corridor has one or more rooftop units providing heating and cooling for the space below. They are simple, self-contained, and effective when correctly installed, correctly commissioned, and maintained on a schedule appropriate for the operating environment.

The south Salt Lake Valley’s altitude is the installation factor that most RTU contractors skip. A 150,000 BTU gas-electric rooftop unit installed on the Draper valley floor at 4,500 feet with sea-level gas valve settings is delivering approximately 123,000 BTU of heating capacity after the 18% altitude correction, is running rich-burn combustion that deposits carbon on the heat exchanger and produces elevated CO in the flue gas, and is on a heat exchanger fatigue timeline that is 30–40% shorter than the equipment’s rated service life. We apply the manufacturer’s altitude correction to every RTU gas valve at installation and after any gas valve replacement, and we verify the correction with combustion analysis at each maintenance visit.

RTU Services We Provide

RTU Installation and Replacement

New rooftop unit installation and RTU replacement for light commercial buildings throughout our service area. The installation scope includes:

Load calculation per ACCA Manual J commercial methodology to confirm the selected RTU capacity matches the building section’s actual heating and cooling load — not just matching the nameplate of the unit being replaced
Roof curb installation or existing curb verification (roof curbs must be level, secured, and sealed to prevent water intrusion; an improperly sealed roof curb is the source of the ceiling water damage that property managers frequently discover only after the RTU has been running for two or three rainy seasons)
Altitude-corrected gas valve manifold pressure setting and documentation
Combustion analysis at startup: CO air-free under 100 ppm, O₂ 5–9%, stack temperature within manufacturer specification
Duct connections from RTU to interior distribution (sheet metal, insulated flex, or direct connection to existing RTU ductwork)
Electrical service from the building panel to the RTU disconnect and unit connection
Thermostat or BAS connection and commissioning
Commercial mechanical permit through the applicable municipal building department

Crane-Assisted RTU Replacement

Rooftop units over approximately 7.5 tons, or RTUs installed on buildings where rooftop access does not permit manual lifting of the unit to the roof, require crane assistance for placement and removal. We coordinate crane scheduling with our licensed crane operator contacts in the Salt Lake market for RTU replacements that require it. Crane availability is confirmed before equipment is ordered; RTU replacement lead times are scheduled around crane availability rather than using equipment delivery as the scheduling driver.

For buildings in the Draper, Sandy, and South Jordan commercial corridors where multiple RTUs may require replacement in the same planning cycle (a property manager replacing aging RTUs across a multi-tenant strip center, for example), we coordinate a single crane mobilization to replace multiple units in the same visit, reducing the per-unit crane cost.

RTU Diagnostic and Repair

RTU diagnostic and repair follows the same measurement-first protocol as all of our HVAC repair work. The RTU diagnostic sequence:

Combustion analysis first on gas-electric units: CO air-free reading at steady state before any other system investigation. An RTU with 220 ppm CO air-free is a safety concern that takes priority over the comfort complaint that triggered the service call. We do not proceed with a no-heat or reduced-heating diagnosis without first confirming the combustion chemistry is safe.
Gas pressure verification: Incoming gas pressure at the unit inlet and manifold pressure at the gas valve outlet. An RTU with a manifold pressure drifted back to sea-level specification (often after a prior gas valve replacement where the altitude correction was not re-applied) is running at the wrong fuel delivery rate regardless of whether the gas valve is otherwise functional.
Refrigerant system: Subcooling measurement for TXV systems, superheat for fixed-orifice metering. Refrigerant leak search if charge is confirmed low. EPA Section 608 compliant recovery and recycling on all refrigerant types.
Electrical: Compressor amperage against nameplate RLA, condenser fan motor amperage against nameplate FLA, supply fan motor amperage (belt-drive or direct-drive) against nameplate, capacitor microfarad reading on applicable systems.
Economizer: On RTUs equipped with economizer sections, the damper position, minimum outside air setting, and enthalpy or dry-bulb changeover control are verified. A stuck economizer damper (open or closed) is a common RTU problem in the south Salt Lake Valley that produces either excessive outside air infiltration during inversion events (if stuck open) or inability to use free cooling (if stuck closed).
Heat exchanger: Borescope inspection on units over 10 years old or where combustion analysis identifies elevated CO. Commercial heat exchanger failures in the south Salt Lake Valley cluster in RTUs that were installed without altitude derate and have accumulated accelerated thermal fatigue over 8–12 seasons.

RTU Seasonal Maintenance

Semi-annual RTU maintenance as documented on our Commercial HVAC Maintenance page: spring pre-cooling visit covering coil cleaning, refrigerant charge, and electrical, and fall pre-heating visit covering combustion analysis, altitude derate verification, heat exchanger inspection, and belt and bearing service. Restaurant and food-service RTUs on quarterly service given the accelerated coil fouling rates from kitchen exhaust proximity.

