Alright, I’ll try to simplify this as much as possible. I inspected a townhome today and I’m unsure if the unit has one A/C or two…
Two Thermostats - 1st Floor & Second Floor
First Co Air Handler in the Ceiling Cavity on the 1st Floor
Observed Evaporator Fins above the Return Air Filter on the 2nd Floor
Condensers and what appears to be other Air Handlers on the roof
I haven’t come across this set up before so are those metal rectangular boxes next to the condensers on the roof Air Handlers? I see refrigerant and drain lines exiting from them. I wasn’t able to access the roof only take pictures from my telescopic, ladder wouldn’t reach. Thanks in advance.
My first instinct would be how many units on the roof service the units below. If it’s a 1 on 1 ratio, I would then look at if the servicing unit is a zoned unit, thus the two thermostats. But just a WAG…
I see 8 condensers and I believe there were 4 units in the building. Didn’t count the units while I was there. I see 4 of those metal boxes next to the condensers which appear to be air handlers.
So I’m thinking One Air Handler on the roof for each unit’s second story, one air handler in the utility room downstairs for each unit, then two condensers for each unit on the roof. Although, I’m unsure because I couldn’t get up on the roof to take a closer look.
Is each townhome two stories? Trying to figure out if they are sharing ductwork.
To me, it looks like the 1st floor has the ceiling fan coil unit that is served by one condensing unit. The A-coil you are showing from the bottom is the roof mounted fan coil unit of some type served by the second condensing unit. Is there a boiler system for the heating?
I spent over an hour going up and down the stairs, searching for the thermostats and equipment, then second guessing everything and looking again, then again… lol
This is the First Floor Unit - 30HX10-240. Spec Sheet says a Heat Pump Kit is optional but it appears they have it wired and connected to a Condenser as a Split Unit. The Roof Top Unit was inaccessible.
Yes I checked heat for proper operation and over 100 degrees out of the Supply Vents. Couldn’t access the Condensing Units so I put undetermined on the Report. I know that is nasty for sure.
Asked the listing agent to ask the Seller(s) at first practical instance and did not receive a response. Comments in the report suggested asking the Seller(s). All of that was done. I asked the question here to try and gain a better general understanding of this type of setup and possibly gain a few knowledge nuggets along the way. The point of questioning the setup was not to play a guessing game….Appreciate your concern though…
Looks like it has already been mentioned, but those are just fan coil units. On the mfg spec sheet it looks like they come factory with electric heat up to 10KW. There is an accessory kit if installing with a heat pump (condenser). So on heat mode was it AUX on the thermostat or did the thermostat display HEAT? Was the condenser operating in heat mode? It may have been just electric heat.
The fan coil units, you can buy accessory equipment such as metal cabinet/boxes/plenums, or often HVAC contractors field make their own. The square box on the rooftop is just a cabinet.
I’d say based on your pics and description there were 2 FCU’s and 2 rooftop condenser units.
