Direct expansion type 1 × 1 heat pumps have an indoor unit and an outdoor unit, the exterior usually has more or less the same shape, but the interior can have different formats: split wall, floor, ceiling … or as in the case that concerns us “for connection to conduits.”
This type of equipment is “ugly” and is designed to be hidden from view by the user in a false ceiling or similar, although lately, they begin to be installed together with circular sheet metal ducts in commercial premises with industrial aesthetics.
When choosing the best-ducted air conditioning system, people must take into account the level of energy efficiency that the installation will guarantee. To achieve greater efficiency, it is essential that the installed ducts have a correct insulation and hermetic that prevents energy losses and guarantees adequate thermal comfort and energy and money savings.
How does ducted air conditioning work?
The operation is simple, the indoor unit is connected to a network of air supply ducts and to another network of air return ducts.
The equipment does nothing more than take the air from the room through the return duct, cool / heat it and push it back through the impulsion duct.
There is a false belief that the air that comes out through the grilles of an air conditioning system is outside air, this is not the case in most cases, only on some occasions the system is designed so that a certain percentage of the air is “of renovation “and therefore come from the street. In general, it is not going to “ventilate” a room by turning on an air conditioning system through ducts.
Zoning systems
The installations of conditioned air by conduits count on a unique equipment for all the house local, and therefore, a single point of control of temperature (thermostat). This causes the equipment regulates in base to stay where the thermostat and the rest of the rooms are “towed” by this, being able to raise or lower the temperature above the desired set point. For this reason there are systems for temperature regulation by rooms.
It is clear that a well-installed zoning system can increase the comfort of the installation of ducts, but also make it more expensive and complicated, so in the hands of the customer is the decision.
It is not considered 100% necessary in homes, until recently most homes were heated by radiators with a single thermostat and were great.
Maintenance and cleaning
There are modern systems for cleaning the air conditioning ducts that generally take advantage of the entrances or exits of the air ducts like grilles, diffusers, etc. to introduce mechanical robots with different cleaning systems, such as rotating brushes, aspiration and waste collection, or cleaning by air or water injection.
Installers
A very important issue in these cases is to pay special attention to the “professionalism” of the installer. A split wall is relatively easy to install, but a system of conduits requires a calculation of the section of the same and the dimensions of grids and diffusers. Everything has to be compatible with the available pressure and flow of the equipment.
It is important in these cases to differentiate a “pro” from a serious air conditioning installer. Your home always deserves the best.…