RTU Equipment We Install and Service

In the light commercial range (2–20 tons) for the south Salt Lake Valley market:

Carrier: 50XC and 48TM gas-electric series, 50XJ and 48EJ heat pump series. The 50XC’s two-stage cooling and modulating heat align with our standard residential approach of matching capacity to load rather than oversizing to a fixed single-stage output.
Trane: Precedent WCC and WCH gas-electric, Voyager TC and WC heat pump. Trane commercial equipment is well-distributed in the Sandy and South Jordan commercial market through regional dealers and is a common RTU replacement brand for existing Trane installations.
Lennox: LGH and LCH Landmark gas-electric series, LHE heat pump. Available through our Lennox Premier Dealer account with competitive pricing and Utah-based distributor support.
York: YCH and YZH gas-electric, YCE heat pump. Common in the older Draper and Sandy commercial building stock from the 2000s through 2015. We service York commercial RTUs on maintenance contracts and can source York replacement parts and equipment through our commercial distributor network.
Bard: Wall-mount and rooftop units in the 2–5 ton range for smaller commercial applications. Bard equipment is less commonly specified in the south Salt Lake Valley new construction market but is present in the existing building stock, particularly in older flex-space buildings in the Sandy and Draper industrial areas. We service Bard RTUs on maintenance calls and can source Bard parts through specialty commercial distributors.

Altitude Derate — Applied to Every RTU

The altitude correction for commercial RTUs applies to the same physics as residential furnaces: at 4,500 feet on the Draper valley floor, air density is 18% lower than at sea level. A gas valve set to deliver 150,000 BTU/hr at sea-level manifold pressure is delivering fuel at a rate designed for sea-level air density. At 4,500 feet, that fuel delivery rate exceeds the oxygen available for complete combustion. The result is rich combustion — elevated CO, soot deposits in the heat exchanger, and heat exchanger thermal fatigue at a rate that shortens the unit’s service life.

The correction is straightforward: reduce the gas valve manifold pressure per the manufacturer’s published altitude correction table for the specific RTU model. The correction is applied at installation, documented in the commissioning report, and verified at each maintenance visit because any gas valve replacement or adjustment by a subsequent technician can inadvertently return the manifold pressure to sea-level setting.

On RTUs we take over from other contractors, the first-visit combustion analysis frequently reveals that the altitude derate was never applied or was reversed by a previous service visit. In these cases, the manifold pressure correction is a same-visit repair that costs nothing beyond the diagnostic and immediately improves combustion safety and heat exchanger service life.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does RTU replacement cost in Draper?: RTU replacement cost in our service area depends on unit tonnage, equipment brand, and installation complexity. Indicative ranges: a 3-ton gas-electric RTU replacement (new unit, existing roof curb retained, permit, altitude derate commissioning) typically runs $8,500–$12,500 installed. A 5-ton RTU replacement runs $12,000–$18,000. A 10-ton RTU replacement requiring crane assistance runs $22,000–$32,000 depending on equipment selection and crane coordination costs. Every RTU replacement is quoted with an itemized scope, and the altitude derate manifold pressure correction and combustion analysis are included in the installation scope, not add-on charges.
My RTU is heating but not reaching temperature — is the altitude derate the issue?: Possibly. An RTU that was installed without altitude derate at the Draper valley floor (4,500 feet) is delivering approximately 18% less heating capacity than its nameplate BTU rating, because the altitude correction reduces the fuel delivery rate when properly applied. If the unit has been running at sea-level manifold pressure since installation, the capacity shortfall has been present since day one — the building has been conditioned with less capacity than specified. We verify manifold pressure against the altitude-corrected target during the diagnostic visit; if the correction was not applied, the manifold pressure adjustment is a same-visit repair that restores the unit’s correct fuel delivery rate and rated capacity.
Does my RTU need a crane for replacement?: Most RTUs in the 2–7.5 ton range can be placed on the roof by a two- or three-person crew using a man-lift or roof hatch access, without crane assistance. RTUs above 7.5 tons, or units in locations where roof access does not permit manual handling of the unit weight, require crane assistance. We assess crane requirement during the estimate visit and include crane coordination in the replacement quote for units that require it. Crane mobilization cost is typically $800–$1,800 for a single-unit replacement in the south Salt Lake Valley market; we coordinate multi-unit replacements on a single mobilization where possible to reduce per-unit cost.
How do I know when my RTU needs replacement versus repair?: The same repair-versus-replace analysis applies to commercial RTUs as to residential equipment, adjusted for commercial service life expectations: a commercial RTU has a rated service life of 15–25 years with proper maintenance. At the 10–15 year mark, the repair-versus-replace calculation depends on: the repair cost relative to replacement cost, the heat exchanger condition (a confirmed cracked heat exchanger on a 12-year-old RTU is a replacement indicator), the refrigerant type (R-22 units face increasing refrigerant cost and supply constraints), and the efficiency gap between the existing unit and current-generation equipment. We provide a parallel replacement quote at any diagnostic visit where the repair cost on an aging RTU warrants it, so the building owner or property manager has both numbers for comparison.

Contact Draper Heating & Air Conditioning

For rooftop unit installation, replacement, repair, and maintenance across Draper, Sandy, South Jordan, Bluffdale, Riverton, and Herriman, contact us. We provide itemized quotes, certificates of insurance, and permit documentation appropriate for commercial building management files.

Emergency Line (24/7): (385) 336-1837
Address: 12244 Business Park Dr #155, Draper, UT 84020
Email: info@draperheatingairconditioning.xyz
Utah DOPL HVAC Contractor License: #11487612-5501
EPA Section 608 Universal: #608U-2011-318472

Request a Commercial Estimate →

Rooftop Unit Service Draper UT | Draper Heating & Air