I have a walk-in attic, and when I install my unit, it will be hung from the roof rafters for noise isolation. I sized my own ductwork using a demo duct-design program I downloaded off the internet.
Right now, I am heating the entire 1300s.f. main floor with my Rumford fireplace. I am especially pleased with it's performance, since it is the first masonry fireplace I have ever built.
There are about two months in the summer here in WNC where the RH hovers at 95%. Two summers ago, all my furniture and my log walls started to get mold on them. So last summer I installed a 6000BTU window AC unit, which kept the RH at 60% the entire time.
By next summer I plan to have the central unit installed. I will buy the unit from these guys: airconditioningexchange.com, who sell quality units for less than half what your local contractor will charge you.
I also plan to install an Air-Bear filter, since we live on a dirt road and have a dust problem. The fireplace produces a fine ash that settles on everything, too.
But you know, you can't tell anybody anything. My neighbor built a two-story Deltech home (one of those round ones), with a huge amount of South facing glass. I told him (pleaded, actually) to install a zoned system; Otherwise his upper floor would be too hot and the lower floor would be too cold.
Well, he didn't listen and it's just as I predicted. The guest bedrooms upstairs run at 85 degrees when the downstairs is 65 degrees. His guests have to open the windows in the winter, and just suffer in the summer. His master bedroom is frigid at all times. Oh well...
I have a walk-in attic, and when I install my unit, it will be hung from the roof rafters for noise isolation. I sized my own ductwork using a demo duct-design program I downloaded off the internet.
I'll check out that link! I've already cut in 2 6" ducts in the basement, despite the system not being designed for the added load. Its primarily for air circulation down there as it is being converted to living space. I may, in the future, put a system in down there, but it doesn't seem to need it. Humidity is the only issue.
Right now, I am heating the entire 1300s.f. main floor with my Rumford fireplace. I am especially pleased with it's performance, since it is the first masonry fireplace I have ever built.
I'm enjoying central heat, but I also have a vent-free gas fireplace which I use sparingly. I also have a carbon monoxide detector at the other end of that room. :^)
There are about two months in the summer here in WNC where the RH hovers at 95%. Two summers ago, all my furniture and my log walls started to get mold on them. So last summer I installed a 6000BTU window AC unit, which kept the RH at 60% the entire time.
I enjoy similar weather in Southeastern Tennessee. The high humidity along with the coolness of the basement raises the dew point to a level where, if I didn't dehumidify down there, the block walls would condense and remain wet. That is an important issue, particularly in light of this thread.
Incidentally, I bought an energy-star rated dehumidifier and I recommend the same to anybody that buys one. They use about 30-50% less electricity to remove the same amount of water. The energy-star units are relatively new, but Sears, Whirlpool, and others carry them. Since they are a high user, its worth the small increase in initial cost.