Mini Split A/C for Home

[jd1923]

I'd like to install a Mini Split A/C at home. Looking for my technical friends here who have researched models or installed one in your home.

Our home, built in 1980, is still on the original HVAC system (with a few repairs I've made). It's a combined unit up on stilts, attached to one end of our long 4100 SF home. The other end of the home doesn't get much airflow and neither do the bedrooms. I'd like to install a dual-head mini split, one head in our bedroom and the other in my office where I train via Zoom in the afternoons. Both rooms get hot in the summer and it's a waste cooling the entire home low enough to cool these two small rooms (only 180 SF each). It would be OK if cool air flowed out in the hallway too to give the old system some help. Likely the smallest dual unit at 9,000 + 9,000 BTU is enough, or maybe 12 + 12.

I see brands that are familiar like Tosot, Turbro and Pioneer, since they make RV units. I also see Senville, Cooper & Hunter, Daiken, Della and others. Any brand preference? I see Senville has good reviews with a 5/10 yr warranty. I'd like to buy from an HVAC distributor vs. Amazon, but each time I find a link the $2K dual unit on Amazon goes for over $3K elsewhere!

Definitely need a dual head unit and the 2 rooms are side-by-side on one exterior wall which should make for a tidy installation. Time to drill into our home instead of the Oliver! 🤣

115V would be a close run. I could tap into a bedroom outlet which only has a nightstand lamp on the circuit. For 230V I can add a breaker and run wire from the garage along the soffit. Thinking 230V is more efficient, but not sure. Is R32 the best refrigerant or another kind? Lots of Qs!

Any installation or use experience out there? Thanks

[pjt]

Just installed a 24k BTU Pioneer mini split in my garage. Takes some time and effort, but it's doable if you're handy. I don't have experience with a dual head unit.

You will need some specialty tools:

• Cut, debur, and flare copper tubing (get the Yellow Jacket eccentric)
• Vacuum pump
• Micron gauge (recommended)
• Lineset bender kit (BendAid)
• Specialty torque wrench (or crows foot) for flare nuts

Measure everything multiple times before making any critical cuts or holes. The included cardboard template for mounting the inside unit was wrong, but luckily I caught the error.

It works exceptionally well and is very quiet, both inside and outside.

Benjamin Sahlstrom has some excellent installation videos:

https://www.youtube.com/@BenjaminSahlstrom/videos

[jd1923]

18 hours ago, pjt said:

Just installed a 24k BTU Pioneer mini split in my garage. Takes some time and effort, but it's doable if you're handy.

Cool @pjt, and thank you for your input as a new Forum member! I hope very soon you get a chance to have an Oliver of your own! This thread was quiet for two days which surprised me.

Handy, yeah no problem and I have flare tools from working automotive brake and fuel lines, though I may need a larger flare die. I recently purchased a vacuum pump and gauges and have restored the A/C in two of our trucks. The kit has fittings for R134A, R1234yf, R32 and R454B refrigerants. The Senville 18K and 24K BTU models I've been looking at uses the very efficient R454B which is 70% R32 and 30% R1234yf. 

Starting to worry about whether I need permits in our city. Hate to get .gov involved, nothing but corrupt bottom-feeders! 🤣 Much of electrical code is BS too, like having a power cutoff box at the unit, as any idiot can merely trip the breaker and I don't want the extra cost and another box mounted to the side of our home. Our city will likely add 100s of dollars in permit costs too.

Glad to know that Pioneer is working out for you. We have a member here who installed a Pioneer inverter A/C rooftop on his Oliver. Most of the models are likely very close in features and quality, except for the refrigerant used.

Did you sit the compressor/condenser unit on the ground or wall-mount it? In our application, I would like it wall mounted, but wondering if that would cause noise. Cooling bedrooms has different concerns than cooling a garage. Would love one in my garage but I just tough it out July and Aug when we see some real heat.

Thank you for the suggestion on installation videos. I'll take a look. I'm going to talk to the heating & cooling company that I've used and trust to get some inputs on how to handle this in our area. More to come... Thanks again, and BTW feel free to ask us any questions if you are interested in purchasing an Oliver, the best little egg camper out there! 😎

[pjt]

1 hour ago, jd1923 said:

I hope very soon you get a chance to have an Oliver of your own!

I bought a LE2 Platinum Twin a couple months ago.  🙂

 

1 hour ago, jd1923 said:

I may need a larger flare die

I would highly recommend the Yellow Jacket eccentric tool.  I wouldn't take a chance with such a critical component.

 

1 hour ago, jd1923 said:

Did you sit the compressor/condenser unit on the ground or wall-mount it? In our application, I would like it wall mounted, but wondering if that would cause noise.

Wall mount.  I'm amazed at how quiet both the indoor and outdoor units are.  No vibration transmitted to the building either.  The wall mount bracket came with rubber vibration pads, but there's very little vibration to begin with.

Here's the exterior part of the installation at my house:

 

[srthomsen]

In approx 2018-2019 BE (before oliver) we lived in the Coachella Valley in S. California. Summers were routinely 110-120 for months at a time.  I was down there trying to get the house ready for our move and spent a lot of time making a bunch of tables for the new home. At night because it was by 10pm ONLY 100.  

We installed a minisplit in the uninsulated garage and the mini-split would easily knock down the air temp form 100 to 80 withot breathing hard.

That said, I can't recall the brand however we did pay approx $3800 for the system installed. After procurring a permit, the installation took one day.

[FloraFauna]

John, I  did not install it myself so I will be of limited help. I went with a minisplit for my shop and use a wood stove when temps here drop below what is optimal for the minisplit.   But I love the unit.  Super quiet inside and out.  A very convenient option for heating in transitional season temperatures when it's just not worth firing up the wood stove.  Of course the cooling function works well too.  I have a larger heat pump on my house again for ac and transitional weather heating.  But like in the shop, I have a gas boiler for when it really gets cold.  Its not that the heat pump and minisplit won't heat in cold weather but rather they are not my most efficient option in cold weather.   Of course your climate is a different situation.   

[FloraFauna]

If you can't read the print on the unit label and you are interested,  dm to me and I can provide details.   The unit currently runs on 240V but I am currently converting my place to 3-phase and then it will run on 208v single phase.  It's currently on a 30 amp circuit because of what was on the circuit before but I seem to recall it will run on a 20 amp circuit.