Last updated 6 hours 42 minutes ago
By Greg, Pacific Aire Comfort Advisor,
When you are planning a two-story addition, one of the foremost decisions you must make is the selection of cooling and heating equipment for the space. You have several options, one of which is to use the existing home-comfort system. But depending on its age and capacity, you might be better off upgrading the HVAC system or installing separate equipment to provide sufficient cooling and heating to the addition.?
Before you start building, your HVAC contractor should ideally conduct an energy audit of the existing home and perform a load calculation to evaluate your specific cooling and heating requirements and size the equipment appropriately.
An energy audit will determine the performance of your home based on a variety of factors, and will generally include a comprehensive report providing energy savings estimates for improvement like upgrading insulation, replacing windows or sealing air leaks.
Sizing the home's load involves calculating how much cooling and heating the equipment must provide, based on factors like insulation levels, window efficiency, orientation of the home and more, to select the right-sized system.
Utilize the existing system
If your present HVAC system has enough heating and cooling capacity to handle your new two-story addition and the existing home, this may be the smartest -- and cheapest -- option; you?ll only need to extend the ductwork. However, if your existing equipment is older or inefficient, you won't get a good return on investment by choosing this option.
Upgrade the HVAC system for the entire home
It is possible for one more-efficient system to handle the heating and cooling load of the entire home, including the new space. Over the long term, this option may provide the best return. Be sure to include the costs of a ductwork retrofit when you run the numbers.
Install a separate system
If your existing cooling and heating system performs well and is relatively new, the best solution may be to install an independent system for the new addition. With the ability to install the new system closer to the actual space in the addition, a stand-alone system will be less susceptible to heat loss and more energy-efficient, due to shorter ductwork runs.?
For more information about heating and cooling your two-story addition, contact Pacific Aire Heating & Cooling. We have been providing outstanding customer service and superior workmanship to the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys since 1990.?
Image via?Shutterstock.com
toby mac blue ivy carter photos purple squirrel blade runner close encounters of the third kind norovirus beyonce and jay z baby
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.