[ithos]

Here is a cheaper option for less than $400 if the window isn't seen by your neighbors.
Amazon.com

It is very low profile and lets you keep your window closed. And if you are ratted out you can always sale it on craigs list or similar.

[Robnlaura]

[QUOTE=ithos;2322852]Here is a cheaper option for less than $400 if the window isn't seen by your neighbors.
Amazon.com

This actually uses the same technology as a larger mini split (inverter) made by midea Midea Air Conditioning is the leading manufacturer for all major brands like Toshiba, Carrier, Goodman, Friedrich, Samsung, Kenmore, Trane, Lennox, LG, and many more private labels like Senville, Klimaire, AirCon, Century, Pridiom, Thermocore and much more.
]

[Rwirish]

To answer the question, no one in The Villages has ever done this.

[MandoMan]

Originally Posted by ithos

You perception that a mini split suggests an inadequate cooling system could not be more wrong. Most commercial properties have have zone controls to save energy. Installing a dedicated AC unit in the bedroom makes sense since you can keep the temperature at 68 degs for optimal sleep conditions without wasting energy cooling the rest of the house. The units are very quiet and if there is any noise it would probable serve as a sleep aid similar to playing brown noise in the background.

I recommended to a girlfriend in New Jersey in a centuries-old house that she get a mini-split system to cool or heat her bedroom and sun room. She loves it. It’s very quiet, both inside and outside, and it’s certainly much cheaper and quieter than a window air conditioner (which she had in her living room and a guest bedroom). However, here in The Villages, in a courtyard villa, I have a new high end heat pump. I keep the temp at 71° to 73° 24/7 year round and rarely open a door or window. I also drive a Prius Prime with batteries I charge every night in my garage. Last month my electric bill was $68. At that price, it would be hard to justify a separate heat pump for one area. Turning the house down to 68° at night would cost nothing at all unless the night time temp were above 68°, which is only in the summer, and even in the summer, the sun doesn’t shine on the house at night, so it’s easy to cool the house down a little more.

[ithos]

Originally Posted by MandoMan

I recommended to a girlfriend in New Jersey in a centuries-old house that she get a mini-split system to cool or heat her bedroom and sun room. She loves it. It’s very quiet, both inside and outside, and it’s certainly much cheaper and quieter than a window air conditioner (which she had in her living room and a guest bedroom). However, here in The Villages, in a courtyard villa, I have a new high end heat pump. I keep the temp at 71° to 73° 24/7 year round and rarely open a door or window. I also drive a Prius Prime with batteries I charge every night in my garage. Last month my electric bill was $68. At that price, it would be hard to justify a separate heat pump for one area. Turning the house down to 68° at night would cost nothing at all unless the night time temp were above 68°, which is only in the summer, and even in the summer, the sun doesn’t shine on the house at night, so it’s easy to cool the house down a little more.

It was your comment about inadequate cooling that I took exception to. You seemed to be painting with a broad brush and implying substandard construction. Maybe there alot of homes with inferior insulation. But I have not seen many complaints about it.

[Freehiker]

I had one in my TN house.

Mitsubishi, super quiet and worked perfectly.

[Linco]

Would those with quiet mini splits please share the brand names? Thank you!

[CosmicTrucker]

I had a Mitsubishi system installed last year. Ceiling cassette in the bedroom ceiling and a wall unit in the garage. It makes sense to me to cool the one room versus wasting energy and wear and tear on the main unit cooling the whole house. Both units are whisper quiet. The downside to the ceiling cassette unit is someone has to climb a step ladder to clean the filers a few times per year.

[sblb]

I didn’t think that it means inadequate heating. We put one in years ago, and asked our Realtor first what he thought for a resale of the house. He said its a good idea for resale. This way we keep the bedroom at 65 at night and keep the reat of the house at 80. It makes no noise at all. We have it mounted in the wall.

[sowilts]

Originally Posted by GreggC69

Looking at getting a mini split for the garage and at the same time adding a head for the master. Figured I could cool that room as needed (like it cooler at night and other times) without having to drop the temp in the whole house unit. Have others done? If so, did you go with the ceiling mounted option and put in the outer portion of the ceiling without impacting the trey? Or did you do a wall mount? Appreciate in advance any thoughts and ideas.

Our HVAC, Carrier, is the best Unit installed in our home. Whisper quiet and cools even during the last hot summer. SECO power is so much more efficient than our Home in Maryland. Agree with ceiling fans. Cost of the units, assuming they are Mitsubishi, maybe a factor to consider.

[Road-Runner]

Added one to our garage and it is working marvelously. I will add that we insulated the garage door and had R-18 insulation blown over the garage, plus we had two solar powered roof vents installed. Helps the entire house stay cooler.

[Wondering]

Originally Posted by GreggC69

Looking at getting a mini split for the garage and at the same time adding a head for the master. Figured I could cool that room as needed (like it cooler at night and other times) without having to drop the temp in the whole house unit. Have others done? If so, did you go with the ceiling mounted option and put in the outer portion of the ceiling without impacting the trey? Or did you do a wall mount? Appreciate in advance any thoughts and ideas.

Zone your home. It's probably cheaper. They can install a separate thermostat for each zone. I have three zones in my house and love it!

[Donegalkid]

Originally Posted by GreggC69

Looking at getting a mini split for the garage and at the same time adding a head for the master. Figured I could cool that room as needed (like it cooler at night and other times) without having to drop the temp in the whole house unit. Have others done? If so, did you go with the ceiling mounted option and put in the outer portion of the ceiling without impacting the trey? Or did you do a wall mount? Appreciate in advance any thoughts and ideas.

We did the the research and numbers regarding furnace/AC replacement versus mini splits. Decided on 4 wall mounted minis throughout the house — 3 running off of 1 exterior unit; 1 off of another exterior unit. Mitsubishis. They are great. One year experience: we like the individual remote controls (e.g. different temps for different rooms); like the energy efficiency; liked the 2K tax credit; like having no furnance room (now a closet); like no exterior noise from AC compressor; like no crazy ductwork in attic (all ripped out — leaving space and neatness); like having no ductwork covers from which DUST flows from 20 year old ductwork (we had all the vents capped); like the ability to control fan speed and air flow on each unit; like the easy cleaning of unit filters. No downside — yet. We used Daniels from Inverness. A great small company. The owner is directly involved in doing estimates; supervising the work to be done. Highly recommend.

[Cybersprings]

Originally Posted by dewilson58

Have you looked into Zoning your current system??

Cool sections/rooms individually, not the entire house.

I agree 100% with the idea, but it doesn't work, unless you spend a ton of money.
First of all, you have to rerun all (almost all) of the ductwork in the attic. Then you have issues with closing off zones and the back pressure that causes, which can ruin your a/c. I tried doing this with Flair to make it more cost effective, but only 2 or 3 vents could be closed off before Flair kept the others open due to back pressure.
From my research, the best way, when done as a retrojob is the mini split.

[huge-pigeons]

I have the ceiling mini split. The wall units are ugly, the ceiling units are almost invisible. Also, our unit is very quiet. The guy told us that if we wanted to convert our existing whole house system to mini splits, they can do this multiple ways: zoning off a larger unit or getting multiple smaller units.
BTW: all of the piping is in the attic with no issues.
Plus you can get a tax rebate/credit on installing a new more efficient heat pump/mini split