I'm moving along on my house, got the roof furred out, covered in Grace I&W, shingled all except for where my vents are coming through, even got the fascia done while we were up there. Plumbers moving along well, he's installing a hot water recirc system. So now I have to start thinking about heat. I have Blueridge planning my in-floor heating on all three floors, Walltite eco going to R40 in the ceiling, joist ends etc., the basement has 2" XPS on the exterior and will get spray on the interior. Triple pane Low E argon dual glaze windows on the SIP walls. Now that is all blurted out I'll get to the question. I know I need an HRV and my wife wants central A/C, is there anything else I might need?? Also can the HRV and AC all be ducted together?? Just looking for ideas before I talk to the contractors, I wish I could do it all myself but I don't know too much about it. Thanks for any input, Sean

have you considered ductless minisplits? A simple HRV or ERV can be installed and the need for other duct work is eliminated. Fujitsu or mitsubishi or daikin are the leaders in that industry.

sgo70;

HRV's can be ducted into HVAC or run separate

That looks like it's going to be an awesome house when you're done! About how long is this taking you to build?

Sean, did you rent the scaffolding or did you buy and hope to re-sell? I need to make that decision pretty soon.

I would go with the ductless mini splits! Do some research, then ask around. They are more efficient than ever, will heat and cool, no loss associated with the ducting. FWIW,

Mark

Mini Split is a good way to go for a very quiet, hi efficient unit that will heat or cool, and do a good job of de humidification. Dont forget to make allowance for condensate drains in the wall you intend to hang a air handler on.

Hi Sean. Great to see your Calgary project coming along so well.  The footings for our new house in Mount Pleasant were just poured.  I too am looking at A/C options.  For our climate, I'm not convinced that it's worth doing right now.  Perhaps better to wait until a need is identified?  Particularly since we're both putting in standard HRVs for our all-radiant flooring in our SIP homes.

I've asked my builder what the added cost for a HRV with a heat-exchanger that I could hook up to a cold-water tank cooled by my geo-exchange unit.  Since Calgary is so dry (even in the summer), I don't see a need for a full air-conditioner that handles lots of humidity along with cooling.  I think an HRV with heat-exchanger should do the trick.  Note, I'm most definitely not an expert so I'd appreciate dissenting opinions from those with more knowledge, particularly related to our Calgary climate.

Just got back from work to see all the replies. I started by moving the house in July, so I'm going onto my 6th month now. Stopped by today and the plumber is almost done rough-in. I got the scaffolding from my SIP supplier, he lent it to me for free, he's been very helpful along the way. I might have to drive by and see your house in MP Guy, I'm pretty close to you. Now the mini-splits, I hear a lot about them and I'll have to check into them more but I don't like the idea of having them mounted on the walls, I'd rather just have a vent showing. Keep the ideas coming, Thanks again, Sean

I can't remember if I asked about this in the past but what about the Unico or Spacepak systems. I had heard they were loud but now they install some type of baffel near the outlets. They look like an easy install as well but maybe I'm kidding myself. Thanks, Sean

Hi Sean,  I heard back from my builder about the idea of using a standard HRV to handle cooling.  He says a normal HRV with small ducting is designed to efficiently move air slowly.  So, if I were to really want cooling I'd have to add standard heating/cooling ducting along with an HRV designed to move air more quickly.  In my case, this would add thousands of $ more which is not really worth it given how rarely we need to cool in this climate.

I currently live in a 1955 bungalow which was uncomfortable in the summer when we first moved in due to old (+40yrs) windows.  After the first summer, we upgraded all the windows to decent dual pane vinyl.  Now we leave the sunny window blinds closed during summer days and then open all our windows at night to ventilate with cool air.  This keeps the house within a couple degrees of optimum on even the hottest days (30C+).

Since I expect our new SIP homes will be significantly better insulated than my current old bungalow, I'm pretty sure a similar strategy would mean a very comfortable home in the summer here in Calgary.  As such, I'll probably not bother with any cooling for now.  Should we find out that we need cooling after we move in, I can always add ductless mini-splits later on, or even just a window A/C unit for the few days a year it's an issue.

I'd be interested to hear what you decide.

I'm with you in thinking we don't need it. I was quoted close to $10 000 for central A/C which seems like a huge waste especially with the insulation and triple pane windows. The wife thinks different because the master is on the second floor.

 

 I'm almost considering just running the ducting to give us the option if we end up using it, and it might be a cheaper and easier way to prove a point. The reason I was thinking of the high velocity a/c was I think I could do it myself and save thousands. I'm gonna have to decide soon, the plumbing is done and the electrical isn't far behind.

 Let me know if you find any more info.

Thanks,
Sean

Sean;

I agree with your wife the second floor will get warmer, I would pay the 10K and let a professional do it. If you want to do something yourself , do the plumbing and electrical

Yeah but, isn't Sean building like near the polar ice cap? It's so cold there your tires freeze to the road. Seems like a strategically placed window unit would handle those three warm days in the summer. 10k is what I was quoted for central AC down here in the jungle.

Sean, check out http://degreedays.net which lets one get average cooling degree days for the Calgary climate. I found that at a base temp of 70 deg. F the 5-year average CDD is only 111. I seem to recall seeing numbers in the thousands of CDD farther south where A/C really is a requirement. This seems to support the argument that Calgary, AB doesn't require A/C except for (maybe) once or twice a year.

If I'm misinterpreting the CDD numbers, please correct me. I'm quite new to this stuff.

Strictly a layman (ICF home) here speaking, who lived in Calgary for 20 years (right next door to MP, by the way) and now in Dallas for the last 18.  The real benefit of AC lies in humidity removal.  Cool down, with no humidity removal, results in cold and clammy and you see a lot of that down here with over-sized systems.

That being said, Calgary, year round, is a semi-arid desert climate. If it were me, I would be putting that 10K in the bank and booking a room for the family at the Sheraton Eau Claire next time it got to 30C for more than 3 days in a row.

The HV systems are not "loud" when the proper amount of sound tubing is used. I decided when I did my own that I would use all sound tubing for the 2" branch runs, and that is how I continued to have others do the my clients' homes. The price difference is negliable when you consider having to cut and attach type 1 to type 2 supply branches.

One thing that is a paramount is that manual J and  manual D  is done to ensure proper sizing.  You may be able to get away with doing some of the duct work install, but this is something that I would be consulting a HVAC professional on.  If the HVAC system is oversized the comfort level will suffer significantly.

http://www.hvaccomputer.com/hvac/newfeatures.asp

This is the one I used when I decided to upgrade the furnance

I've been talking with my HVAC pro for some time now and I'm pretty sure I'll let him do the installation as he has already done the calculations. I guess my problem is which equipment to use and I really appreciate the input. I was reading about heat pumps a little bit and that seems like the best idea, cooling in the summer and a little extra heat in the winter. I figured that way the radiant could stay on a steady temp being easier on my hardwood floors and such and the HP could just help with any chills. I was told by the HVAC guy that these don't work so great in our climate....any comments?? Sean

SGO70 ;

heat pumps work best in moderate climates