HVAC units in narrow space?

Feb 07, 2005 15 Replies

I am considering installing central air & heat, however, the area next to my house where I would like to locate the outside coils is narrow: about



32" wide and 10' long. Are there any units that are particularly narrow (shallow) that could fit this space, with enough room to get around them and service them?

Nope.

Not unless you think Mitsubishi, or the like...even then, I dont think that there would be enough room for the manufactures specs, or most codes.

When I put mine in the inspector made me stay 4 feet away from the neighbors house. I put in a 14 seer condenser which was alot bigger than the lower seer units.

Maybe you could cut in an access that you could crawl thru, which would allow you to get to the back side of the a/c unit for servicing ( ? ) . If by chance , this is a Dog Run you are thinking of putting the a/c unit in , i wouldnt do that --- a dogs urine is acidic and will eat thru the fins and tubes of the condensor. I once had a Dog do that to a unit over several years and it needed replacing -- there were hardly any fins left on the unit ; never thought id get a replacement a/c job from a Dog..but hey, im not choosy. I think i even thru a new DogBone into the estimate.

Your fist problem is why is it that narrow? Is it on the property line? There are usually local codes covering where you can place the unit. How well ventilated is the area? Do you have windows on that side. Remember that noise is going to be louder on both sides due to the restricted space.

Dog Bone DAVE the Hack Yakker says to cut a hole in your house to service the AC Bwaaaaaaaa HaaaaaaaaaaHaaaaaaaaaaaaa atta boi Dave hack em in.

Shut Up Dave

and BE SURE to squeal like a little piggie....or maybe a hearty "Baaaahh" will get Dave's nut off real quick

'the area next to my house where I would like to locate the outside coils is narrow: about 32" wide and 10' long. '

Im assuming he has a structure of some kind perhaps a dog run or simular ; if he does, then, making an access would not be out of the question. If he is just referring to open space measuring 32 inches by 10 feet long at the side of his house...then, i doubt his local code will allow him to install the a/c unit so close to (or on) the lot line...if indeed this area goes up to the lot line.

Did you see my post of a few days ago whereby i suggested we be friends ? Do u think this is possible on your end ? It is on mine.

Better watch it Ransley, Dave wants to be your 'friend.'

You better watch out how you bend over...

DONT DROP THE SOAP!!!!

Nah...ya got to be under 18 according to Daves own postings, therefore, unless you look like you belong in kiddy p*rn, no ones got a thing to worry about, altho, after Dave made that post about thinking about having sex with his customers kids, I would seriously advise anyone in Daves neck of the woods to either not call him, or shoot him square in the nutsack with a

44mag if he so much as looks at your kids in your home.

Sure Dave , If you post the numbers on VS DC "not having a payback " as you said before, or as you now say " a long time" . My numbers are 5-6 yrs. And If you quit cutting down everything but Goodman.

Thanks for all the comments. Looks like I will have to put the units in another location. With that in mind, can the coolant lines be run for about 60' without excessive losses?

I saw an installation, for a manufactured home I stayed in while they were building my house and I was dodging hurricanes, that was underground. That is they dug a hole, lined it with galvanized steel and put the air conditioner in the hole. This left it flush with the ground. I have absolutely no idea why they did this and it sure didn't deaden the sound. Maybe that's a posibility for you??....My .02 ....Ross

How big of a condenser? 60' is a pretty long run. I try to keep 1.5 ton units under 35'.

I didn't see the whole thread.. but have you looked at a thru wall unit? Another option would be chilled water (its pricey.. but has a lot of advantages). You could locate the chilled water unit anywhere. Even on the roof.

Nope, not unless the manufacturer has allowances for this...your installer will be able to tell you. We NEVER run a line more than 50 feet, and that includes any allowances added into the lineset for oil traps or such.

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