Alright, enough is enough. I've been battling this forever. I need to find a solution to our heating in this house. For now, baseboard is going to have to do, but I'm thinking of going the route of a ductless heat pump. There are quite a few very high efficiency models (up to 22 SEER), and you don't lose efficiency through duct work since there is none. There are even models that qualify for the 30% tax credit. Oddly enough, I found out my next door neighbor has one, and loves it, but I was wondering if anyone else here has any experience with them?
22 SEER is a very high reading for efficiency.. so that part is good. No question heat pumps are great.. they really are relaible etc etc etc. The problem with anything ductless is 2 fold. Obviously it means no air movement in the home.. basically. So this means no real cleaning of air in any way. So that sucks.. especially if you have allergies. Problem 2.. it creates A/C troubles.. if you're not pulling out humidity.. you just get a clammy cold feeling. Not the same as dry and cool. Of course there are pro's and cons to both.. but if it was my home.. being married to my allergy ridden wife.. and hating humidity like I do.. I would put duct in. But that's just my opinion.
Don't you do HVAC work for a living? Good points on circulation. The layout of the house is not exactly conducive to duct work which is why I was thinking about this type of system.
Yes I do.. which is why I gave my opinion.. having seen both types of systems over the years. Like I said.. nothing wrong with them.. and they are in fact very efficient.. but ductless remains a problem with me and from my standpoint if I had a choice of the 2.
Heat pumps are great when the temp outside is 25 or higher, below that they lose their efficiency and the heat bills go back to where they were.
Many of the ductless systems are "inverter driven" unlike traditional heat pumps. The compressor speeds up or slows down dependent on demand. Many of the units I've looked at will operate down to single digits whereas traditinal heat pumps switch to heated coils which is basically why costs go up so much (no longer using electricity to move air, but rather to heat coils (like baseboard). From what I've read, these are far more economical to run than traditional heat pumps, but like Duke pointed out, there are downsides.
Here's a copy of our floorplan. This is a split level with the main level being 840sq ft. There is a full basement that runs the size of this main floor. The stairs to the right lead down and up. Up to the bedrooms/bathrooms, and downstairs to the currently being remodeled family room with another bathroom. Duke, do you think a furnace located where the woodstove is now in the basement would work for a traditional heat pump? The plan with the ductless system was to get a unit (~24,000BTU), mount it on the wall labeled "Level 2" and use this for the main floor, and allow supplemental heating/cooling to reach the upstairs and downstairs via the open stairway.
Just wanted to bump this VERY old thread. I finally had local sales engineer come and take a look at my situation. They suggested a 4 zone multi-split unit to hit the major living areas. The compressor would be 36,000BTUs, utilizing an 18000 btu main indoor unit for the 900 sq.ft, and three 7000 btu indoor units for the bedrooms. The problem with the splits vs the single units is that you loose the higher efficiency. On top of that, he quoted me $7900 for the whole install/equipment. I'm thinking of just upgrading my wood stove
I would love that quote. Im looking at heat pumps and adding 2 cold air returns and im getting $9000 quotes
I have a heat pump and I'm hoping it doesn't go out on me anytime soon. My inside unit (air handler) is 32 years old...installed when the house was built. The outside unit was replaced in 1995 from what I'm told. I dread the day I have to have them replaced. Good luck Matt!
We just dropped roughly $8500 on a Harmon Pellet furnace and all new alumiflex duct work... Kind of wish we would've got a central heat and air system.. But we can add air down the road and tie it in fairly easily to what we have.... I'm looking forward to heating this winter for less than $500. Good Luck Matt.
Matt, honestly, if you're staying at this house for any length of time and planning on not gaining 200 pounds......get a wood/coal furnace with a blower system and spend the money on good duct work.
Unfortunately, a ducted system just wouldn't work without major retrofitting and framing in special enclosures throughout the house. I bought a new stove last night 50% of retail by doing a little trickery. Worst case scenario, in about a month or so when the heating season begins to start to creep in, I can always sell it for what I paid or more.
What's that? Take the money and run?JK:D I bought the Englander NCH-30. HD carries it at $1200 during heating season, marks it back to $899 during the summer and now, but if you search stores across the state online (mostly in the Pitt area), you can find them for $650 shipped.
