DIY Network

Heating and Cooling: Which is Most Important? From "Be Your Own Contractor" episode DBYC-108

Selection of the type of heating and cooling system may be based on the size and structure of the house, the construction materials, and the climate where the home is being built.

In this episode of DIY's Be Your Own Contractor, the do-it-yourselfers share their experiences of installing the heating and air-conditioning systems in their homes while acting as their own contractor. They offer advice on choosing the right heating and cooling system, and we hear from one contract who built one of the most energy-efficient homes in the country. Also covered is the role of windows and doors in the overall heating and cooling of a house. The contractors share some personal stories based on their experiences with installation of HVAC systems and windows.

In this segment the contractors talk about heating and A/C basics, and about determining which is more critical in the climate where they live.

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Heating and Cooling Basics

• For Doug Kerr, who built his home in the moderate climate of Los Angeles, California, the utility bills for cooling the home are much higher than the bills in the months where heating is used. He therefore built his home with a heavy emphasis on making the cooling system as efficient as possible. For the contractors who built in colder areas of the country (e.g., Colorado and Pennsylvania), heating was the greater priority. A variety of heating systems were used including hydronic, heat pumps and radiant floor heating.

• After considering a range of options, Andy Beasley utilized a hydronic system for his house in Hillside, Colorado (figures A and B). For those do-it-yourselfers who have a special preference for a type of heating to install, Andy recommends thorough research in advance to identify cost differentials and potential trade-offs among various options.

  Figure A

  Figure B

  
  
• For those with special needs, research is especially crucial. For example, John Spracklen and Betty King went with a standard forced-air system for their home in Olmstead, Kentucky. However, because Betty suffers from allergies and is sensitive to certain air contaminants, the couple insisted on the use of rigid-vent tubing in the system rather than using the standard flex-tubing. The flex-tubing is easier to install, but the internal ridges inside the tubing can harbor dust and microscopic contaminants such as dust mites and mold (figures C and D).

  Figure C

  Figure D

  
  

  	Figure E
  	Figure F
  	Figure G

• Before building his house in Butler, Pennsylvania, semi-retired engineer Al Sain (figure E) set as one of his goals to meet the requirements of the U.S. Department of Energy's "Build America" program. This means that the home must achieve a H.E.R. (home energy rating) score of at least 90 on a 100-point scale. In the end, Alan was able to achieve a score of 92 on his completed home (figure F).

• To help meet that goal, Al decided to heat his house using radiant-floor heating. This style of heating uses tubing that's buried in the concrete floor (figure G). Hot water flows through the tube and heats the concrete. The heated floor serves as the heat source for the house's interior environment.
  

  	Figure H
  	Figure I

• A 100,000-BTU water-heater (figure H) provides the hot water for the system that warms the rooms in the house. In an ideal setting, a home-heating source should provide heat from below (since hot air rises), and the cooling source should provide cool air from above (since cool air sinks). For cooling, Al opted for a system that would provide a cool air from a cooling unit housed in an upstairs closet. The air-handling unit for cooling also incorporates a fresh-air system (figure I) that continuously introduces fresh air to the house from the outside, while simultaneously removing stale air to the outside via an air-exhaust system.

• Alan did all of the installation work himself for his specialized radiant-floor heating system. That including laying all of the piping that was covered by the concrete floor and installation of the control and regulating systems (figure J). Alan's experience with engineering, building, soldering, etc. gave him the knowledge he needed for this complex installation. For the average homebuilder, he would recommend hiring a reputable subcontractor to complete a job like this.