My husband and I recently decided to enlarge our master bedroom.
We chose to close in the screen porch and incorporate the square footage in the bedroom area.
We were able to handle most of the remodeling projects ourselves. Insulating the walls, adding windows and putting up drywall wasn’t all that difficult. The porch was already outfitted with electricity. Our biggest concern was how to handle temperature control. In our local area, both heating and cooling are necessary. While our house is equipped with a forced air system, the ductwork doesn’t extend to what was once the screen porch. We considered installing new ductwork but were reluctant to sacrifice the space to accommodate it. Plus, we weren’t confident our home’s furnace and air conditioner could manage the bigger workload. We finally consulted with a professional HVAC contractor who recommended installing a ductless mini split. One of the main benefits of a ductless system is that the equipment is super compact. There is an outdoor compressor linked to an indoor air handler that is lightweight, streamlined and mounted high on the wall. The system provides both heating and cooling, and despite its small size, is surprisingly powerful. The operation is quiet and energy efficient. We have an app on our phone that allows us to switch between heating and cooling, raise or lower the temperature setting and adjust the fan speed. We can even customize the direction of airflow. The ductless heat pump helps to filter contaminants out of the air and combat excess humidity. It requires only yearly maintenance and costs very little to run. We are totally satisfied with the system.