3 ms·
For 50k+, you're probably better off improving your thermal envelope (insulation/air tightness) and going with a smaller HVAC unit.
by turtlebits 5y ago
For 50k+, you're probably better off improving your thermal envelope (insulation/air tightness) and going with a smaller HVAC unit.
- SEJeff 5y agoIt is 4 zones with (effectively) 5 floors and a lot of square footage. Anderson gave us a great deal on high efficiency triple pane argon gas filled windows and I walked the home with a wireless thermometer to check for obvious insulation problems. What else could I do to improve the thermal envelope? I've followed much of the advice in this cleantechnica series on this exact problem: https://cleantechnica.com/2020/10/08/home-efficiency-101-appliances-thermal-envelope-lighting-plumbing-more/ https://cleantechnica.com/2020/10/08/home-efficiency-101-app...
- turtlebits 5y agoIf you have enough insulation, I would recommend getting a blower door test done and see what your ACH50 is (air changes per hour at 50 pascals) to see how leaky your house is.
- cshepher 5y agoImproving the envelope is particularly important for geo heating and cooling. It makes sense to include that in the budget for a geo install. I had a geo system installed last December (GeoComfort with 3 200 foot wells for a 120 year old, 1600 sqft house). The system works great except that the point where the aux heat kicks in for my house is 25 degrees F. I am working this year to improve the envelope to reduce the need for aux heat.