How Adding Onto Your Home Affects Your AC
Adding an extra room to your home can be a great idea if an expert handles the job. The extension, when well-designed, can add value and comfort to your home. However, it will also affect the performance of your air conditioner.
It is important to note that before an air conditioning installation, the HVAC contractor takes the total space and other factors inside the property into consideration. This process ensures that the AC contractor installs an AC system that matches all your space cooling needs effectively. When you add a new room or addition to your home, therefore, your AC system will not perform as expected.
Air Conditioner Installation Asbury Park NJ: Cooling Your New Home Addition
In this article, we discuss how a new addition will affect your air conditioning system and what you can do about it.
Calculating Cooling Load/Power For Your Home
Obviously, the cooling load in your home will increase when you add an extra room or addition to your home. To determine the extra cooling power needed to effectively cool the entire house, an HVAC contractor will use the following formula:
((Total Square ft. X25)/12,000)-0.5 = required tons
For instance, if you have a house with a total of 3,000 square feet. The formula for determining the cooling load will be ((3,000X25)/12,000)-0.5=5.75. If you add a room measuring 500 sq ft, the new cooling load will be 6.79. This means that you will need to make adjustments to your home AC system.
Cooling Options When Adding A Room To Your Home
When you add an extra room to your home, your air conditioning system will not be able to cool the new room effectively. You will need to make an adjustment:
i) Extend The HVAC Air Ducts
Obviously, the original design of your AC system did not have a provision for the addition of an extra room. This means that you will need to tap into your existing air duct system to supply cool air to the new room.
The diameter of air ducts usually reduces the further away you move from the air handler. Therefore, you may need to tap one of the larger ducts to ensure the room gets sufficient air without affecting how other rooms are cooled.
ii) Upgrade Your Air Conditioning Unit
Please note that you will first need to confirm that your air conditioning equipment can handle the extra load comfortably before modifying your air ducts. If it cannot handle the extra load, be sure to upgrade the system to accommodate your cooling needs. After calculating the increase in cooling load brought about by the extra room, your HVAC provider may recommend an upgrade. By purchasing a new air handler and condenser, your home will be effectively cooled. Most air conditioner installers usually offer the option to finance, so this should not be a problem.
iii) Install A Ductless HVAC System
As mentioned above, adding an extra room will affect your air conditioner. You can make modifications to your air ducts upgrade your air conditioning equipment. However, most homeowners in this position usually opt to install an independent air conditioning unit in the new room to meet its cooling needs. If your AC unit is running correctly and it is still relatively new, installing a split ductless system may be a great idea. There are small ductless AC units that can be used to cool a single room. Depending on the size of the new room, you should install a suitable split ductless unit to cool the new room. Talk to a local HVAC contractor, like Lawes Company, to find out more information.
When planning to add a new room to your home, you should not forget about air conditioning and heating. While connecting power and water to the room may be easy, cooling and heating are a little bit more challenging. That is why it is recommended you hire a competent HVAC contractor to help you come up with solutions for cooling the new room effectively.
Conclusion
Lawes Company is a highly respected HVAC services provider that can assist home and business owners with their heating and cooling issues. If you need HVAC repairs, maintenance work, or system installation, then we are the one to call. Our reasonable rates and friendly NATE certified HVAC technicians will make your visit with us a pleasant experience.
Learn more about what we can do for you by calling us today. We provide free consultations at your preferred schedule. Tell us about your concerns and your questions. We will answer them to the best of our abilities and your satisfaction. Act now so you can get the help that you need. Our representatives are standing by so call Lawes Company today!
Some of the areas we service include Allenhurst, Asbury Park, Bradley Beach, Deal and these zip codes 07709, 07712, 07720, 07723 as well as all surrounding areas in Monmouth County, New Jersey.
Click here to contact us now or call us at (732) 741-6300 to find out more!