What the work is
A ductless head and an outdoor unit connected by a line set. No ductwork, so no duct losses, and the room gets its own thermostat instead of borrowing the rest of the house's.
It is the right answer for a room the existing system cannot serve, and the wrong answer as a way of avoiding a duct problem that is fixable. We will look at the ducts first and say which one you have.
One outdoor unit can serve several indoor heads, which is how a casita or a converted garage gets conditioned without touching the main system. It is also how a multi-head install goes wrong: heads sized by room without regard to what the outdoor unit can do at its low end, so it short cycles and never dehumidifies.
Condensate is the other thing that decides whether this install is good or bad. A head on an interior wall has to drain somewhere, and the answer is either gravity to the outside or a small pump. Which one you are getting should be on the quote, because a pump is a moving part that will eventually need attention.
What is included
- Head, outdoor unit, line set, condensate and the electrical connection
- Line set run and finished, not left in a surface trunk down the front of the house unless you choose that
- The permit where one is required, and start-up readings
- Condensate route decided and stated on the quote, gravity or pump
What is not
- A new electrical circuit, which goes to our licensed electrical partner
- Using a mini-split to paper over a duct fault we can fix for less
What to ask anyone quoting this, us included
- Is my problem the room or the ducts?
- Where does the line set run, and what will it look like from outside?
- Where does the condensate go?
- Is this one head or several, and is the outdoor unit sized for the low end?
- Gravity drain or a pump?