Zoning Question

8 years ago

My house has been added on to multiple times and it looks rather unusual in shape (the garage is bottom right). Should I consider having multiple zones? Here's an image of the house. Front to back it is 60 feet or so. The most effective place to put a blower box and/or furnace is either in the attic towards the back/bottom (2/3rd down the image) or in the lower left hand lump (was old garage, now a dojo) of the house. Do you think the ducting is too crazy with this shape?

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mike_home

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

I understand the current situation and Texan building practices. I suggested it as a possibility if it were feasible as part of a renovation.

I am suggesting zoning as an attempt to keep the house at a uniform temperature. I think there will be long duct runs in the unconditioned attic which could result in 2 -3 degrees of temperature variation between the far corners of the house. These are options Mary should explore when she is ready to get he HVAC quotes. It also has the potential of saving money if the bedrooms can be kept at 72 degrees at night, while the rest of the house is set back to 78.

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Comments (9)

Susie .
8 years ago
Are you asking about HVAC? I can’t see the ducting. Maybe you can ask for a consultation from a local HVAC specialist.
PRO
Austin Air Companie
8 years ago
HVAC zoning is complicated. I would only make an assessment of a home in person because there are too many variables to address to see if zoning is the proper solution for the structure.

Zoning doesn't work for every home. It's a tool in the tool box.

Some will sell zoning regardless whether it's a good fit or not, that leads to costly problems.
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mike_home
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Your house is large enough to warrant a zoning set up. It is the best way to have a uniform temperatures throughout the house.

Installing duct work in the attic is the worst possible place especially in a climate where 100+ temperatures are common. If you are going to do some major renovations then it may be possible to move the HVAC equipment and duct work out of the attic.

Another alternate to zoning a single system is to have two smaller independent system. This will make the duct runs shorter. Two smaller systems are usually more expensive than one system with zoning, but it is worth investigating as an option.
PRO
Austin Air Companie
8 years ago
You house is large enough to warrant a zoning set up.

It depends Mike, open floor plans are self defeating when it comes to zone systems. Also you need ample room in attic to zone properly. (air flow is critical)

If you try to enclosed the ducts in the homes structure and dampers fail at some point you are looking at a costly fix. Enclosing ducts within the home's shell is not feasible by any stretch of the imagination.
Mary Townsend
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you all!
User
8 years ago
Mike_home, with construction techniques in the DFW area since the mid-70's, it's in the attic and flex duct or an A/C closet with a short duct return via stud space and flex pipes to the vents. Hard ducts simply don't get done here in residential construction, and retrofitting is damn near impossible on any reasonable budget
Mary Townsend
Original Author
8 years ago
I have a lot of things to speak to the people who will be giving quotes... Thank you so much!
User
8 years ago
Good points, Mike, I wasn't questioning your knowledge, just pointing out it's damn close to impossible to find anyone who would run a hard duct in a residence. Even the two stories here usually use stud runs as ducts, most often without an proper lining or sealing.