What is best brand rooftop air conditioner?

 What is best brand rooftop air conditioner? I live in Southern Nevada
and I need a 4 or 5 ton rooftop one.

 -NT

 

Stay away from RUUD and Janatrol.

Most manufactures make competitive and premium models.  What ever you buy,
check the SEER rating and get as high as you can afford. Also check the amp
draw. Lower is always better.  Scroll compressors are the quietest.  Two
stage compressors are pretty good now. Not available when I bought mine 8
years ago.  And make sure that you size it right. Bigger is not always
better.  Roughly you need a ton of cooling for every 400-450 square feet
based on a 8'6" foot ceiling. Of course if you have a southern glass wall
this figure will have to lowered.

I would look at Carrier, Trane/American Standard, Amana.

 
   Hey thanks. Yeah were looking at AS/Trane and Carrier.
   But I think were gonna go with AS. The unit we have
   now is...get ready to be shocked...38 years old. Can
   you believe that? Now, is that thing efficient? or
   is it just costing us a ton of money to run it each
   month? Our power bill here in Vegas was $489 last month.
  
   -NT

 Just out of curiosity, would a "swamp cooler" or other chilled-water
system do at your location?
Nevada should have a dry enough climate that an evaporative cooler might
work, and they consume less power than compressor systems.
They do seem to require more maintenance though.

Karl S.

 
   A SWAMP COOLER! Are you trying to start an argument over here? LOL!
   No, we can't use a SC. Thanks all the same.

    -NT