Serving Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing & More Since 1964
Is a Mini Split Air Conditioner Right for Your Home?
Same as every year, winter will be upon us before we’re ready for autumn to leave. If you don’t check now, your heating and cooling system might not be able to keep temperatures in your home steady before the first snowflakes begin to fall.
Prior to making any final decisions, Vredevoogd Heating & Cooling wants you to know about all of your options.
What is a Mini Split Air Conditioner?
A mini split air conditioner is a super-efficient heating and cooling system that can cater to specific areas or rooms of your home, compared to a traditional unit that conditions the entire home. Mini Splits are a more flexible option for heating and cooling your home because they don’t require ducts to operate and can be placed to condition only areas where heating and cooling is needed.
The name Mini Split refers to the two main components that make up its system: an outdoor heat pump and an indoor air-handling unit. Having two components allows homeowners to zone their units and can have up to four air handling units connected to a single outdoor unit. The term mini refers to the smaller size of the individual components, compared to a traditional A/C unit, optimized for convenience and privacy.
The mini split’s heating and cooling ability is provided by an air-source heat pump, which runs on electrical power. Mini splits move heat energy from one place to another, based on the season. In the summer months, it removes heat from inside your home and releases it outdoors. In the winter months, it takes heat energy from outside, and brings it indoors. This may seem impossible during the winter months; how can a mini split find heat when it’s so cold outside? Surprisingly, there is still heat energy to be found in the air even in very cold temperatures.
This is also why the mini split is so efficient. The system saves energy by not having to generate heat or cold on its own and its ductless system avoids the energy loss that comes from the poorly insulated ductwork of traditional units.
Benefits of Owning a Mini Split Air Conditioner
- Installing a mini split only requires a three-inch hole in the wall, keeping the process simpler and less invasive than a traditional A/C.
- Mini splits offer more security than most alternative A/C options, like a window unit, because the only point of entry is the three-inch hole for the conduit.
- Typically, mini split systems provide extra filtration, humidity control, and overall cleaner air.
- A mini split A/C unit can save you hundreds of dollars a year through energy conservation and better efficiency.
Who Should Consider a Mini Split?
If you’re building a new house and installing ductwork is an option, a traditional unit is a better choice for conditioning your whole home. The ductless options do better with efficiency, but are meant for smaller or isolated environments.
If you own an older home or slab home without ductwork, in some cases the prices for installing ductwork can exceed the cost of the air conditioner and furnace. A mini split may be a better option if this is true of your home.
Mini split units are suited best for add-ons or nuisance areas. These areas can include any extensions built onto your home that aren’t connected to the ductwork in the rest of the house, or rooms not typically connected to ductwork by default like garages, sunrooms, attics, and finished basements.
It is worth taking into account that mini split systems cost approximately 30% more than traditional forced air systems, but a lot of this money can be made back through the mini split’s efficiency.
How Vredevoogd Can Help
With so many options to choose from, it can be difficult to determine what heating and cooling system you want to purchase. Vredevoogd Heating & Cooling can provide a free service estimate to help you determine what option is best for your home and help with the installation once a decision is made.
Contact us today to schedule a consultation or call us at 844-482-2365 for more information on the services we offer.