ᐅ Indoor Installation of a Heat Pump: What Should Be Considered Regarding the Air Ducts?
Created on: 1 May 2023 09:39
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FragehierselF
Fragehiersel1 May 2023 09:39Hello everyone,
I am currently dealing with the necessary replacement of our old oil heating system on the ground floor (125 m² (1,350 sq ft) heated area, house without a basement). Before talking to installers, I need to educate myself on a few topics first. We are considering installing an air-to-water heat pump, preferably as an indoor unit. I have some questions for the experts among you and would appreciate any advice:
An outdoor installation of an air-to-water heat pump will only be possible in one location due to the specific site conditions (distances, boundary layout, underground pipes). This would result in approximately 10 m (33 feet) of piping to the actual boiler room with all the pipes, manifolds, etc.
1. Would this generally be a disadvantage or pose significant problems in terms of efficiency, installation costs, or service life?
Therefore, an indoor installation of the air-to-water heat pump seems to be an option for us. The former oil storage room is right next to the boiler room and can certainly support the weight of an air-to-water heat pump without issues. Installation there and making an opening for a fresh air duct through the exterior wall appears feasible. However, the required air ducts would have to share one exterior wall (no corner of the house available). The exhaust air duct would have to be routed through the adjacent boiler room due to the narrow width of the oil storage room (creating an opening in the interior wall).
2. What minimum spacing between the air ducts is necessary to reliably prevent thermal short-circuiting?
3. Is it possible for the exhaust air duct to be positioned lower than the fresh air duct of the heat pump (due to many installed pipes on the relevant wall in the boiler room)?
4. Are air ducts supplied by common manufacturers of indoor air-to-water heat pumps flexible regarding the exhaust air duct routing (number of bends and height of the exterior wall opening), or are there specific limitations (e.g., exhaust and fresh air ducts at the same height)?
5. What should be considered to avoid vibrations and noise in an indoor installation?
6. Is an additional window needed for fresh air in this room, or would a ventilation grille be sufficient?
7. We would drain condensate water through a pipe in an exterior wall opening into the soil about 1 m (3.3 feet) below. What is the maximum amount of condensate water to be expected at full load per day? Is this a significant volume?
8. What are the typical size ranges for the air duct openings in the exterior wall?
Thank you very much for your support.
I am currently dealing with the necessary replacement of our old oil heating system on the ground floor (125 m² (1,350 sq ft) heated area, house without a basement). Before talking to installers, I need to educate myself on a few topics first. We are considering installing an air-to-water heat pump, preferably as an indoor unit. I have some questions for the experts among you and would appreciate any advice:
An outdoor installation of an air-to-water heat pump will only be possible in one location due to the specific site conditions (distances, boundary layout, underground pipes). This would result in approximately 10 m (33 feet) of piping to the actual boiler room with all the pipes, manifolds, etc.
1. Would this generally be a disadvantage or pose significant problems in terms of efficiency, installation costs, or service life?
Therefore, an indoor installation of the air-to-water heat pump seems to be an option for us. The former oil storage room is right next to the boiler room and can certainly support the weight of an air-to-water heat pump without issues. Installation there and making an opening for a fresh air duct through the exterior wall appears feasible. However, the required air ducts would have to share one exterior wall (no corner of the house available). The exhaust air duct would have to be routed through the adjacent boiler room due to the narrow width of the oil storage room (creating an opening in the interior wall).
2. What minimum spacing between the air ducts is necessary to reliably prevent thermal short-circuiting?
3. Is it possible for the exhaust air duct to be positioned lower than the fresh air duct of the heat pump (due to many installed pipes on the relevant wall in the boiler room)?
4. Are air ducts supplied by common manufacturers of indoor air-to-water heat pumps flexible regarding the exhaust air duct routing (number of bends and height of the exterior wall opening), or are there specific limitations (e.g., exhaust and fresh air ducts at the same height)?
5. What should be considered to avoid vibrations and noise in an indoor installation?
6. Is an additional window needed for fresh air in this room, or would a ventilation grille be sufficient?
7. We would drain condensate water through a pipe in an exterior wall opening into the soil about 1 m (3.3 feet) below. What is the maximum amount of condensate water to be expected at full load per day? Is this a significant volume?
8. What are the typical size ranges for the air duct openings in the exterior wall?
Thank you very much for your support.
KoalasAreCute1 May 2023 11:02I am not a professional and can only share my personal experience. We had a monoblock combination unit (air-to-water heat pump + controlled residential ventilation) in our previous house, and I am currently building with a split heat pump.
1. I checked and our split system allows refrigerant lines from 3 to 30 meters (10 to 98 feet). I assume some digging will be necessary here.
2. We had a similar issue. The corner of the house was available, but my wife rejected it for aesthetic reasons. In the end, our general contractor (at their expense) routed the supply air through the carport to solve this problem.
3. I think so, that was our case. Supply air above the carport, exhaust air at ground level. You could actually place a box of beer there to keep it cool.
5. For the new build, we had a steel foundation for the heat pump. This is meant to reduce vibrations. We could still hear it a bit, but not much, and it blended into the everyday background noise. A door with better soundproofing might be nice, but when the utility room and living room doors were closed, we barely heard it or didn’t hear it at all.
7. Apart from the defrost cycle, we didn’t have many issues. Both of our units have some kind of funnel design, and we noticed you need to be careful with dust because it can block the drainage.
8. Our unit was about 30x30 centimeters (12x12 inches) and also had integrated controlled residential ventilation.
1. I checked and our split system allows refrigerant lines from 3 to 30 meters (10 to 98 feet). I assume some digging will be necessary here.
2. We had a similar issue. The corner of the house was available, but my wife rejected it for aesthetic reasons. In the end, our general contractor (at their expense) routed the supply air through the carport to solve this problem.
3. I think so, that was our case. Supply air above the carport, exhaust air at ground level. You could actually place a box of beer there to keep it cool.
5. For the new build, we had a steel foundation for the heat pump. This is meant to reduce vibrations. We could still hear it a bit, but not much, and it blended into the everyday background noise. A door with better soundproofing might be nice, but when the utility room and living room doors were closed, we barely heard it or didn’t hear it at all.
7. Apart from the defrost cycle, we didn’t have many issues. Both of our units have some kind of funnel design, and we noticed you need to be careful with dust because it can block the drainage.
8. Our unit was about 30x30 centimeters (12x12 inches) and also had integrated controlled residential ventilation.
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