HVAC: What's best for cold climates?

[sig]

I heard that the radiator towel racks work well, but no direct experience.

Not sure why this popped into my head. But if you can’t reach the towel from the shower, what’s the point. My spray foam was completed last week. They did a great job. It’s actually poking outside in spots. Foam works into all the nooks and crannies. Someone told me my house might be too air tight. Air not circulating with outside air could cause mold. So someone says.

 

[Tjf1967]

Not sure why this popped into my head. But if you can’t reach the towel from the shower, what’s the point. My spray foam was completed last week. They did a great job. It’s actually poking outside in spots. Foam works into all the nooks and crannies. Someone told me my house might be too air tight. Air not circulating with outside air could cause mold. So someone says.

You can crack a window if you have to. At least you control the air loss.

 

[Harvey]

I have an app on my phone that controls my HVAC. I didn’t go to engineering school to chop wood like some kind of barbarian.

This is hilarious Milo!

 

[Milo Maltbie]

This is hilarious Milo!

Maybe but it’s not a joke.
Two months ago all my neighbors were afraid to go outside because of a fire that was 2000 miles away. In about 8 weeks they’ll fire their fireplaces and tell me how much they love the smell of the first fire in the fall.

mm

 

[Harvey]

I've been thinking about smoke too. I THINK(?) that it's not that hard to filter it out, but you need a system with ducts. Or maybe that makes it easier? Not 100% sure. I know here in NJ with no special filtering the AC made a big difference when the smoke was thick.

It has me thinking about two mini-splits with ducts. One could be for the three rooms in our house with doors, and the other could be for the bigger open area.

Guess what Milo I'm going to talk to an expert! But I want to hear your opinion too...

 

[jasonwx]

I have Mitsubishi Ductless a/c that takes care of my downstairs. Standard Central air for the upstairs and other parts of the house. First week in July we had a power surge due to some T storms..Fried 2 circuit boards on the ductless.. Parts are covered but labor isn't..750 for labor, boards are on back order maybe in first week of Sept.... I'm not a fan of Mitsubishi...

 

[Sbob]

I've been thinking about smoke too. I THINK(?) that it's not that hard to filter it out, but you need a system with ducts. Or maybe that makes it easier? Not 100% sure. I know here in NJ with no special filtering the AC made a big difference when the smoke was thick.

It has me thinking about two mini-splits with ducts. One could be for the three rooms in our house with doors, and the other could be for the bigger open area.

Guess what Milo I'm going to talk to an expert! But I want to hear your opinion too...

With Multi zone Minisplit systems you can mix wall units with mini ducted units. They can be mounted vertically in a closet and minimal ductwork for adjacent rooms. A louvered door allows return air. They have low ambient outdoor units that can heat down to-15°f

Slim Duct - AIRSTAGE SINGLE-ROOM MINI-SPLIT SYSTEMS - Residential - FUJITSU GENERAL United States & Canada

Slim Duct - AIRSTAGE SINGLE-ROOM MINI-SPLIT SYSTEMS - Residential - FUJITSU GENERAL United States & Canada

www.fujitsugeneral.com

 

[Milo Maltbie]

..a power surge…Fried 2 circuit boards ...750 for labor, boards are on back order..,

$750 to replace a board? That’s usually a DIY even for me. OTOH a couple of big capacitors on the board probably would have prevented that but that would cost maybe 25 or 50 cents.

mm

 

[Sbob]

I have Mitsubishi Ductless a/c that takes care of my downstairs. Standard Central air for the upstairs and other parts of the house. First week in July we had a power surge due to some T storms..Fried 2 circuit boards on the ductless.. Parts are covered but labor isn't..750 for labor, boards are on back order maybe in first week of Sept.... I'm not a fan of Mitsubishi...

Any minisplit or inverter system should have a surge suppressor on the power feed. Not a bad idea regardless.

If you have one you might want to check the brand . Supco had a recall. They were going up in flames. A friend of mine just happened to walk behind his house to find sparks shooting out. Lucky timing for him!

 

[Milo Maltbie]

I've been thinking about smoke too.

I was out of HVAC before minisplits were a thing. When I started we trying to control PM100000 but eventually we figured out that PM2.5 was the biggest and hardest actual health risk. I use a MERV13 filter. Filtrate 1900 filters are always available on line and work well without excessive back pressure. I’m sure there are others but I never remember which ones are better.

mm