Multi-Zone Systems

How many heads one condenser carries, and what happens when they all run.

5 articles

• Adding a Head to a System That Is Already In

  The question arrives a year later, and the answer was largely determined on the day the first system went in.

• Controlling a Multi-Zone System — Handsets, Wall Controllers and Where the Sensor Is

  A handset per room works and it is not a thermostat, and the difference shows up as rooms that never settle.

• Multi-Zone or Several Single-Zone Systems

  The choice is usually made on how many outdoor units the wall can take, and it should be made on how the system behaves when only one room is calling.

• Do Not Size the Condenser by Adding Up the Heads

  Four 9,000 BTU heads do not require a 36,000 BTU condenser, and specifying one is how a multi-zone system ends up short cycling.

• Multi-Zone Mini Split Not Cooling Every Room — The Minimum Output Problem

  The system is not underpowered. It is oversized for the one room that is calling, and multi-zone units handle that far worse than single-zone ones.