Best Mini-Split?

[HITCH-]

Pretty sure the credit is if it installed in a house and not a shop. I was unable to get it 2.5 years ago when I installed my unit.

If the shop is an attached garage I think that would qualify as well. Good question all the same.

 

[tvrgeek]

Scott,

Curious if it has a dry mode that is supposed to dehumidify better? I think that they mainly slow fan speed to condense out more water

Yes it has it, but it is worthless as the evaporator coils run about a degree from the dew point. It flat just won't remove much water. Modern window units are just as bad. The installer tried to tweak it a couple of times, but it is what it is. Morons making energy saving rules who don't understand the actual physics.

 

[Spurtaker]

Yes it has it, but it is worthless as the evaporator coils run about a degree from the dew point. It flat just won't remove much water. Modern window units are just as bad. The installer tried to tweak it a couple of times, but it is what it is. Morons making energy saving rules who don't understand the actual physics.

I have two shops and both have Senville’s. My humidity in them is around 35%. 32-38%. I’ve been really satisfied and they are a year and a half old installed.

 

[Luke]

I have had two Midea systems fail just after the 5 year warranty.
I am very much in favor of the Mitsubishi units because of the 10-year warranty. I did most of the installation of a Mitsubishi system and only paid my HVAC guy for the final check-out. I plan to install an additional Mitsubishi system in the shop later this year.

 

[jfynyson]

I am planning on a house build with a detatched 1200sqft shop and was originally set on a heat pump then when I learned the newer mini-splits can heat as well and are more efficient on A/C I was leaning towards a dual head mini-split. I was about to start researching and asking brand opinions, so I'm thankful for this thread but after reading through it, I'm once again hesitant on going with a mini-split over a heat pump....

 

[Chris C]

I put a AUX 17 seer, 12000 BTU unit a little over two years ago. My shop is a well insulated 24x36 with 9-ft ceilings.

It cost $600. I installed it myself and I know zero about HVAC. All I needed was a vacuum pump, the gauge set and a line adapter and I was ready to go. The pump I had... Gauges I had to buy.

My buddy ordered the one that came with 25-ft line set ...which was way more than I needed. So bought a flare kit and cut the lines to length myself.

It works like a charm. Some have Wi-Fi and apps to control the unit. This one did not but I haven't missed it.

It has kept my shop at 75° in summer (I had it set on 75) with roughly 50% humidity. It obviously varies a little up and down but not much. Right now, it's a balmy 70 degrees in here. I have a separate 200 amp service on its own meter and I haven't had a bill over $75 since I installed it.

Somebody said it before but I echo the sentiment... They are consumables. I figured for $600 if it lasted 12 months I had gotten my money's worth out of it. If it quit today I would go out and get one exactly like it to replace it.

 

[Jack A.]

I put a AUX 17 seer, 12000 BTU unit a little over two years ago. My shop is a well insulated 24x36 with 9-ft ceilings.

It cost $600. I installed it myself and I know zero about HVAC. All I needed was a vacuum pump, the gauge set and a line adapter and I was ready to go. The pump I had... Gauges I had to buy.

My buddy ordered the one that came with 25-ft line set ...which was way more than I needed. So bought a flare kit and cut the lines to length myself.

It works like a charm. Some have Wi-Fi and apps to control the unit. This one did not but I haven't missed it.

It has kept my shop at 75° in summer (I had it set on 75) with roughly 50% humidity. It obviously varies a little up and down but not much. Right now, it's a balmy 70 degrees in here. I have a separate 200 amp service on its own meter and I haven't had a bill over $75 since I installed it.

Somebody said it before but I echo the sentiment... They are consumables. I figured for $600 if it lasted 12 months I had gotten my money's worth out of it. If it quit today I would go out and get one exactly like it to replace it.

What do you consider "well insulated"?

My shop is roughly the same square footage as yours, but with effectively 13' ceilings due to having no ceiling (insulation at the roof line). When finished, it will be R15 in the walls and R20 on the ceiling. The AC sizers I've tried have generally told me I need a 24k unit. But you're happy with a unit half that capacity? Do you have a heat pump or just AC? What kind of temperatures are you keeping in the winter?

