4-Zone Heat Pump ARCOAIRE D5CMHA | 55,000 BTU - R454B

Four large rooms, including the one above the garage

In a large two-storey home, the rooms never carry the same load: the glazed open area on the ground floor, the primary suite, the children's bedrooms and, often, that room above the garage that nobody manages to keep comfortable. The 4-Zone Heat Pump ARCOAIRE D5CMHA | 55,000 BTU - R454B gives each its own head and set point, on a single condenser. That 4.5-ton D5CMHAH55FAK condenser serves 4 zones and accepts up to 5 at most. It is built with the D5FSHAH09XAK, D5FSHAH12XAK, D5FSHAH18XAK, D5FSHAH24XAK and D5FSHAH30XAK wall-mounted heat pump heads.

Its ratings are 22.3 SEER2, 12.0 EER2 and 10.5 HSPF2. The system is ENERGY STAR certified with the cold-climate designation under ENERGY STAR ID 3556883. The certificate still lists its capacity at -30 °C, and the system qualifies for a $5,640 LogisVert grant.

A home where the rooms do not share the same load

The load calculation of a large home rarely gives four similar figures. The open ground-floor area, with its large windows and patio doors, demands a lot in winter as in summer. The primary suite, often facing the backyard, has its own solar gains. The children's bedrooms are smaller and more stable. Finally, the room above the garage behaves like a separate house. A multi-zone system lets you answer each one with a head of a different size, rather than imposing a compromise on the whole house.

The room above the garage

Playroom, office or guest room, the room above the garage piles up the difficulties: a floor sitting over an unheated space, often three exterior walls, and a roof right overhead. It is the coldest room in the house in January and the hottest in July, and baseboards struggle to keep up. A dedicated head changes that: it heats and cools according to its own set point, without depending on the rest of the house. We mount it on a wall from which the air covers the whole room, and during the visit we look at the floor and wall insulation, because a head cannot compensate indefinitely for a failing envelope.

Four heads chosen one by one

Each head's code indicates its size, from the D5FSHAH09XAK, the most compact, to the D5FSHAH30XAK, the largest. One possible distribution: a D5FSHAH30XAK or D5FSHAH24XAK in the open area, a D5FSHAH18XAK in the primary suite, a D5FSHAH18XAK or D5FSHAH12XAK above the garage, and a D5FSHAH09XAK or D5FSHAH12XAK in a child's bedroom. The total of the four heads must stay within the combinations the manufacturer allows for this condenser, and each head is chosen as closely as possible to avoid short cycles in the small rooms.

Why 4.5 tons for four zones

This size is justified when the zones are large or difficult: a heavily glazed open area, a room above the garage, a home with an older envelope. In a recent home with moderate rooms, a smaller condenser may be enough and run more often at low speed, where it is most efficient. It is the room-by-room calculation, not the total floor area, that decides; we recommend this model only when the figures justify it.

A fifth zone in reserve

The D5CMHAH55FAK accepts a fifth head. A second child's bedroom, a finished basement or an office can be added, provided the combination of five heads remains allowed. We take this into account in choosing the first four heads and in laying out the lines.

The published values at -8, -15 and -30 °C

The certificate lists 47,000 BTU/h at -8 °C and 47,000 BTU/h at -15 °C. The two points are measured separately; we report each one as published.

• COP of 2.60 at the -8 °C point (17 °F)
• COP of 2.00 at the -15 °C point (5 °F)
• Maximum capacity at -30 °C: 26,400 BTU/h, COP of 1.39
• Heating certified down to -30 °C

The published capacity stays identical at the two most common cold points, below the nominal 55,000 BTU size, as is normal in deep cold. Near -30 °C, it drops; the baseboards you keep, particularly in the room above the garage, then serve as backup. These figures come from certificate AHRI 215357158, published by NEEP.

The ratings, simply explained

The 10.5 HSPF2 sums up heating efficiency over the whole season, the rating that weighs most on a Quebec bill. The 22.3 SEER2 does the same for cooling, and the 12.0 EER2 measures efficiency in very hot weather. COP is the most concrete: at 2.60 at -8 °C, the heat pump delivers as heat more than two and a half times the electricity it consumes, whereas an electric baseboard delivers exactly what it consumes.

Summer: the hot rooms first

In July, the room above the garage and the glazed open area are the first to call. The inverter compressor speeds up to answer them, then slows down and holds the four set points at low speed, removing humidity from the air along the way. Each head's dehumidification mode takes over on muggy days. The four heads work in the same mode at any given time, heating or cooling, each at its own temperature. The new-generation R-454B refrigerant has a global warming potential markedly lower than the fluids it replaces.

The $5,640 LogisVert grant

The system is listed in Hydro-Québec's LogisVert program, with $5,640 for the owner of an existing home, according to the list in effect on the installation date. We confirm eligibility before signing and prepare the detailed invoice, model numbers and proof of payment. Our page on the efficient heat pump grant summarizes the program's conditions.

Installation and maintenance

The installation

During the in-home assessment, we measure the four rooms, check the electrical panel and draw the line route. The large condenser goes on a solid stand or a bracket designed for its weight, above the snow line, out of the path of snow falling from the roof and as far as possible from bedroom windows. Each head gets its refrigerant line set, communication cable and drain; the lines from the upper floor and from the room above the garage are grouped under a finishing cover, or pass through the attic when the facade does not lend itself to it. The drains flow by gravity or through a condensate pump. The condenser is connected to a properly sized dedicated circuit. Since R-454B is mildly flammable, each connection follows its rules, before the leak test, the vacuum, commissioning of the four zones and programming the remotes with you.

Maintenance

Rinse the four filters every two weeks in season. Keep the condenser clear of snow, ice and leaves, without covering it in winter. An annual HVAC maintenance visit cleans the coils and blower wheels, checks the drains and tightens the electrical connections. In winter, white vapour during defrost and a short pause in heating are normal. Our cleaning service takes over when you prefer to hand off the annual visit.

AirGreen, for the life of the installation

A family business active for more than fifteen years in Montreal, Laval, Longueuil, the North Shore and the South Shore, we hold RBQ licences for ventilation, refrigeration and electrical work and carry $5,000,000 in liability insurance. The in-home assessment is free, the quote is in writing, and our financing options let you choose the right unit rather than the cheapest one.

Request your free estimate for the 4-Zone Heat Pump ARCOAIRE D5CMHA | 55,000 BTU - R454B. We measure your four rooms, including the most difficult ones, and confirm your grant eligibility before signing.

Warranty: 10 years on the compressor, 10 years on parts and 6 years on labor.