Installing Ductless Systems in Condos and Apartments (Podcast)

2 weeks ago

In this episode, John Maher interviews Jared Grier, owner of Cape Cod Heat Pumps, about installing ductless systems in condos and apartments. Jared discusses the unique challenges of working with condo associations, the energy-saving benefits for buildings with older electric heating, and options for cooling in summer. He explains how ductless systems can integrate with existing HVAC setups and outlines factors affecting costs, including placement and equipment needs. For more information, visit Cape Cod Heat Pumps.

John Maher: Hi, I am John Maher and I’m here today with Jared Grier, owner of Cape Cod Heat Pumps, an HVAC contractor in Marstons Mills, Massachusetts on Cape Cod, specializing in ductless heating and cooling technology and focused on detail, quality, and professionalism. Today our topic is installing ductless systems in condos and apartments.

Welcome, Jared.

Jared Grier: Hi, John.

Challenges when Installing Ductless Systems in Condos and Apartments

Maher: Yeah, so Jared, what are some of the challenges and considerations when installing ductless systems in condos and apartments as compared to single-family homes?

Grier: Yeah, condos and apartments, sometimes they can be really easy, sometimes they can be a little bit more difficult than single-family homes. Often, you’re dealing with some sort of association, some sort of board that’s going to need to give the approval to install this equipment. We actually have a meeting tomorrow with a large condo complex that has been considering putting these in, but up until now the board and the association has basically said no. So, we’re going to go there to talk to them about the advantages doing that.

Condos and apartments definitely have their challenges because each association’s going to have different rules. We’ve got one condo complex that we’ve got to take a picture of the buildings, mockup where things are going to go, and then after we do the install, we’ve got to paint the fortress the same colors, the siding. They definitely have some unique challenges to them, but they also sometimes can be very straightforward and easy projects as well.

Can Ductless Systems be Installed on Individual Condos?

Maher: Can a ductless system be installed in an individual condo in a larger building without it affecting the neighbors or doing damage to the neighbors’ condos? Or does it really have to be something that the condo association agrees to have you come in and do the entire building all at once?

Grier: Yeah, it differs depending on the condo and the condo association. Oftentimes they’re not necessarily going to make everybody do it at the same time, but there is going to be certain instances where one person’s going to want to do it, they’re going to have to apply to the board to do it, and maybe a bunch of people will piggyback on it, which will allow everybody to have access to do it.

Maher: Mm-hmm.

Grier: Definitely unique in that sense, but it’s not like we can’t just do one condo, we have to do all of them. We can very much just do one unit and leave everything else alone.

Discounts for Installing Multiple Ductless Systems

Maher: If you did approach your condo association and say, “Hey, this might be a good time for us all to go ductless,” can they get a discounted rate by having it be we’re going to install 10 units all at once or something like that? Do they get a little bit of a discount because of that?

Grier: Yeah, about two years ago we did a condo complex, Mass Save had developed a specific rebate for this condo complex, they were all electric heat. They saw it as a big way for them to reduce energy uses for this one condo complex if they gave a specific rebate to the complex. That was a really unique project. We did over 80 condos in about a year and a half span, and it was a fantastic project and quite, to this day, is the most successful multi-family project that RISE Engineering and Cape Light Compact have ever done.

Benefits of Ductless Systems for Apartments and Condos

Maher: Okay. What are some of the benefits of ductless systems for apartment and condo dwellers? Perhaps improved comfort and energy efficiency and noise reduction, things like that?

Grier: Yeah, so at least here on Cape, a lot of the condo complexes that were built were built in the eighties. Well, what was really popular in the eighties? Electric heat, right?

Maher: Like those old-style electric baseboards and things like that?

Grier: Exactly.

Maher: Yeah.

Grier: Electric-resistant heat. Which when you first hear that, you probably think to yourself, “Expensive,” which absolutely it very can. Some of these condos are only 6, 700 square feet and people are paying 4 or $500 to heat their homes in the middle of the wintertime. They’re really nice in the sense that when you’ve got that electric heat, we can reduce your electric bill for heating your home by 30 to 50%.

It’s going to give you a great air conditioning system for those summer months as well. A lot of those condo complexes also don’t have any air conditioning. Maybe if you’re lucky you got some of those ugly through-the-wall units that are framed in or what have you, but even those, they’re very loud, they’re very inefficient. You’ve got to change them out every couple years and you’ve got this ugly thing sticking through your wall. They’re really great in the sense that we can save people quite a bit of money on their heating side of things when they’ve got that resistive heat and get a great cooling system for the summer months as well.

Regulations on Installing Ductless Systems

Maher: Are there any specific regulations or requirements in terms of installing a ductless system in an apartment or a condo building?

Grier: There’s nothing federally from the state. It’s really going to be something that’s going to be uber-specific to that association, that condo complex. As I said, those condos we did in Mashpee, really we had it at will to do whatever we wanted as long as it was in the rear of the building. We’ve got another condo association that we’ve got to mockup pictures, send them, “Here’s where we plan on putting things,” and then as I said, we’ve got to paint it afterwards.

It’s very specific to the condo complex what we’ve got to do and what regulations we’ve got to stick to. But we work with all of our customers to ensure that the work that we’re going to do is not going to violate anything and get them fined from the association or board or anything like that. We’ve even worked with some customers too, the meeting we’re going to have tomorrow, to help association make those decisions to allow this equipment to be put in.

Can Ductless Systems Integrate Into Existing HVAC Systems?

Maher: Can ductless systems be integrated with existing HVAC systems in buildings?

Grier: They can be. Again, there’s too many examples out there to really say, “Yes, this will work. No, this won’t work.” But we do do integrated controls. But oftentimes people are generally looking these to be standalone system or replacement systems.

What Impacts the Cost of a Ductless System?

Maher: And then finally, what are some of the things that affect the cost of a ductless system when you’re looking at a apartment or condo building?

Grier: It’s no different than your typical home, right? What’s our access? What’s the design going to be? How much equipment do we need to put in? What’s the size of that equipment going to be? All those things we take into account when we come up with a proposal for our customers. It can be very simple sometimes, it can be more complex other times. It’s really very individual.

Where can Outdoor Units be Placed?

Maher: Are you able to maybe put the outdoor units on a roof or something like that in certain cases? Do some of the condo buildings have a flat roof that you might be able to put the equipment on as opposed to having them at that ground level?

Grier: Most of the condos we deal with don’t have flat roofs and are not your kind of more typical high-rise buildings.

Maher: Mm-hmm.

Grier: They’re generally going to be multifamily, either one unit below, another unit above, or you’re going to have something that’s basement to attic and just they’re all kind of stuck together, sandwiched together.

Maher: All right, well that’s really great information, Jared. Thanks again for speaking with me today.

Grier: Thanks, John.