I am beginning new construction on a residential 2500 sq foot 2 level home and a conditioned crawl space and unconditioned attic. 2500 sq ft in the Poconos PA . It is 1700' and about 10 degrees colder than Philadelphia. The winters are cold. The summers can be warm if there is a heat wave, which we seem to have regularly these days. I am looking for advice on heat pump install.
1. Is it best to install two systems rather than one? There will be a gas backup. There is no public gas so I will have a propane tank.
My HVAC guy where I live locally tells me that 2 systems are better than 1 for redundancy, efficiency etc. He also told me that his company does not pump cold air from the basement to the second floor because his customers will not be satisfied. So he said one unit would be in the crawl space and the second unit should be in the attic.
My builder has in the contract one heat pump 16 seer. He did not specify the type or any details and he is leaving that up to his HVAC guy. He has said that one system installed in the crawl space is sufficient. He also said that placing a heat pump in the unconditioned attic space is a bad idea because it will "destroy the efficiency of the unit." From what I read online, as long as the install in the attic is done properly and the insulation/taping is done right, it should not matter. So I would like advice on this question.
2. My builder has placed the HVAC at the far perimeter of the conditioned crawl space near its access and said that all duct work should be straight to optimize efficiency. But my local HVAC guy told me that the unit should be placed as close to central location in the crawl space to minimize the length of runs and not to worry about whether or not the ducts are straight vs making turns. So I would like advice on placement of the unit in the crawl space
3. I assume that the units will be variable speed but this has not been specified in the contract. Again, I think he is leaving that to the HVAC guy. I know that the load calculation has not been done but he said that I will need roughly a 5 ton system. So if there were two systems, I guess that would be two 2.5 ton units.
should I request that these units have a defrost feature? I am not familiar with heat pumps . I was told that snow must be kept off of them. They are typically installed 18 " high but what if the sides of the unit are snowed in? I have read that you must go out and remove snow or they become useless. Please advise what to do if it is the middle of the night or you don't want to go out in the middle of a storm every 2 hours
Thank you so much.
1. Is it best to install two systems rather than one? There will be a gas backup. There is no public gas so I will have a propane tank.
My HVAC guy where I live locally tells me that 2 systems are better than 1 for redundancy, efficiency etc. He also told me that his company does not pump cold air from the basement to the second floor because his customers will not be satisfied. So he said one unit would be in the crawl space and the second unit should be in the attic.
My builder has in the contract one heat pump 16 seer. He did not specify the type or any details and he is leaving that up to his HVAC guy. He has said that one system installed in the crawl space is sufficient. He also said that placing a heat pump in the unconditioned attic space is a bad idea because it will "destroy the efficiency of the unit." From what I read online, as long as the install in the attic is done properly and the insulation/taping is done right, it should not matter. So I would like advice on this question.
2. My builder has placed the HVAC at the far perimeter of the conditioned crawl space near its access and said that all duct work should be straight to optimize efficiency. But my local HVAC guy told me that the unit should be placed as close to central location in the crawl space to minimize the length of runs and not to worry about whether or not the ducts are straight vs making turns. So I would like advice on placement of the unit in the crawl space
3. I assume that the units will be variable speed but this has not been specified in the contract. Again, I think he is leaving that to the HVAC guy. I know that the load calculation has not been done but he said that I will need roughly a 5 ton system. So if there were two systems, I guess that would be two 2.5 ton units.
should I request that these units have a defrost feature? I am not familiar with heat pumps . I was told that snow must be kept off of them. They are typically installed 18 " high but what if the sides of the unit are snowed in? I have read that you must go out and remove snow or they become useless. Please advise what to do if it is the middle of the night or you don't want to go out in the middle of a storm every 2 hours
Thank you so much.
source https://hvac-talk.com/vbb/threads/2236103-Appreciate-experienced-advice-on-heat-pump?goto=newpost
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