Fan Coil Unit | What Is It and How Does It Work?

Is a fan coil unit a good option for your home? There are numerous methods of heating and cooling houses today. Forced air furnaces and air conditioners are the most prevalent systems, but they require ductwork. Ductwork installation in a pre-existing home is an expensive and invasive construction project. Fortunately, several alternative heating and cooling systems are on the market.

A fan coil unit is one alternative system for homes without ductwork. Fan coil units come in various styles, but they all use a fan and a coil to heat and cool air. Learn about the advantages and disadvantages of fan coils, and discover if a fan coil unit is suitable for your home.

Four types of fan coil units are:

• Concealed horizontal ceiling mounted
• Exposed horizontal ceiling mounted
• Vertical floor/wall mounted
• Under floor horizontal mounted

• Cooling and heating functions
• Ability to separately control room temperatures
• Requires less space than ducted units
• Flexible installation positions and locations
• Cheaper and easier installation than ducted units
• Air does not mix with air in other spaces
• Cools and heats rooms quickly
• Dehumidifies rooms
• No harmful fuel emissions
• Easy to maintain and replace
• Efficient if well-maintained

• Noisy
• Unsightly
• Produces dry air
• Valves can leak
• Some units require maintenance of distillation trays, drainage units, and disposal of distillation liquid
• Most units don’t introduce fresh air
• Filters are small and inefficient

A fan coil is a stand-alone unit that cools, heats, and circulates air indoors. An air handler unit (AHU) is an HVAC system component that moves air through a house’s ductwork after it has been cooled or heated by an air conditioner or heat pump.

Fan coils and heat pumps are different types of HVAC equipment. Fan coils draw in air, heat or cool it, and circulate the air back into the room. Heat pumps transfer heat between the inside and outside of the house.

Fan coils and heat pumps have some similarities. Both have heating and cooling abilities, manage humidity levels, and work separately, paired together, or combined with furnaces or air conditioners.

A fan coil unit (FCU) is a stand-alone heating and cooling unit that does not require ductwork. Fan coil units are incredibly versatile. They can control the temperatures of individual rooms, connect to ductwork to serve multiple rooms, and be paired with air conditioners, heat pumps, and furnaces for supplemental heating and cooling. Fan coil units have many applications, including houses, apartments, condos, offices, and hotel rooms.

The fan and the coil are the main components of a fan coil unit. The fan draws in air from the space, the coil cools or heats, and the fan blows the treated air back into the area. Refrigerant, cold water, or hot water circulates through the coil to raise or lower the temperature of the air passing over the coil.

Fan coils provide heating and cooling, don’t require ductwork, are cheaper and easier to install than ducted units, and can be used in a single room or connect multiple rooms. On the downside, fan coil units can be noisy, unsightly, and produce dry, stale air.