Does anyone know anything about wall mounted heating/ac?

[LaydeeBug]

I have a small cape cod that has baseboard heating. Save for the fact that I need a new furnace (my crawl space is a mess) *and* I need new insulation (I am not sure I have any at all) my plumbing went up and I had to have the yard dug up and pipes relayed. The good news is, the plumbing is done; but that's the ONLY good news. lol

With summer coming, and the other needs, I am wondering if I want to go the route of central AC, because of duct work (can they put the ducts in the crawl space? I have no idea) My estimate to do my crawlspace was around $8,000.00, furnace included.

I need advice.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

1. You might look in to ductless "mini-splits" that are becoming more popular here.

Sanyo, Mitsubishi and LG make them as do other manufacturers. Home Depot even sells them now.

It's an efficient heat pump system that runs copper lines containing the refrigerant to individual wall or ceiling mounted "zone" blowers that are controlled by remote control. The heat pump will cool or heat. Heating has some limitations in cold weather below, IIRC, 15 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat pump loses efficiency and goes in to "emergency" setting and heats air by heating element which is not efficient.

The system is great for retro-fits in older homes without established ducts. Not to mention ducts are notorious energy vampires. I've read 30% efficiency can be lost in ducts. Probably more if the ducts are run outside the building's air-conditioned/heated envelope as in crawl spaces and attics.

I'm seriously considering this option for my central AC as my unit is pretty old. I live on the third/top floor of a 100 year old condo building. Heating and cooling without breaking the bank has been a challenge. We recently added blown in cellulose (thanks to cash credits from our natural gas company - BTW, you should look in to credits for all this mentioned. Furnace , insulation etc.) and we also eliminated some un-insulated ducts and added direct vents off the main trunk line that we buried in insulation - this was done to eliminate ductwork - especially ducts in a hot/cold crawl space. Again, keeping your ducts in the building envelope is important.

I figured I would use the system for all cooling and most heating - keeping our 10 year old furnace for back up on sub 15 degree days.

The only real draw-back I see with the system is the sub 15 days. Depending on your climate, that might be an issue.

The pluses are - highly efficient heat pump, zoned system and no ducts needed.

Some people might not like having the unit on the wall. But I think I can pull it off because I have high ceilings.

I would take a look at it were I in your situation. Either way, look at your gas and power companies for credits. I was astounded the amounts that were out there. We, as a building, got a $3200 credit from out gas company to insulate the whole building attic/crawl. Our end was $1000. It made a huge impact on both comfort and our heating and cooling bills.



http://www.dulley.com/docs/f421.htm

[OffWithTheirHeads]

2. Did this for 43 years. First of all, what are your fuel options?

With baseboard heat I'm guessing it's electric only.
Baseboard heating sucks.
How severe is the weather where you live?
Are you planning on staying a long time.

Yes, they can duct your crawlspace.
Eight grand sounds like a very reasonable price for a new, complete HVAC system depending on the economy in your area.
In the SF bay area it would be twice that.
The equipment will be WAY more efficient than your current system. The whole house will be the same temperature. Your electric bill should drop dramatically AND, you get air conditioning which you will really appreciate if you get high humidity.

The ductless systems are extremely good too but you may need more than one to do the whole house. Currently, the biggest one I know of can only do three rooms.

Ask away, and, oh yeah, get at least three estimates and CHECK References. The HVAC business has some really good people and some really, really bad ones.so do your due diligence You won't be able to tell if they did a good job or not but your equipment service life and your utility bill will.

[LaydeeBug]

3. It is oil, I'm afraid...but we never even used it this last winter...

My space heater was sufficient. It was a VERY mild winter though, and that usually is not the case so I wanna make sure I am making the greenest, and most economical choice.

My place is small, so I *think* I could pull off a split system. Oh, and if I recall correctly, the estimate was for a new furnace. I wasn't sure that AC was part of that estimate.

[Warpy]

4. You can do ductless mini splits

which are extremely economical because they cool only the rooms you're in and can be switched back and forth from living area to bedrooms when you move.

You can run ductwork in a crawl space but it's going to make the crawl space a lot smaller and more difficult to work in from now on.

As for wall heaters, the only ones I've seen are the ones used on the Gulf Coast and in apartments here in NM, arrangements that do a good job of heating the main room they're in and a lousy job of heating the rest of the place.

I'd stick with the baseboard system for now, it would do a much better job of heating the whole place. Instead of ductwork for a FHA system plus central AC, I'd look into the mini splits.