The outdoor side of your HVAC system is essential to your comfort, but let's face it: it's not the most attractive feature of your landscaping scheme. Chances are, you find it ungainly, intrusive and downright ugly, and wish there were a way to hide it. Maybe it's even noisy, and spoils your efforts at outdoor entertaining with its annoying roar.
What can you do to lower the profile of your outdoor HVAC unit? We've got a few suggestions that can help.
Move it.
This can be rather an expensive solution but in some cases, you may want to consider relocating your HVAC unit to a less intrusive location. It's probably best to consider this step when you're ready to replace HVAC equipment. Your options will be limited -- you can only move it so far away from the home, but a different location may help you make it more obscure and satisfy your landscaping and entertainment needs.
Landscape around it.
Attractive landscaping around an HVAC unit is often the key to making it less prominent. Choose plants carefully. Don't plant bushes such as holly with stiff, poking leaves, nor plants that are likely to shed fiber, seeds or leaves that will clog up the unit's parts. Plant plants 2-3 feet away from the unit, and keep them trimmed back for easy access.
Hide it.
Decorative garden elements can hide the unit. For instance, erecting a trellis and growing vines such as clematis, Virginia creeper or morning glory will help. You might also plant climbing roses, but make sure the thorns are far enough away where they won't trouble the technician. A wall in front of the unit or a wall around it might be another solution. If you're not handy enough to build these structures, you may find a pre-fabricated model at a garden landscaping supply or online. If noise is an issue, make sure you purchase a structure that muffles the sound, but doesn't restrict air flow.
We've got other solutions for hiding your outdoor HVAC unit at Air Assurance. We serve Broken Arrow and the surrounding area.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273.