Old House - no ductwork. Options?

[MarthaM]

My small house was built in 1950. It's 1.5 stories, about 1300 square feet, on a concrete slab. There is no ductwork and no crawl space. The upstairs is the attic.

The original heat was a wood fireplace and a wood stove, both still in place. An in-wall gas heater (no thermostat) was added about 20 years ago, which heats two rooms okay.

I'm wondering -- what are my options? Can a contractor figure out how to install a central heating/ac system for this house?

I'm not sure what kind of contractor I should call.

Is there a web site or a book that will show me some options so I can figure out what I'm looking for?

Thanks.

[Hunter844]

I suggest looking at the Mitsubishi ductless mini-splits as an option.

http://www.mitsubishicomfort.com/

Otherwise, it's hard to offer suggestions without actually seeing how a central system can be installed for your situation. You may also refer to the contractors link on this board to see if one of the members here is a local contractor in your area.

Good luck.

[motoguy128]

So its' a mid-century bulgalow with an attic conversion.. or finished attic space... or a split level.

I agree with above, look at mini splits. With a small house, you're probably not goign ot want to give up a closet on either floor for a split system.

I'd guess you probably need as few as 3 indoor modules with a single condenser. Depending on climate, you probably don't need more than 2 tons and possible less... but a contractor should do a load calculation. It will depend a lot on your layout.

THe minisplits will heat efficeintly down to aroudn 10-20F. Below that I'd use the wood stove and firepalce as supplental heat to avoid using the built-in heat strips.


A high velocity system might be possible, but you'd probably need to open up some walls and again, give up a little closet space. I think total installed cost will be cheaper with a mini-split and the higher end nits are very efficient and they do an excellent job dehumidifying.


How is your electrical service? You'll want at least an updated 100AMP panel with a proper ground for a new AC system. If you still have an old 60Amp fuse panel, you may want to update it at the same time?

[MarthaM]

You are correct. It's a mid-century bungalow, but for sure not a Craftsman!

Almost all the attic space is finished and in use, with the exception of accessible spaces on the sides of the upstairs bathroom. They actually have little doors and light fixtures installed, although a person cannot stand up in there!

I'm in southern Oregon. Our weather seldom goes below 10 degrees, and I like my house on the cool side (but I'm getting older). The house has big old-fashioned windows that lose heat, but. I don't want to replace them.

I think my electrical system is not great, although I did have a new panel box put in about 4 or 5 years ago. At least I know all my electric outlets are worn out and only a couple of them are grounded.

I'm allergic to wood smoke, so don't use the wood heat much any more. The fireplace does have heat vents to the downstairs bedroom and one upstairs bedroom. I've been thinking about having it converted to gas, so I can enjoy it.

I will check out the mini-splits with a local contractor. I read about the system online, but I don't know anyone who has one.

Thanks. This helps a lot!

[jpsmith1cm]

SPBryant,

This is the Ask Our Pro's forum. In order to post a response here, you must have verified qualifications and have been approved by the AOP Committee. You may ask a question by starting a new thread.

You can find the rules for posting and qualifications here (http://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=957002).

Further infractions may result in loss of posting privileges.

[genduct]

So in for a penny....
Thing is that with your somewhat moderate, marine climate, the judicious use of soffits could create a nice tray ceiling effect and do a nice job bringing you into the 21st century. You can use my profile and I would be happy to suggest some specifics.
Mike

[precision hvac]

I love these kind of jobs.
Got a hallway? Drop the ceiling- fan coil, ducts & condenser.
I'd rather have that than a bunch of mini splits.

[motoguy128]

You're in a mild climate. I doubt you barely even need 2 tons. 1.5 might even be enough. Smaller unit = smaller and/or less ductwork. I like using the small space next to the bathroom...although the hallway ceiling isn't a bad idea.

A good pro can make this work. It's likely that you have joist cavities that span the length of the house. So by cutting just a few holes you can get ductwork to most parts of the home with floor register upstairs and ceiling registers downstairs with a central return in the downstairs hallway ceiling and upstairs hallway.

You need a good pro to lay this out and install it right. The lowest bid job is likely the one to avoid. Make sure you compare apples ot apples in terms of what they are installing and how.

[motoguy128]

#3 is my favorite. I can spend the entire day "educating" operators and even engineers in control room about the difference between a discrete device like a thermostat similar to a standard 2 way or 3 way valve and a analog device like a control valve. This sadly includes process and chemical engineers that should know better. He** I've even had to educate some guy in the programming group. I think if I caught our instrument expert doing it, I'd beat him silly.

[Tempted]

I'm in Redmond/Bend area, Martha. I will be in Klamath falls area within the next couple weeks. If you are in that area I can stop by and go over your options?
I'm on the locator map and My email address is in my profile.

[SPBryant]

SPBryant,

This is the Ask Our Pro's forum. In order to post a response here, you must have verified qualifications and have been approved by the AOP Committee. You may ask a question by starting a new thread.

You can find the rules for posting and qualifications here (http://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=957002).

Further infractions may result in loss of posting privileges.

.