Exterior central air unit

Adding Central Air to Your Historic Home? Here’s What You Should Know First

Installing Air Conditioning In an Old House – What You Should Know First

 

Exterior central air unit
A central air unit

As a design-build firm in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, we commonly undertake historic home remodels and additions. Suppose you’re a homeowner of a historical home who’s just begun building an addition or remodel. In that case, you may wonder if now is the perfect time to bring central air into your home. We don’t blame you for thinking this. New England weather is as unpredictable as the stock market, and you’ll be opening up walls and going through a major process anyway; why not add some true comfort to the space while you’re at it? Now, adding HVAC into a newer home is complicated enough; add your historic crown moldings, 200-year-old floors, plaster, and lath walls, and you’ve got a whole new deck of cards on the table. When considering whether you should add a central air system into your home during a project, consider a couple of factors, from budget and feasibility to efficiency and design. While adding HVAC during a remodel or addition is not impossible, it comes with headaches, but Red House Design Build works with you to find solutions. We will walk you through considerations such as the efficiency of your system, where to place the ducts, historical preservation, and the rough cost of the project. Now, let’s get into the details!

 

Main Challenges of Installing Central Air In an Old House

Energy efficiency in older homes can pose a challenge when installing central air. If you live in a historic home, then modern code regulations were not in place when somebody built your home, and they likely used materials with different R-values. Here is a breakdown of some things to consider about your home that may affect how efficient—or inefficient—central air could be. 

Lack of Insulation

You may be surprised to hear that your historic home has little to no insulation! If you drill into an exterior wall, you may find nothing inside. You may be able to recall that hot and cold temperatures may be just that: HOT or COLDDDD, with little to no in-between. Rhode Island winters can be harsh, and your home doesn’t let you forget it! Dramatic temperature fluctuations may be due to insufficient insulation to keep your home balanced. 

Degraded Insulation Materials

If you have insulation in your home, it is likely less effective than modern insulation or has degraded to the point of being ineffective. Older, outdated, and even outlawed insulation materials include:

  • Asbestos: Your home hopefully does not have asbestos left in it, if it does, please call a specialist to discuss immediate removal. On top of significant health risks, it is known to be an insufficient insulating tool in modern building practices.
  • Urea-Formaldehyde Foam Insulation: Or UFFI, is problematic in health concerns, but it also becomes inefficient over time as it is known to shrink 
  • and crack with age causing it become less and less effective.
  • Rock Wool/Slag Wool: Rock wool is less effective in sealing small gaps and cracks compared to modern spray foam insulation. It is also more challenging to install, which can lead to installation gaps that reduce its overall insulating efficiency. Moreover, its fibers can be irritating to the skin and lungs during installation
  • Horsehair Plaster: Horsehair plaster is labor-intensive to install and does not offer the high R-values (a measure of thermal resistance) that modern insulation materials provide. Over time, it can degrade, losing its insulating properties, and it lacks the consistency and ease of application found in modern insulation products.

Side Note: Don’t panic! Red House Design Build can also re-insulate your home where necessary. 

Drafty Windows and Doors

  • Single-Pane Windows: Your historic home may still have some or all of its original windows, which are likely single-pane. A single-pane window has just one piece of glass between the exterior and interior of your home. Consider this when placing the duct vents, as you may want to avoid any ducts near those windows.
  • Air Leaks: Historic windows and doors are famous for being difficult to close properly. Either the doorknob doesn’t quite fit into the socket, or the windows have small openings around the edges. Your door may feature a drafty mail slot or need to fit more snugly in the door jamb. These are all factors to consider before deciding on central air.

Red House can also work to restore or even replace windows and doors when needed.

For more information on choosing the right windows, check out this article here.

Will Central Air Ducts Fit in My Old House?

