Minisplit HVAC With Indoor Air Handler That Mounts in Floor Grille?
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years ago
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GeoThermal HVAC
Comments (12)Where do you live? How big is your home? What sources of energy are available to you; at what rates? Has a Manual J heat gain/loss calculation been done? Has a Manual D calculation been done to design a forced air duct system? The old radiators would have been used for heating only. Chilled water would not have been circulated to the old rads in A/C mode, as condensation would form due to sweating. However, you still have a choice as to the type of distribution method, forced air or hydronic. Force air means installing a duct system as you have been planning, perhaps zoned. Hydronic means installing fan coil units that would be fed by insulated small diameter pipes. That would likely be a far less invasive renovation. The installers may limit you in your area; generally geothermal contractors prefer forced air. Find a geothermal contractor that has experience installing in-floor radiant heating. This would be a better choice. The best choice would be a large HVAC company that has expertise installing all manor of heating systems including geothermal hybrid systems that could be a combination of different technologies and sources of energy. Keep in mind that forced air will require at least 2 or more heat pumps. Liquid to water, hydronic distribution can be done with just 1heat pump. This may also mean a less complicated connection to the ground loop system. As an example of a hydronic fan coil unit see link at bottom of post. These units can heat with water temperature as low as 100ÃÂF - perfect for geothermal! They can also be ordered with hand held remote controls making each unit a separate zone by simply controlling the temperature and fan speed wirelessly. The whole site: http://www.multiaqua.com/ The clients that have converted from oil hot water to geothermal hydronic heating and air-conditioning, including the incorporation of their old radiators, are quite satisfied with the performance. Just find the right designers and installers in your area. SR Here is a link that might be useful: Multiaqua - Think Water!...See MoreIs this new HVAC system a good deal?
Comments (2)so you have to install ductwork & upgrade electrical to install hvac system (s)? what type heating cooling is in place now? have you gotten other bids? I'd always get several bids. different contractors will have different ideas of how to install ducts & equipment. shop around a bit more. its a big investment that will effect your comfort & affordability for a long time/ best of luck....See MoreHVAC filter / return advice
Comments (22)Patrick,I did option 1 in several commercial environments,a few residential homes and have pre-filters on my units. I use spun polyester and paper pleat merv 8 pre filters along with merv 11 finals. Those with health issues should consider using merv 13 or higher as the final. Big box store 99 cent fiberglass filters are slightly better than running without a filter. I did some testing several years ago using professional tools monitoring and evaluating air flow,refrigerant pressures,temperature drop/increase across coils and compressor amps/reaction/performance. In the field,pre filters proved to enhance performance,equipment life and operating.maintenance costs. I have written about and reccomended the arrangement a number of times on this forum. Almost without fail,the idea has been met with disagreement claiming it to detrimentally restrict air flow. When dissenters are asked about flow restriction as result of poor quality filtration,they claim annual coil cleaning solve's that. Anyone know how to spell self-serving bias? The increase in final filter life is easily better than five times that where no pre filter is used. It is beneficial to performance and cost savings to install as large a filter rack as room allow's. As for option 2,that is actually how many large homes are set up and to respond to the big scary dust mite story, common sense tell's us different. If and when anything set's up shop inside the return,it will be trapped by a high quility filter and wind up at the landfill next filter change. With that in mind it should be evident that if one chose option 2 then later went to option 1,duct cleaning will not be required. Beating the drum regarding one's own credentials is pretty common on this forum. I am retired and have no reason to participate in self promotion but for what it's worth,I didn't attend the 2 week trade school training but I do have more than a few college credits in mechanical and electrical fields. Let the nay saying begin....See MoreSingle HVAC zoned or two HVACs without zoned system
Comments (27)The biggest problem with HVAC zone systems is knowing when to choose it as a solution and when not to. Some HVAC companies it's about "sell, sell, sell" whether or not it works... there's more money in "sell, sell, sell" --- when it's only about money? So does the comment above mean I do it for free? No. If you think that you are reading things that aren't there. New construction? best to choose separate systems 9 times out of 10. In order for a zone system to work, you have to know what you are doing. Most HVAC companies staff (the techs they send you) are 20-30 year olds. How much practical experience could they possible have? It's best for HVAC zone systems to be an elegant solution. A HVAC zone system is a tool in the tool bag. Not all homes are suitable for zone systems. Some homes there is no other way, and in some cases complications to those problems will make an HVAC zone system design possibly more prone to problems. You have a problem now, do you want more problems. These decisions among others are decided "in person" --- so considering that becareful what information you decide upon from the internet. Just because it's here doesn't necessarily mean it's true. That said: Depending on equipment level chosen, how many different floors you have in your structure, how much room you have available... will all be factors that make you decide one way or another. From there it's in your best interest to pick a contractor that is skilled: especially when it comes to HVAC zone systems. (there's a lot of garbage out there.) (click to enlarge if necessary) I service the Katy, Texas area....See Morewestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years agoranchtastic
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agowestes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked ranchtasticwestes Zone 9b California SF Bay
3 years ago
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