Heating And Cooling Tips For Home Additions
A new addition to your home can be an excellent idea if you have a growing family or if you need the extra space for a hobby room or some other use. However, if your heating and cooling systems were professionally installed, they were probably optimized for your original home. This means that you won't be able to simply add a few ducts or a radiator and be done with it.
There are several approaches that you can take when considering heating and cooling options for the addition.
Extend Your Current System
Depending on the maximum load capacity of your existing HVAC system, you might be able to extend it to the addition. You'll need to contact a heating and cooling service provider to carry out an analysis for you, preferably before you start building the addition.
Extending your current system when it's possible is a good idea because having to buy a new system will probably cost you more.
Avoid New Ducts
Ducts have been in use for decades. However, they have a number of issues. For starters, they are not the best choice for homeowners who place a high value of aesthetics. Secondly, ducts are known to leak. In fact, if your air conditioning system uses ducts, you should expect leaks at some points. When conditioned air is lost through leaks, you will literally pay the price.
Instead of laying new ducts, you can install a ductless mini-split unit instead. These are good choices both functionally and aesthetically.
Upgrade to Something Bigger and Better
If your current A/C system has seen better days, this is a good chance to make ac repairs and upgrade to something with enough capacity to serve the original building plus the addition. Additionally, air conditioning systems have improved significantly in recent times. Modern systems are much more efficient and lot more aesthetically pleasing. Therefore, this can be a great chance to invest in a brand-new system that will serve you better.
Use an Energy-Efficient Design/Construction
Instead of struggling to figure out how to keep the addition warm or cool after constructing it, you can use energy-efficient design and construction techniques. This can lower the heating and cooling needs of the addition.
For example, the use of advanced house framing reduces the amount of lumber needed for a wood-framed addition by replacing it with insulation material. The structural integrity of the building is maintained while the energy efficiency of the wall is increased.