Trane XL20i Heat Pump

[jimmyed]

We use solid concrete ones on larger heatpumps. Some of the big ones weigh 400lbs.

[sarge]

The side they put towards the wall is the side that needs room to swing open for cleaning; condensing unit photos. Not cool IMO.

[RyanHughes]

The side they put towards the wall is the side that needs room to swing open for cleaning; condensing unit photos. Not cool IMO.

There is plenty of space on all sides of the unit for service and cleaning. We were careful to make sure the service panel (to the left of where the lineset comes in) had plenty of clearance. How much space do you need? Was not going to install the unit in the middle of the side yard, and there wasn't much of an option to move it either. Anyone else want to find something to nitpick about? (Jimmy did make a valid point about the pad with a heavier unit like the 20i -- I do appreciate the feedback. But the unit is fine and stable on the current pad.)

By the way, the panels don't swing open. Not a Lennox. Although I was strongly considering the XP21. Chose the 20i for several reasons, including: 1. preferred the aluminum coil and EEV of the TAM8 over copper coil and generic TXV used in the CBX32MV for years, 2. could do side return with the TAM8 -- height was an issue and the Lennox would have been a tight fit, and 3. wanted the dual Climatuff compressors for better dehumidification and staging. I like the longer runtimes achieved with the 2 ton compressor, whereas with the Lennox or any other unloading scroll system I would be at ~3 ton capacity on low. Manual J called for 3.7 tons/1601 cfm to maintain 72 F db/50% RH. The 4 ton 20i was a great match providing ~46,100 btuh cooling @ 1600 cfm. The system has been working well in both cooling and heating modes so far. I really like the features of the ComfortLink II communicating system: tells you superheat, EEV position (/500 steps), coil temperature, DAT, ESP, blower RPM, and much more...

[automig]

i *personally* must take exception with the color, i don't think the contractor matched the color scheme of your basement correctly. they must be unliscenced/nonunion/daylaborers from home depot. there's ansi regulations regarding color choice, clearly violated here. a real pro like me would never make such a *pft* obvious mistake.

[energy_rater_La]

nice job Ryann.
you can take credit for hiring a company
who takes pride in their work.

maybe a nice cool sage green would be more
of a complimentary color match.

[RyanHughes]

Thanks La. The basement carpet is a darker green shade, so I guess the air handler does match its surroundings quite nicely.

[tedkidd]

Hyperion air handlers can do side return. Works well when you are limited with verical height. Over 1200 cfm you need to bring in return under the unit too.

Like the bottom/side return setup. Guess that's pretty close to ok:

Total static on high stage (1600 CFM) was around .55" with clean MERV 10 filter (.15 on low - 800 CFM).

It'll be interesting to see how much it runs at 4t, or if that's overkill/missed opportunity to get a lower low. You able to see run graphs?

[RyanHughes]

Like the bottom/side return setup. Guess that's pretty close to ok:

It'll be interesting to see how much it runs at 4t, or if that's overkill/missed opportunity to get a lower low. You able to see run graphs?

No runtime graphs, but from my experience thus far, when the outdoor temperature is 45 deg or above, the 2 ton compressor handles the heating with long cycles. Lower temperatures, the 4 ton compressor is likely to engage for roughly 8-10 minutes to help out. It hasn't gotten nearly as cold as it can be yet (lows have been mid-upper 30s). So I suspect the 4 ton compressor will be used more often in Jan/Feb when it's real cold. Heat loss was about 45k, give or take, which is the high compressor ARI capacity. 15 kW of electric heat that hasn't needed to be used yet. System was sized by the Manual J results, and the actual capacity of the 4 ton 20i matched the home's load quite closely, but part of me does now think a 3 ton would have performed adequately at least close to design temperatures. I didn't want to go smaller because I wanted to ensure I could maintain 72 all summer and 70 all winter. But seeing the 2-stage operation in action, you realize the low stage compressor, by running its long cycles, really reduces the calls to high stage needed -- even at fairly cool/warm ambient temps. I've been happy with the improved comfort over the previous system it replaced... it'll be interesting to see how it does this winter and next spring/summer (summer use this year was limited).