View Single Post
Old 02-21-16, 12:24 PM   #203
jeff5may
Supreme EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: elizabethtown, ky, USA
Posts: 2,428
Thanks: 431
Thanked 619 Times in 517 Posts
Send a message via Yahoo to jeff5may
Default

I think I have half a clue about the nature of this install. I looked through some of your other threads and found a few pics of your house. Am I correct in assuming you don't have a basement? Judging from the close proximity to your pond, if you did have a basement, it would leak constantly if not hermetically sealed. So that rules out going through the bottom? Slab or teensy weensy crawl space present?

I saw plenty of pics of the greenhouse and pond side of the house, but not much of the side where you are planning on tying everything together. There were a few close-ups of the DHW DX compressor set up right next to your existing outdoor unit. But not too much as far as overall shots of what goes where. I did see that what you have now is right up next to an entry door, so not much room to grow that direction.

I asked my wizard at hand about this one. He looked into his crystal ball (labeled "smirnoff") and my phone, looked back at me, and said:

"Keep it simple, stupid. The guy has two options:

A: Build a doghouse around the little one and put everything in there. If it gets sealed and insulated, the running compressors will keep everything warm when it's cold. Might need a summer vent, though.

B: Build a bridge between the two outdoor units and put everything in there. Don't sacrifice airflow. Lemme see that other pic... OK, it looks like the disconnect was mounted too low anyway. That might be a code violation. If a paver tile will fit in between the unit and the house, there is enough room for everything to fit. Default to option A on the inside, pretty skin on the outside. J channel with tapcons into the wall and sheet metal would be my first choice. Make sure the top has slope that runs away from the house..." followed by irrelevant expert details.

Following the short and sweet answer were some half-drunken ramblings about the pics we looked at. I will omit that part. You know how construction contractors and maintenance mechanics and such can be about something they didn't actually do. So, Then I changed the subject after saying thanks and a toast. I hope his insight helps.

The pics and drawings you provided in your past projects made it super easy for me to seek advice. The skilled craftsmen in general have sort of an "x-ray vision" for this stuff. Without your scribblings and shots, dude would not have shown interest at all. This is why I am always begging people for pics: you never know when they will come in handy, but if they aren't present no one can see them.

If you want to make it look super sanitary, there are a couple of siding products that look just like real brick. Neither one is super expensive.
Wood or foam:

Google SIP panel or sandwich panel. Less common, more expensive.


Plastic:

Sample product. Available all over the place, less expensive, not structural.

OK, back to the project at hand:

Not working on heat pumps today...
jeff5may is offline   Reply With Quote