Residential HVAC Question

JSJJ388

JSJJ388

GREEN GREMLIN
Joined
Aug 31, 2016
Location
HAMPTONVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
With me being home from work, talk of us working remotely a lot even after the Kung Flu is over, and my wife finally realizing that the tub we put down here a year ago is pretty nice, we are using our basement a lot more lately. Its unfinished and until now has only housed my reloading stuff and our food stores. The thingermabob that blows air around the house sits down here, but there are no vents. What would be the effects of me adding a vent down here? Could I even do that without substantial rework and expense? It hovers around 60 (perfect for me) down here most of the time, and we keep the house set on 67 so its not a huge gap if that makes a difference. I know next to nothing about HVAC, and was thinking of just cutting a hole in a duct and putting a vent in. Bad idea?
 
Are you wanting to warm it up? All the time or just during winter months?

I am not a HVAC expert, but you really need return air flow if you put a vent in. The circulation of the air is what conditions the space.

Another option could be to get a dehumidifer.
 
Would like to keep it at least 65 year round.
 
Also not sure if its relevant, but there is no basement access from inside the house. Have to go out and around to an exterior door.
 
JSJJ388 said:
Also not sure if its relevant, but there is no basement access from inside the house. Have to go out and around to an exterior door.
Click to expand...

If you cut a hole and supply air to the basement without a return, then the 1st floor will be negatively pressured. That’s bad.

If you are thinking of cutting holes in supply and return to condition the basement, that will be a huge increased load on the HVAC system, and reduction of 1st floor performance.

The basement temp sounds like it closely follows the typical ground temp.

Why not install a ductless mini split just to serve the basement?

If you are wanting to just warm it up a bit, I agree a dehumidifier will help in keeping basement dry, with the side effect of raising them temp slightly.

A ton of missing info to give accurate answer.
 
Think of your house like a typical fridge. Freezer up top, and fridge below.

For some reason you want the fridge a little colder, so you decide to cut a hole in the bottom of the freezer to let that colder air migrate down to the fridge. Hey..SOUNDS like a logical solution for keeping beer colder right? But now your frozen pizzas are melting and dripping down that hole into the fridge, and your fudgesicles are now a puddle of brown goo. You've rendered the freezer useless. That's what you do when you punch holes in the ductwork for the house. You're messing with the system that controls your main floor zone. It's there doing the job it's supposed to. Don't mess with it. You will only compromise the upper floor efficiency.



A few more questions to the already posed ones that need addressing:

Does the basement have a drain? (If it does, plop a dehumidifier near the drain and pipe the discharge over to the drain for SOME relief)
Are you wanting Winter AND summer use?
How dry has the basement been in the last couple of years since the monsoons set in back in 2018 and haven't let up?
 
While I'm sure most of the previous and future repsonses will be more "correct", if you add a vent to the basement, it won't be the end of the world. If I remember right, your house is from the 70s or older, so it's not built "tight" like newer houses, so you may get enough circulation to accomplish your goal without a bunch of time or cost. Or it may be a terrible idea, but you will have little time and money invested and you can just close the duct back up and do it the correct way if the results are unsatisfactory.
 
Or add a vent to both the supply and the return and put dampers in them so you can control the amount of air coming out and going back in. IF it does not work or when you are not there you can close them off. Will likely need a fan to circulate anything you do if the basement has the same footprint as the upstairs.
 
tsconver said:
Or add a vent to both the supply and the return and put dampers in them so you can control the amount of air coming out and going back in. IF it does not work or when you are not there you can close them off. Will likely need a fan to circulate anything you do if the basement has the same footprint as the upstairs.
Click to expand...

This is what I did in my basement.
 
might be a dumb question, but do you have windows in your basement? I’m talking about the smaller ones that are ground level outside. If so, get one of those stand alone units from Lowe’s or Home Depot. They’re heat/AC and all you need is a window to pull fresh air from. We have the 200 square foot AC version and it’ll freeze you out. We’ve had trouble with our hvac so I put it in my little boy’s room. It freezes that room in minutes. Plugs into 110.
 
As mentioned, I think the imprtant question is what the temps are like year round and what you need year round. If its fully subterrain and always cold, then tapping into the home unit will only help in winter when your heat is on. If its half above or something and temps change any w/ seasons, then you're more likely to get away w/ adding into what you got.
 
Thanks for all the info. It's all below grade except about a foot. It does have 2 (very drafty) small windows.

It does have a drain which almost everything in the house dumps to.

