Help! - anyone here built/planted anythign to shade a condensor un...

HOMEOWNER CRIES FOR HELP...

posted: September 8th, 2008 - 2:04pm

QUESTION:
Anyone here built/planted anything to shade a condensor unit? a couple years ago we had to take down a tree that used to shade the unit. it was planted literally less than 18" from the house and was starting to cause damage. short of planting one in the same spot I have no clue what to do. The septic tank is roughly 15 ft south of the tank, in the perfect spot for a shade tree! so that area is out. the unit is directly below a large window in the laundry room so I don't see doing an awning there. I have a roughly 3ft x 8ft section between the concrete walkway and the house to work in. the unit sits right against the edge of the walkway, so nothing can go right in front of it. the reason i ask about this is that as soon as the shade hits the unit it's cooling performance is greatly improved. this afternoon it was 104 outside at 6 pm. indoors the unit was blowing cool, but not cold. a few minutes later you could literally FEEL the temps drop. The only thing that happened was the shade from the nearest tree finally hit it. i have noticed this before, as soon as the shade hits it starts really blowing cold. the unit gets full sun from about 11am to right around 6 pm since it is basically on the SW corner of the house. Since the unit seems to work better in the shade, I have to assume it is also drawing less power and therefore more efficient at that time. It is a 1 yr old XL14i and has already almost paid for it's self in savings over our old 30 yr old unit. but if I can do anything to improve it I am willing to try.

ANSWER: Here's a good study on A/C shading. Shading's not as helpful as common sense would make you think..Note the surprising volume of air a system moves through the condenser. No wonder shading can be problematic in regards to minimizing re-ingestion of hot air by the unit. http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/en/publications/html/FSEC-PF-302-96/index.htm Misters on the condenser can help but not many areas have good enough water quality not to cause damage over the long term from scale buildup or corrosion. Here in cent FL, there is a premium condenser spec that is used for beachside installs...special coils made to withstand salt air corrosion. Also hear some AC pros warn about compressor damage from liquid entering compressor because the coils were over-cooled during certain ambient temperatures but this may be anecdotal. If you are in a hotter area like Florida or Texas, consider a heat recovery unit for free hot water and further A/C efficiency increase. A $30-$50 monthly saving is average. http://www.trevormartin.com/about.asp http://www.p2pays.org/ref/11/10104.pdf http://www.turbotecproducts.com/EPhome.html The last link has a neat savings calculator. These units have been around for decades and kick solar hot water to the curb every time in hotter climates.