Ductless Mini Split - Hut oh, what have I done?

[Rhythm House Drums]

So I'm about ready to install a heating / air unit and after a little bit of research I decided on a ductless mini split. The unit I got online was for around 900 bucks and I was thinking it's something I could install myself. After I ordered it, I started looking for installation instructions online... Now I'm scared! I blew my budget on this thing, and I'm reading online that a lot of HVAC guys wont touch it 'cause it was bought elsewhere, and that I'm possibly looking at another 500+ to get it installed if I find someone to work on it.

Anyone have experience with these things? I haven't called around yet for quotes. Any idea what I should expect to pay? From looking at the install pages, I think I can install the until and hook up electrical, but I don't know about the HVAC part. Think I need a license and special equipment. Though it does come charged..

Guess I'm looking for expected amount I should pay, any references or members who have HVAC license to help me out and send me a quote. I think I bit off more than I could chew with this. I should have the unit here Friday, but I got to finish insulation and drywall before it goes up... Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.:BangHead:

 

[CDPeters]

Hey Kevin -

When I built my shop, I bought a 2.5 ton full ducted split system online and installed it (mostly) myself. It is a Goodman unit. You're right about the HVAC shops not wanting to touch the final install because they didn't supply the equipment. It took some doing, but I finally found a shop that would do the work. Look for a smaller business, they tend to be a bit more flexible.

On mine, I did all the ductwork, equipment install, electrical and ran the lineset - though I did not do the final soldering on the lineset connections.

The mechanic did the final connection of the lineset, checked it for leaks, double checked my work, fired up and tested everything, and made sure it was fully charged. My cost was a $75.00 service call.

Shop around, I'm sure you can find someone.

C

 

[ehpoole]

The installation consists primarily of finding a suitable place to mount the interior and exterior units, running and brazing the included copper tubing (after punching the necessary holes through the wall) and then releasing the [typically] stored refrigerant charge and verifying that no additional refrigerant is needed.

As I understand it, the primary reason many HVAC installers refuse to work with mini-splits is because there simply is little-to-no profit in it for them. They are not popular enough at the present time to warrant their own dedicated installers (and related vehicles and equipment) who could travel considerably more lightly and with far less equipment in tow than a conventional HVAC installer nor do they justify the usual crew of 2-4 installers that would ordinarily be involved in a ducted system installation. As a result, a lot of valuable equipment is tied up for the duration of the install plus travel time and at best the job only covers the labor of the driver (leaving the rest of the install team on the clock but not on the job). Put simply, it fouls up the entire economic structure that most traditional HVAC companies have been built around and concentrates most all the profit in the mini-split's manufacturer with very little going to the installer.

Purchasing your own unit mail order further cuts into the installer's margins since they can't very well tack on their own percentage after purchasing the unit wholesale. Since the units typically come pre-charged with refrigerant (check the installation manual), they are also unable to earn any profit off the sale of refrigerent in the course of the installation yet they must peform roughly the same work running and brazing the refrigerent lines. Nor do they earn any profit off the copper lines unless there is enough left over for recycling.

You will probably have the most luck getting a LOCAL (as in they are based in/near your city) installer to perform your install since they won't have the added burden of tavel expenses (many HVAC's are regional rather than local operations). You may also have better luck with your existing HVAC installer if you already maintain an annual service contract with them. If push comes to shove, you can always offer to sweeten the pot a bit by offering an extra $50 or $100 gratuity for the job.

There may be some actual HVAC installers here who could expand on the above, but this is my understanding of the situation with respect to mini-split systems. I believe it is also the reason why some mini-split manufacturers will now only sell through traditinal dealer-installers rather than direct to the public.

HTH

 

[zac]

Kevin:

I installed a mini-split system in my shop after seeing it on Ask This Old House. I've been very happy with it. I did 90% of the installation myself and then had an HVAC contractor come in to pull vacuum on the system and start it up. If you are comfortable with working on mechanical things, then it's really not that difficult. There are many different systems available. My shop is a detached garage with an upstairs. The system I bought has two indoor units; one upstairs and one downstairs in the main shop.

One important note. I really concentrate on keeping the filters on the unit clean. A friend, who is a commercial HVAC contractor and also a woodworker installed one of these unit in his shop. He told me to clean the filters once a week and to mount a filter over the intakes of the indoor unit. I've done this and I've had no problems.

If you have any questions about the system, send me an email and I'll send you my phone number.

Good luck.

Robert

 

[scsmith42]

Kevin, I did 100% of my own installation on a Mitsubishi unit 3 years ago. The connections were all compression fittings, and since my lines were only 8' long my HVAC guy told me that I did not even need to worry about drawing a vacuum.

The compressor came pre-charged. All that I needed to do was to bolt everything down, run the lines and the wiring, and then open up the valve on the outdoor unit.

Voila - cool garage!

If you have some solid mechanical and electrical skills and only have a short line run, you should be able to do the install yourself.

Scott

 

[Rhythm House Drums]

Kevin, I did 100% of my own installation on a Mitsubishi unit 3 years ago. The connections were all compression fittings, and since my lines were only 8' long my HVAC guy told me that I did not even need to worry about drawing a vacuum.

The compressor came pre-charged. All that I needed to do was to bolt everything down, run the lines and the wiring, and then open up the valve on the outdoor unit.

Voila - cool garage!

If you have some solid mechanical and electrical skills and only have a short line run, you should be able to do the install yourself.

Yeah, that's the thing, it's going to be a very short run, straight from the wall down to the compressor. Mine is pre-charged as well, and I think all connections are flexable so no brazing copper. My only issue is warranty is voided, and if there is a small leak HVAC guy could detect it, if it goes unnoticed I could be out of AC in a few months (so I've read). Not sure what it would cost to get it recharged..

I'm getting a quote now from a few friends of friends... If it's under 200 just to do the final connections and release the refridgerant, I think I'll let them do it. If it's more I'll probably just end up doing it all myself and hoping for the best.

The unit is coming in Friday, I'm kinda excited to have a warm workshop this summer, and with the built in dehumidifier I'm more comfortable with my machines out there. Now I've got to get busy and finish my insulation and drywall! Never done that before either so it should be a real hack-job like the rest of my shop It's been a fun learning experience.

Thanks for the advice here!

 

[mckenziedrums]

Kevin if you need a hand working on your shop let me know... I'm good at hack jobs too and if we're talking drums you won't even notice the crooked dry wall

 

[JimD]

Over 20 years ago we had a new house built in Omaha, NE. We got in it in November so AC was not necessary immediately. The builder wanted more than I wanted to pay for the AC so I left it out. The next spring I ordered a unit from Sears. At that time you could order the A coil, compressor and lines as a kit all precharged. Puncture occurred as you connected the lines. I poured a little pad, ran the 220V to the compressor (the breaker box was on the inside basement wall opposite where the compressor was), ran the refrigerant lines (across the basement ceiling), found the thermostat wiring (the electrician ran one composite wire the same as he would if the house was to have AC) and hooked that up. I planned to have a HVAC guy come out to check it but it was warm the day I finished so I decided just to try it. It worked fine and we moved a couple years later and never had it checked. Bills were comparable to neighbors with "professionally installed" AC.

The vacumn pump and gagues are the only new tools. I think the same things are used on car AC systems. Someday I might just get the tools but I would do the same thing I did last time again. The worst case is you pay a few dollars for somebody to do a couple hours work. You can do all the time consuming parts.

Jim

 

[Ben325e]

I'm kinda excited to have a warm workshop this summer...

Well, then you would LOOOOVE coming and working in my garage! :rotflm::rotflm: