Author Topic: Installation of HVAC to older home  (Read 3999 times)

MC

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Installation of HVAC to older home
« on: April 10, 2014, 08:19:32 AM »
Has anyone gone through the process of purchasing an older house and installing an HVAC system?  I'm looking at a house that currently only has baseboard heaters, so installing central air would require installation of both the ductwork and the AC itself.  I'm curious about the potential costs involved with this installation.  If we would go the route of installing central air, would it also make sense to remove the baseboard heaters and install forced air heating?  I may not even be asking the right questions here, but I'm trying to compare this house to other ones and determine the upfront investment needed.  Thanks!

schimt

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #1 on: April 10, 2014, 08:50:03 AM »
Have you considered the option of selecting the rooms that "need" AC, and just installing units for those rooms, either window or wall units.

Cromacster

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #2 on: April 10, 2014, 08:58:18 AM »
I would suggest looking into ductless heat pumps.  This will be the most cost effective solution you can do and will provide heat and AC in the rooms where you choose to install it.

smalllife

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #3 on: April 10, 2014, 09:17:43 AM »
I installed a heat pump (with air ducts) in my 1940 house. It had radiator heating with an unsafe oil drum and coal furnace . . . so yeah.  We got a contractor who was in the process of breaking out on his own, so labor was a little cheaper than it otherwise would have been.  All in, it was around 2k and other than an interesting set up to get upstairs all has been wonderful. 

TomTX

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #4 on: April 10, 2014, 03:57:18 PM »
I would suggest looking into ductless heat pumps.  This will be the most cost effective solution you can do and will provide heat and AC in the rooms where you choose to install it.

++ mini-split.

BoulderTC

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #5 on: April 14, 2014, 08:54:27 AM »
Another +1 to ductless mini-split heat pump. It is one of the most energy efficient HVAC units out there, and has tons of non-energy benefits as well (like, a lot less noise, dehumidifying capabilities, a different unit with a thermostat in each room for a truly 'zoned' effect, and more). Depending on your locality, your electric utility may offer a rebate for these since they're so efficient.

mpbaker22

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #6 on: April 15, 2014, 07:07:11 PM »
How many stories is your house?  Is there a basement?

Might not have ducts running through your house if the answers are right.

monarda

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #7 on: April 16, 2014, 08:53:36 AM »
We just had a ductless minisplit system installed yesterday on the third floor of an older house. The first two floors have ducts and forced air furnaces. Point being, you can put in a minisplit system in part of the house if that turns out to make the most sense.

Us2bCool

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Re: Installation of HVAC to older home
« Reply #8 on: April 17, 2014, 12:31:13 PM »
I think it's a good investment in general. When I flip a house, I have a list of items that I can add to a home that make it a lot more marketable. One of those is HVAC, another is a garage.

One example: we did it with a tiny (2 br, < 1000 SF) house I flipped in a small town in Central Texas. It cost about $2500 to do the HVAC; that and a fresh coat of paint allowed us to turn it around for a profit of about $38K.

Some considerations were that the house was very old, very small and in an historic community, so the cute factor was pretty high, and the ability to get rid of the ugly window units was a high priority, and it goes without saying having air conditioning in that market is absolutely required. Also labor costs in that area are quite low.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!