Best Ductless Heat Pumps

[clightle]

I currently have a house with base board heat.  The price of electic is reasonable in my area.  I have been thinking of installing a ductless system so we can have AC and increase the efficiency of the heating process.  I live in south eastern ohio, so I have hot/humid summers and at times cold winters.

I know I could run an entire house system instead of ductless, but this would involve putting the unit and ducts in the attic, which is not a place I want to go for maintenance and trouble shooting.  There is also an added cost of running ducts and possible efficiency lost due to attic ducts(even when insulated.)  I live in a ranch house so it would be decent application of the ductless system.

Ok...now the questions:

Have the ductless systems been proven enough to install them? (maintenance/operation)

Which would be more effiecient (considering the attic duct)?

Would I need to by Mitsubishi, or are others as reliable/capible?

 

Thanks

[RegUS_PatOff]

or just a few window AC units (or in-wall units) in the mostly needed rooms (or is that what you have now) ?

[clightle]

We currently have fans.  In the summer it gets quite hot in the house even if we close it up during the day.  Compared to base board we should be able to save 50% off our heating bills with the ductless units, which would possibly pay for summer cooling.  Winter heating bills run up to around $200 per month.  The wife thinks this is cheap compared to some of her relatives that pay up to $400 per month for heating, but they live in big old houses with old windows and insulation.

We have side sliding windows which would make window unit installation a little un convienient.  Most of the windows are 36" tall with varying widths (from 36 to 92")

[RegUS_PatOff]

[user=2246]clightle[/user] wrote:

... we should be able to save 50% off our heating bills with the ductless units...

possibly, if the new units were gas heat... if gas heating is 50% the cost of electric heating rates in ypur area.

otherwise heat is heat...

If the new heating units are electric they won't be any more efficient...

I was thinking about through-the-wall type AC units that are used in some apartment buildings.

It's a regular size window AC unit with a metal "sleeve" case that mounts into the wall.

The rest of the whole unit can be slid out for maintenance or repair/replacement.

[clightle]

My 50% number was based on the fact that heat pumps are roughly 2x as efficient as electric heat.  I believe this is based on the heat pump not generating the heat but rather transferring from the outside air into the house.  I agree that kw electric = kw heat in the case of resistance heating, but I don't think the heat pumps generate heat with the electric resistance method except in really cold situations.

[dkpd1581]

Remember one thing with Ductless units.  Most do not have Auxillary heat backup and rely strictly on the compressor for heat. When the outside temps go below the balance point of the unit, there is no method to supplement the falling heat production of the unit and the increasing heat loss of your house.

They are very efficient in cooling; however, when the work they work well - when the fail they fail miserably.  They are difficult to troubleshoot if you are not familiar with them, difficult to fix due to their design, and difficult to secure parts.  Most use advance electronics which translates into plain English as advanced costs of repair and difficulties in actually getting the part.

I have two right now as we speak waiting for parts for 3 months from Mitsubishi Electronics out of Suwannee GA (one board is over $400 Company cost and had to be shipped in from out of country and a simple blower wheel over $500 Company cost).  It is sometimes cheaper to get a whole new unit.  I guess you could consider them the modern day throw away AC unit in some respects.

Again, they are great when they work and are installed to spec; they are great solutions to some serious problems.  Buyer beware.

[grey shrek]

The owner of the small comp. I work for has 2 in his house - do not know the make , size , age , or repair problems but will attempt to remember to ask.  This might take a while!!!!:shock:

[clightle]

Thanks for your response.  I currently use baseboard heat and probably wouldn't disconnect them from service.  I can use them for 'emergency' or auxillary heat.  I have heard that some of the units do use heat strips though, which would be another option. 

Thank you for the input about the maintenance complexity.  Does anyone have a feel for which units are the most maintenance friendly...if there are any.

I see this as my best cooling option and a good option for heating atleast for most of the time. 

[grey shrek]

amacoraire ductless single zone min-split heat pump systems..                                   www.amcorgroupusa.com  is the e-mail address.  Boss has two in his house , says they work really well  --  but then again it may be the salesman talk coming out.