Air Duct Installation, A Homeowner's Guide To Ductwork. With a little help, you can do your own air duct installation. The typical rate for an hvac dealer to do it is about $5. By providing the labor, you can save $1. You can save even more by purchasing the materials yourself.**NOTE** ONLY YOU CAN ASSESS YOUR ABILITY TO PERFORM THIS TASK. THIS IS A GUIDE AND CANNOT PROVIDE ALL OF THE DETAILS FOR EVERY SITUATION. We will look at installing a metal duct system in a new single story home with a basement. After you understand the process, it can be adapted to any type and size of home.
With this air duct installation guide, you can have a quality hvac system and save on installation costs. Boxing ductwork for a dropped ceiling. Q. Actually, boxing in the ductwork is what slows us down. How can we be more efficient? Jeffrey Nixon, West Chester, PA.
You will need some basic tools to perform your air duct installation. Most of them are inexpensive and easy to learn how to use. The air duct installation process begins with proper hvac duct system design. This is a computerized process of determining the size of hvac equipment for the home as well as designing the duct system. The result is a duct layout plan which shows the size and location of ducts and registers for each level of the home."Rough- in" Once you have your duct plan, the "rough- in" stage of air duct installation can begin by cutting holes in the sub floor for the ducts and registers. The size and location of supply registers is shown on the duct plan. It is a good idea to keep the holes, for the supply registers, about three inches from the wall.
The holes should be centered between the floor joists if possible. The holes for the return air are usually cut through the bottom plate of an interior wall and through the sub floor. A metal frame called a plaster frame is installed on the wall to make it easy to cut the drywall around the return air opening. It should be mounted about three inches from the top of the wall. After the holes are cut, the furnace/air handler and evaporator coil should be set in place.
You can use our furnace installation guide to show you how. Next, the plenum is attached to the outlet of the evaporator or the furnace if you do not have a central ac system. The plenum is a metal box with one end open and one end closed. They usually are shipped in pieces and have to be assembled. This allows the supply ducts to be connected to the furnace.
How To Install Ductwork The Home Depot. 201 - Installing Nordfab Ductwork in a Woodworking Shop - Duration: 17:40. The Wood Whisperer 119,565 views. How to install heating/cooling ductwork for your home’s forced air HVAC system. Round metal ductwork is versatile, long-lasting and easy to work with. Learn the best methods for cutting and installing it from a master tin bender. Part 1: Installing a Drop Ceiling to Hide Duct Work Bob walks through the Manhattan Brownstone floor-through apartment with project manager Chris Vila, looking first. How to Install Duct Work. Installing duct work for your HVAC system can be expensive even though the work primarily only involves running some pipe and taping it. Ceiling ductwork actually is routed through attic space, above the finished ceiling and under the roof rafters or trusses. Ceiling ducts are common in houses without.
Once the plenum is installed, the square take- off collars can be installed. These fittings are attached to the plenum by cutting a hole and then inserting the tabbed portion in the hole. The tabs are bent over and metal screws are added to hold them in place.
Read on to learn how to install air conditioning and heating ducts in. When installing ductwork. Trunks that are installed above a suspended ceiling need to. DIY Ductwork Installation ductworksdiy. Installing Round HVAC Duct correclty with conceptual install in 90 seconds -The Sheet Metal Kid - Duration.
The collars should be installed so that the top of the duct that connects to them will be just below the bottom of the floor joists. Installing the main trunk lines.. The supply air duct installation continues by connecting the metal ducts to the start collars. As the square ducts are installed, it is a good idea to measure and cut holes in the top of the duct for the branch duct takeoffs. These branch duct takeoffs will be fittings that are attached to the top of the main duct and they fit in between the floor joists. Their base is square and their outlet is round. Like the main duct takeoffs, they have metal tabs to bend over to connect them.
A screw should be added to each corner to make it secure. Periodically, a piece called a transition will be installed. This piece is used to go from one size of duct to a smaller size. The ducts are supported about every eight feet with metal hangers.