House was built in 1945.

Temps stay around 55-60 year round.

It stays pretty dry, even in bad rain. Has 2 places that seap, but only after days of heavy rain. Has a sump pump in one corner, which is piped to the diagonal corner to the drain.

It's not a full basement. Its 15 ft wide and however long the house is.

Walls are block, ceiling is the uninsulated floor of the house.






I will look into one of the mini window units, as well as the mini split. That's not in the budget currently, but might be a nice idea down the road.
 
Now, maybe I get why it didn't work for me. I have a full below grade basement. No windows, just 1 entry door, & a 7x9 garage door. Stays about 10 degrees below summer outside heat, & 10-20 degrees below house heat in winter. I thought I could get a little more heat in the winter, when I wanted to work down there. I cut the main supply trunk, on each side & added 2 adjustable registers. Didn't seem to affect the house heat, but also Didn't add to the basement. I just figured I needed deflectors in the trunk, & gave it up. Resealed the registers. Never realized I needed a suction side.
 
@braxton357 the DIY kits that are 1.5-2 ton are more like $1500 with the precharged line sets. But I still agree - either a mini split or thru-wall unit Like a PTAC that does heat & cool is your lowest hanging fruit.
 
336wheeler said:
@braxton357 the DIY kits that are 1.5-2 ton are more like $1500 with the precharged line sets.
Click to expand...
Even the 9kw for head-in rooms are over $1000 cost at ACR

Mount the indoor unit on the wall on the narrow end with the outdoor unit right outside, and you'd be SHOCKED how well it would serve you.

But I get the "expense" part. Been there...done that...had the brick ranch built in 1962 with full basement. For now....dehumidifier and a fan
 
braxton357 said:
Yes for a daikin, lg or Mitsubishi. I install $600-650 1 ton import units all the time though and they work pretty well. The power savings vs a dehumidifier alone would pay for the difference in 2-3 years.
Click to expand...

Any particular one you use or do I just Google "Wu-tang wall mounted wind maker" and pick the first cheap one that pops up?
 
jcramsey said:
Any particular one you use or do I just Google "Wu-tang wall mounted wind maker" and pick the first cheap one that pops up?
Click to expand...

If you're the kind of person that buys the "extended warranty" on a TV or expensive tool, you'll want to stick to then big 3. If you feel like that's a rip-off then Wu-tang 4 life :rockon:

Person experience though....Fujitsu is forbidden from submitting on any of our jobs. The boss had a Fuji split in his bonus room above the garage. A year and half after install the compressor crapped out. No problem! Compressor has a 5yr warranty.
Labor to replace compressor (which is not warrantied) was more than a whole replacement unit.

Just something to keep in mind
 
CasterTroy said:
If you're the kind of person that buys the "extended warranty" on a TV or expensive tool, you'll want to stick to then big 3. If you feel like that's a rip-off then Wu-tang 4 life :rockon:

Person experience though....Fujitsu is forbidden from submitting on any of our jobs. The boss had a Fuji split in his bonus room above the garage. A year and half after install the compressor crapped out. No problem! Compressor has a 5yr warranty.
Labor to replace compressor (which is not warrantied) was more than a whole replacement unit.

Just something to keep in mind
Click to expand...
So is that fujitsu's failure or their service Distributes greed?
 
CasterTroy said:
YES
Click to expand...
Of course I dont know the specifics of his deal...Im just pointing out that swearing to never buy another Ford because Bob's Ford in Podunk Idaho charged $55 for an oil change in 1980 isnt necessarily in the best interest of your client or fair to the manufacturer.

Now if you call Ford and they told you to pound sand, I guess I see the point...but just dont confuse the two.
 
Ron said:
Now if you call Ford and they told you to pound sand, I guess I see the point...but just dont confuse the two.
Click to expand...

C'mon Ron...you me better than that :cool:. And the boss is even worse.

Called Rep...called MFG....LOTS of calls with rep. His hands were tied.

trust me, this wasn't a case of buying a ford and being butthurt that the plastic for the actuator controlling the blend door got brittle after 14 yrs. This was more of that straw that broke the camels back for Fujitsu. Years of hearing horror stories, and HOPING to give them a chance ended in disaster for them.

Years ago the Carrier rep pissed off the former owner, and he had us throw out all the carrier catalogs, and ban any rep from ever coming in the door :lol: THAT....was personal. He retired back in 2003..and the carrier rep is JUST NOW starting to call on us again.
 
Back
Top