Furnace In Attic Or Crawl Space

There are two options.

Furnace in attic or crawl space.

A furnace can suffer from a drop in energy efficiency if it s in an unconditioned space such as an attic. Even when furnaces are put on the main floor floodwaters often overrun the first floor causing severe damage to the unit. The hvac s air pickup is in the crawl space and it spreads the radon laden air into the house. An outdoor unit which houses the fan condenser and compressor and an indoor unit which holds the evaporator and fan.

What about my furnace. Attic hvac systems save space. Most of the issues that furnace might experience in an attic are due to extremely cold weather in this poorly insulated space. Sadly this illustration comes from the web site of the air conditioning heating and refrigeration institute ahri.

You might not receive the same air movement benefits if the unit is in a garage either. So when we have a choice we prefer hvac systems located under the house. The university of maine recommends proper venting of a crawl space to prevent radon gas buildup. Upgrade to a high efficiency furnace.

During the fall we disconnected the old furnace and decided to install a new one in our attic space running new ductwork. Well mainly it s a way to save space. A furnace in the attic is a design that works for all homes. Doesn t it need combustion air.

If you have a standard efficiency 80 furnace it needs to be in a vented space for proper combustion. My contractor suggested putting the furnace in the attic. Rarely will a sealed foam insulated attic deviate more than 15 degrees from the living space temperatures below it. High efficiency furnaces aren t usually recommended for an attic.

In flood prone areas instaling a furnace in the attic provides protection. What can you do if you want to encapsulate. Compare that with the daily 140 degree temperatures found in vented attics. Don t put your furnace in the attic.

So why put an hvac system up in the attic at all. If the crawl space does not have proper ventilation radon concentrates in the trapped air inside the crawl space. If you don t have a crawl space or a basement then it can be a challenge to place a furnace on the ground floor of the structure. The current ductwork is in the crawlspace and we are replacing it all.

Just installing the furnace in the attic crawl way of a single story home gives protection from most flooding. Things seemed to be fine until we had a sustained cold and windy period.