My home: 3500sq feet, 3 stories, unsure of exact sq footage per floor. I have two HVACs, but the problem lies on the 2nd/3rd story part of my home. I have a 4 ton (oversized per HVAC contractors) that runs two floors. Ideally, I was told that I should have one hvac per floor with its on duct work. I was told that the 2nd floor was ideally 2tons while the 3rd story is 1 ton or closest is 1.5 tons. The third story was apparently a add on to the home with apparently a poor design. I added a few pictures to give you a idea of the design and areas that would probably need to knocked down/adjusted to accommodate the other duct work
I am not an expert and very amateur on these terms so please help guide me along. Here lies my problem, on my third story, my duct work and air handler is in a very tight area with barely enough space to even fit flexwork and metal style duct work around. I would be looking at major renovations and $$$ to include two HVACS, ductwork, and changing my third story to accommodate another air handler.
In the Summer, my second floor's humidity stays at 60-70% which is above the 30-50% recommendations. My third story feels like a sauna (70-80% or higher sometimes), because my thermostat is on the second floor. I recently bought a nest thermostat to see if I change it to the third story when it gets hot. However, Winter is coming (GoT joke) and I do notice temperature swings throughout the home due to having one hvac for two floors. During this month, the humidity is staying roughly between 48-60% on the second floor with the third story being much colder - so I suspect lower humidity for the third story.
Problems I'm having:
-the air handler is accessed by basically a knee space door with little to no space, so this makes getting a whole house dehumidifier difficult to fit in this area.
-I can't currently afford major renovations to the home via general contractor and HVAC contractor, which I'm sure would be 30-45k.
-extreme humidity on the third story with mild humidity on the second floor.
Solutions per contractor:
-Add two proper sized HVACS (very expensive) and have a general contractor knock down a few areas where a air handler/more duct work can go.
-Two mini splits or ductless upstairs and fit the 2nd floor for the proper HVAC size - I have read mixed reviews on mini splits and humidity control. I would like to know more about these.
I recently just moved into this home in Feb of 2020 and man this is all so much for me to take in as a new home owner.
Big question is: What do you guys thinking I should do at this time?
Jacob
I am not an expert and very amateur on these terms so please help guide me along. Here lies my problem, on my third story, my duct work and air handler is in a very tight area with barely enough space to even fit flexwork and metal style duct work around. I would be looking at major renovations and $$$ to include two HVACS, ductwork, and changing my third story to accommodate another air handler.
In the Summer, my second floor's humidity stays at 60-70% which is above the 30-50% recommendations. My third story feels like a sauna (70-80% or higher sometimes), because my thermostat is on the second floor. I recently bought a nest thermostat to see if I change it to the third story when it gets hot. However, Winter is coming (GoT joke) and I do notice temperature swings throughout the home due to having one hvac for two floors. During this month, the humidity is staying roughly between 48-60% on the second floor with the third story being much colder - so I suspect lower humidity for the third story.
Problems I'm having:
-the air handler is accessed by basically a knee space door with little to no space, so this makes getting a whole house dehumidifier difficult to fit in this area.
-I can't currently afford major renovations to the home via general contractor and HVAC contractor, which I'm sure would be 30-45k.
-extreme humidity on the third story with mild humidity on the second floor.
Solutions per contractor:
-Add two proper sized HVACS (very expensive) and have a general contractor knock down a few areas where a air handler/more duct work can go.
-Two mini splits or ductless upstairs and fit the 2nd floor for the proper HVAC size - I have read mixed reviews on mini splits and humidity control. I would like to know more about these.
I recently just moved into this home in Feb of 2020 and man this is all so much for me to take in as a new home owner.
Big question is: What do you guys thinking I should do at this time?
Jacob
source https://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?2224185-Help-High-Humidity-oversized-unit-3-story-house&goto=newpost
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