Finding locations for modern AC ductwork is the most challenging aspect of adding central air to a historic home. If you need help understanding where to place ducts, work with a designer to evaluate the existing layout and space before investing in new AC for your home. A design-build firm like Red House Design Build can help you understand your home’s existing structure and propose the least impactful locations to lose space in your home if new walls are necessary to hide ducts. Let’s break it down:

Space Constraints

First, you’ll want to take a walk through your home with a more thoughtful approach. Look at the corners of your rooms, identify empty walls or extra space, take note of ceiling height, and any other future projects you may want to do. Essentially, walk through your home and list the space you need and the space you are okay with losing. You will not have to sacrifice floor space if you decide to forgo interior ducts and opt for ductless mini splits. But for central air, our team can help you find existing plumbing chases, closets, eaves, basement, and attic space for the ducting to travel from room to room and floor to floor. If no such spaces exist, we can design soffits, window boxes, and strategic built-ins to help carve out new space that feels cohesive with the design of your home.

Historical Features

Catalog historical features that must be preserved and consider how the HVAC system will interact with them. We understand that you will want to retain many features of your home. Red House Design Build can design around these constraints.

 

Designing Around Central Air Systems 

New Wall Construction

If your project is an addition, building new walls to accommodate HVAC ductwork is more straightforward. The new design can be constructed to blend with the original architecture. Building walls in your existing structure to conceal ducts can be a bit more labor-intensive, especially if your walls are horsehair plaster or have intricate molding and millwork. With the help of an experienced and skilled firm like Red House Design Build, we can design and craft custom details and create seamless transitions.

 

Functional Benches

 

Custom bench to conceal central air duct work
A custom bench our team carefully designed to conceal ductwork on the floor

One option to hide a duct in a room where you may not have wall or ceiling space is to lay it flat on the floor and create a built-in bench. This will add more seating and a beautiful touch of elegance while perfectly concealing an HVAC duct.

 

Here is an example of a window bench our team created to conceal floor-level HVAC ducts. It is featured in a beautiful historic Victorian home on the East Side of Providence. 

Soffits

kitchen remodel in rhode island
A soffit place along the ceiling with the oven vent works well to conceal ductwork as well as add dimension.
Photography by Aaron Usher III

If your home has enough ceiling clearance, a soffit is a common way to disguise air ducts. Typically, soffits are designed to drop down by about 6 to 12 inches from the main ceiling. However, the height and width can vary based on the ductwork size or other concealed components. Soffits can be even more creatively hidden by being placed above cabinets or used as a design highlight, as seen in the photo below.

 

 

Decorative Beams and Columns

Traditional Millwork in East Greenwich
Stunning millwork in an East Greenwich living room remodel by Red House Design Build.
Photography by Aaron Usher III.

Decorative beams and columns can be a really beautiful and intricately designed way to conceal your ductwork. This is especially popular in these historic homes as they likely already feature similar architectural details. Molding can add a lot of depth to your home and make that added wall less boring.

Mini-Split Systems

A mini-split may be a great choice if none of these options fit your home’s style or take up too much space. Remember that while they are efficient, you will likely need a separate unit for every room to effectively heat and cool your home. These systems save a lot of space, so they are worth considering if that is a key factor in your decision-making process. You can also choose to do a combination system, with splits in strategic locations where running ductwork becomes too invasive. 

Yes, many factors must be considered before moving forward with HVAC installation!

Each step should be taken slowly and with a lot of thought. HVAC can be expensive, and it’s not something you will likely redo for many years, so it’s best to do your due diligence now. From assessing your existing space to deciding how to conceal your ductwork, there is a long process to getting this job done correctly. It is always best to work with your design-build firm to ensure that the installation process goes smoothly and that no design elements are forfeited during this time. If you’re a homeowner in Rhode Island or Massachusetts preparing for a remodel or addition, Red House Design Build has the experience and knowledge to guide you on all project fronts, even adding in central air!

If you’re interested in beginning an addition or remodel project while incorporating an HVAC system in your historic home, we have the perfect team for you.

Read here about our addition projects to better understand our process!

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