Case Study: 32-Head Daikin VRF and Whole-Building ERVs at 19 Waitt Drive — Town of Nantucket Workforce Housing
Photo Credit: Town of Nantucket
North Winds Mechanical installed a 32-head Daikin VRF system with simultaneous heating and cooling plus fully ducted ERVs to every room with code-compliant fire dampers at 19 Waitt Drive, the Town of Nantucket’s new seasonal workforce housing. The result: lower power draw, higher comfort, and year-round flexibility to support town staff and lifeguards part of Nantucket’s broader push to expand municipal and workforce housing. (Nantucket Government)
Project Context
The Town of Nantucket has prioritized new municipal and workforce housing—including a seasonal employee dormitory at 19 Waitt Dr to stabilize critical services and support employees who keep the Island running. The Waitt Drive dormitory opened in 2025 following Select Board approvals and funding actions taken over 2024–2025. (Nantucket Current)
Local reporting detailed the program’s goals (housing for ~50 seasonal staff with shared amenities and apartments), underscoring how the facility serves lifeguards in summer and transitional needs in shoulder seasons. (Nantucket Current)
Mechanical Scope at a Glance
System Type: Daikin VRF (Variable Refrigerant Flow)
Indoor Units: 32 total heads across suites and common areas
Operation: Heat recovery design enabling simultaneous heating and cooling on the same system branch for different zones
Ventilation: Fully ducted ERV (energy recovery ventilation) to each room/suite
Life-Safety: Fire/smoke dampers integrated at rated penetrations and as required by design
Controls: Room-level setpoints + centralized BMS-ready gateway for trend logs and scheduling
Photo Credit: North Winds Mechanical
Why VRF for Seasonal Housing?
1) Lower Power, Higher Efficiency
VRF uses inverter-driven compressors and electronic expansion valves to precisely match load in each zone. Instead of cycling on/off like traditional systems, VRF modulates cutting peak demand and reducing kWh during part-load conditions (which is most of the year on Nantucket). For municipal housing budgets, this means lower operating costs and more predictable bills.
Photo Credit: North Winds Mechanical
2) Simultaneous Heating & Cooling = Real-World Comfort
A heat-recovery VRF lets one suite cool while the next one heats at the same time. That matters in dorm-style buildings where exposures differ (sun vs. shade) and occupant preferences vary. It also avoids space-heater workarounds that drive up energy use and pose safety risks.
3) Quiet, Compact, and Zone-Dense
VRF’s slim refrigerant piping, branch selectors, and small indoor units make it ideal for space-constrained buildings. With 32 indoor heads, we achieved fine-grained zoning without bulky hydronic risers or large duct shafts.
Whole-Building Fresh Air with ERVs
Every room receives balanced, filtered, and tempered outdoor air via Energy Recovery Ventilators. ERVs transfer heat (and in many cores, some moisture), recovering energy from exhaust air to pre-condition incoming air. Benefits include:
Consistent IAQ (fresh air to each room, not just corridors)
Lower ventilation energy thanks to heat recovery
Quieter rooms: supply and return are fully ducted, avoiding door-cut grilles
Code & safety: UL-listed fire/smoke dampers at rated walls/ceilings as specified, integrated to the fire alarm where required
Controls & Commissioning Highlights
Auto-addressing and refrigerant mapping to de-risk service later
Room-level limiters (min/max setpoints) to curb wasteful extremes
Trend logging for temperature, compressor frequency, and ventilation runtime
Shoulder-season optimization so the Town can scale occupancy and still operate efficiently
Results We’re Seeing
Lower electrical demand at part-load vs. like-for-like split systems
Stable comfort despite diverse exposures and occupant preferences
Fresh, quiet rooms with continuous, balanced ventilation
Life-safety assurance via rated penetrations and dampers
Photo Credit: North Winds Mechanical
Community Impact: Housing That Enables Public Service
Nantucket’s investment at Waitt Drive adds purpose-built beds for seasonal staff and flexible apartments for off-season, helping departments recruit and retain essential personnel. Local coverage and Town updates highlight the project’s public funding, capacity, and timeline, reflecting a sustained effort to address workforce housing on Island. (Nantucket Current)
About North Winds Mechanical
We specialize in high-performance HVAC for Nantucket’s unique climate VRF/VRV, heat pumps, ERVs, geothermal, custom ductwork, and integrated controls with a focus on luxury-grade craftsmanship and island-smart reliability.
Have a municipal, lodging, or multi-unit project? Let’s talk.
Need to modernize an older building with lower energy use and better IAQ? We’ll design it.
Sources & Further Reading
Town of Nantucket — Municipal Housing Projects (project completion noted July 2025). (Nantucket Government)
Select Board Contract for 52-Bed Modular Dormitory (Waitt Dr) — Nantucket Current, Mar 19, 2024. (Nantucket Current)
Project Overview & Room Program (Seasonal Workforce Housing) — Nantucket Current, Feb 2, 2025. (Nantucket Current)
Town social posts summarizing capacity and features. (Facebook)
FAQ
Q: Can VRF really heat and cool at the same time?
A: Yes. A heat-recovery VRF uses branch selector boxes to route refrigerant so some zones absorb heat while others reject it simultaneous heating and cooling with energy sharing between rooms.
Q: Why ERVs instead of simple exhaust?
A: ERVs recover energy from exhaust air, lowering ventilation cost and improving comfort by tempering outside air before it enters each room.
Q: What if we expand later?
A: VRF is modular. We design with future capacity and spare ports where feasible, so additional heads or zones can be integrated with minimal disruption.
Want a similar outcome for your property or campus?
Call North Winds Mechanical to schedule an on-site assessment and VRF/ERV feasibility review.
