When planning a second story addition to your home in southeast Michigan, first consider the heating load of the home to accurately match the heating system to the needs of the space, and to maximize your investment in the equipment as well as home comfort. Once your HVAC contractor calculates the load of the new space and the existing home, work together to discuss the best HVAC options that suit your budget and your needs.
Extend
The load calculation will tell the contractor how much heating the new space requires, and how much heating the existing home requires. If the load of the combined spaces doesn’t exceed the capacity of your existing heating system, your contractor can simply extend the ductwork to accommodate heating in the new space. Don’t consider this HVAC option, however, if the existing furnace is old or inefficient.
Upgrade
After reaching the load calculation, you may find that the capacity of your existing furnace won’t accommodate the new space. If that’s the case, run the numbers with your contractor and evaluate an investment in one new furnace that can effectively heat the entire home. The price should include the costs to extend ductwork, which often raises installation and labor costs considerably.
Buy a separate system
If your existing furnace adequately heats the existing home, consider investing in ductless mini-splits to supply the new space with heat. With this type of system, you won’t have to extend ductwork, because individual mini-split air handlers are installed in the rooms. Each of the air handlers is connected to a single condenser, located outdoors and up to 50 feet away from the handlers, via a conduit that houses the power, refrigerant and drainage.
This HVAC option also extends a few other benefits: You can control heating and cooling with a zoned system. Instead of heating the second story addition as one unit, you can control each air handler individually, saving energy and enhancing comfort.
For more information about HVAC options for your new addition, contact Aladdin Heating & Cooling today! We’ve served Metro-Detroit since 1945 with quality HVAC services.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about HVAC upgrades and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
Aladdin Heating services Novi, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Southfield, Oak Park, Ferndale, Beverly Hills, Berkley, Royal Oak, Birmingham, Bloomfield Twp., Bloomfield Hills, West Bloomfield, Madison Heights, Clawson, Sterling Heights, Warren, Troy, St. Clair Shores, Grosse Pointe, Grosse Pointe Woods, Grosse Pointe Farms, Grosse Pointe Park, Detroit, Utica, Shelby Twp., Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Lake Orion, Oxford, and Clarkston.
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