 

[oldtexasdog]

Mines about the same size with 13' Dutch ceilings. Very well insulated and I put a 24000 btu Senville (1500.00) in and it holds without running all the time and and it heats and cools within minutes. Have not noticed that much of a change in utility bill.

 

[Chris C]

With the exception of an uninsulated 8-ft garage door, mine is fully insulated. Stick built with an asphalt shingle roof . R13 rock wool insulation in the walls and ceiling and all the windows and doors were sealed with foam. I then covered the walls and ceiling with nickel gap shiplap.

The unit cycles on and off like it's supposed to.... It does not run constantly. I'm not sure exactly how cool it would get it in the dog days of Summer but it's been keeping the shop at 75°/50% without any issues that I can see. That's more than comfortable enough for me. Down here on the flatlands summer is going to be the more difficult season and I have no complaints. As for winter, I haven't seen any issues at all getting it as warm as I need it to be. I usually keep it on 68 and that's no struggle at all.

I don't see the need to upsize the unit and if I insulated and sealed the garage door I'd be 100% certain that the unit was the correct size.

 

[Jack A.]

So you have a pretty similar level of insulation to what I'll end up with. I've already sealed all the penetrations and ensured that all the door and window seals are actually sealing. My biggest weak point is the 18'x8' garage door. I've added an R5 insulation kit to it and that definitely helped, but it's a lot lower value than an actual insulated door. The seals on it need a bit of work as well as there are a few gaps.

Now I'm considering going with an 18k unit instead of 24k. It's supposed to be more efficient to go slightly undersize as long as it can reach your target temperatures. I'm perfectly happy with 60 in the winter and 78 in the summer. There's a good amount of shade on the building so I don't expect summer to be a problem. I also run a separate dehumidifier so I don't expect that to be a problem.

 

[jlwest]

When I installed we ran into county permitting problems that had to be addressed. The room had to meet certain parameters for HVAC conditioning. The electrical work also triggered a permit and an inspection. However, they were correct and it is fine now. Fees were reasonable especially for the long term security that is on record and that protects me the future.

 

[BML]

I have installed 2 of the Blue Ridge minisplits, and have been super happy with them. www.alpinehomeair.com

I agree with this…3 years and doing great.

 

[Kurt avl]

In 15 yrs of having minis I have decided they are throw away systems. I first had Sanyo (“it’s the best available” according to “pros”). When that failed got a Fujitsu (“it’s the best available” according to “pros”). When that one failed I decided cheap was best. Bought a Frontier on sale ($900) for my 26x26 shop with 10’ ceiling. Paid a local to install for $500. Been 2 yrs & no problems. Compare my cost to Mitsubishi just to purchase. When this one goes I will rinse & repeat.

By “failure” I mean the cost of repair was not worth the cost. I would never buy a high price name brand again.

this is more or less what I've heard from they guy I have install them. he's done 5 or 6 for me. says brands don't really matter for this, only judge by the warranty not the name. and do NOT expect them to last for ever. just decide how many years your buying, but don't expect 10.

 

[egsiegel]

Midea Mini Split Air Conditioners & Heat Pumps
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Midea is owned by Carrier (I just retired from Carrier)
Toshiba is now wholly owned by Carrier (was a joint venture)

 

[tvrgeek]

FWIW, finding the limit of my system. 18 degrees outside and the shop was only 62. Blows my mind they can do that. It was not long ago about 30 degrees delta was it.

 

[jlwest]

I have no problem with my Daikon.

 

[jdstanford]

I installed a Mr. Cool DIY in my garage and for the past two years it has worked great. The installation process was very straightforward.

 

[kooshball]

Any one here try the ones from Costway? They seem to be popular on the Garage Forum but local advice is always nice!

 

[oldtexasdog]

Those are made by MrCool I believe and that is a good brand. Most of the mini splits come from the same factory.

 

[MRJ Building]

As we transition my shop to an apartment and build a couple of internal walls, we are going to replace the 7-8 year old Pioneer Mini-Split unit with a new dual head unit to provide better coverage through out the space. I know Mitsubishi was one of the better brands when I was initially looking. I haven't done much research this go around,

Just wondering if that is still one of the better brands or if anyone has any other recommendations.

Thanks

I have a Fujitsu in the shop and Mitsubishi in the house. Both work great. The hyper heat models are nice as they heat in colder temps. The main thing to do is keep it clean!