The ducts are connected to each other by a system known as "s" and "drives". S" cleats are pieces of metal that are folded over themselves to make a slot for two ends of separate ducts. Each duct slides into a separate slot. They are usually installed on the top and bottom of the piece of duct."Drives" are pieces of metal folded over on themselves and they slide on the sides of the duct to hold them together. Tabs on the drives are bent over after installation to hold them in place. At the end of the supply duct, a piece called an end cap will be installed. The process is repeated for the other main supply ducts.
The basement should have its own supply and return ducts. The branch ducts should be connected to the registers with a small piece of flexible duct when a dropped ceiling is used. Installing the branch supply ducts.. The air duct installation process continues by installing the branch ducts. These are usually round pipes that are attached to the takeoffs on the top of the main duct. The pipe is snapped together and installed starting at the main duct. The joints are screwed together using three metal screws.
The ducts are supported by brackets at about eight foot intervals. The final piece for a particular branch duct is cut to length and an elbow boot is attached to it. The elbow boot is a fitting that changes the round duct into a square duct and accepts the register. The boot is installed in the hole in the subfloor and nailed flush with the top of the floor. Air Duct Installation, The Return Air Ducts. The next part of the air duct installation process is connecting the return air system. It starts with a return air package. This consists of a metal elbow that has a slot in it for the air filter, duct to connect it to the main return air duct and a start collar.
The main return air duct usually has one end capped and the other open. It is put into the proper position and held by metal brackets. The metal elbow is connected to the furnace air inlet using the tabs and screws. The duct is connected to it and the start collar is mounted to the main return air duct. The final piece of duct may need cut to length. The main return air duct is connected in much the same way as the supply duct.
At the appropriate places, holes are cut in the top of the duct to allow for connection to the branch ducts. The branch ducts are usually the spaces between the floor joists. Pieces of metal, called panning, are attached to the bottom of the joists to create a closed duct. At the supply duct, the panning is attached to the supply duct. On the opposite side of the main duct the joist space is closed off with panning. Finally, the end of the joist space is closed in with panning when you get past the return air holes that were cut into the subfloor. This completes the "rough- in" phase of the job.
At this point in the air duct installation, you should temporarily cover the holes in the subfloor to keep dirt and construction debris out. The air duct installation will be finished after the drywall is installed and painted.
The return air grilles can be mounted on the walls and the floor registers installed at that time. HOME.
How to Install Duct Work: 1. Steps (with Pictures)1. Consult the building codes for your state and municipality. Each state has its own laws regarding HVAC installation.
Confirm that your plan - - including doing the work yourself, rather than hiring it to be done, follows the laws of your area. You may also want to check with your insurance company. Under some policies, this kind of work will void your homeowner's or commercial property insurance. Put on your safety gear, including goggles, work gloves, helmet and face mask or respirator.
Duct work involves moving around in dusty areas and handling objects that are heavy and sharp. Set the mounting ring for your duct work in place on your furnace, fan or air conditioner. Screw it in place with #8 sheet metal screws. Run the duct along the route specified by your plans.
Mount it to the ceiling, floor or wall using the metal straps every 3 to 4 feet (. Attach the straps using the hammer and nails. Insert a connecting collar into the end of each length of duct, then slip a new length onto the opposite side of the collar. Affix it in place using duct tape. As a general rule, too much duct tape is better than too little. Always err on the side of caution if you're not sure how much duct tape to use. Use wire cutters and scissors to cut off excess duct when it reaches the end of your planned line.
Settle the end over the mounting hardware for the grill. Screw it in place. Wrap the length of the completed duct in insulation by rolling it in a spiral pattern like the handle of a tennis racket. Wrap duct tape around each end of the length of insulation, and along the seam of the wrapped insulation. This will maximize the life and effectiveness of the insulation. Repeat until all of your grills and registers are hooked up to your HVAC system. Test your system by turning it on and checking that you have significant air flow through each grill.
You can also walk or crawl along the length of each duct to check for noticeable air leaks, which you can repair with insulation and duct tape.