A Very Cool Solution for Homes without AC
“ductless air conditioning”
Many homes, especially the older ones, weren’t built with central air. Today with global warming having air conditioning is not just a luxury but actually a necessity. Many climates that used to be mild are now experiencing record heat waves on a regular basis.
Homes that didn’t put in air conditioning frequently didn’t pay much attention to insulation and energy efficiency either resulting in more difficulty in keeping the morning cool air temperatures inside the home as the day wears on. So now, especially since it’s summer and things are heating up, many are looking at installing air conditioning and other cooling and insulating options.
Installing central air conditioning can be a major expense. Installing dual and triple zone air conditioning can be even more expensive. My sister and her husband both work from home and they didn’t have air conditioning in their home when they bought it so one of the first things they did was to have central air conditioning installed.
Unfortunately they let themselves be talked out of installing dual air conditioning and decided to just have one unit for the entire home. What they found out was the temperature between the first and second floor is about 20 degrees different and they spend all of their time upstairs in their offices so things are kind of miserable. They have to turn the air on so cold downstairs that you need a jacket just so that the upstairs air temperature will be bearable. And their electricity bill is through the roof in the summer.
So what are their options at this point? Well they could redo the central air conditioning to make it dual zone at considerable expense, they could use the energy efficient window film to help cut down on solar heat at a minimal expense but it probably wouldn’t keep things as cool as they would like or they could install a window air conditioner but they can be noisy and block light and also don’t really cool that well.
So here’s a midrange solution that can work very well for any home: Ductless Air Conditioners.
Ductless air conditioners, also sometimes known as mini split air conditioners because they are similar to a regular ducted central air conditioner, but on a smaller scale, are more expensive and than window air conditioners and do require an HVAC professional to install it but are far less expensive and less complicated than installing central air conditioning.
If you currently do not have air-conditioning, or if you have a central system that does not cool well, adding a ductless air conditioner provides better comfort than a window unit. It is quieter and more efficient and has more cooling capacity.
The compressor unit is located outdoors and a cooling unit is mounted high on a wall or ceiling. You only need a hole in your wall about 3 inches in diameter for the coolant, electricity and drainage lines. Since the compressor is outside the ductless air conditioners are very quiet.
There are a lot of options for air vents and they can be mounted on walls or the ceiling.
Normally you will need one air handler per room but if your home has open areas you may be able to get away with using one air handler to cool multiple rooms.
(quad zone)
(dual zone)
This is a very cool solution that won’t break the bank and can be done fairly easily and quickly without a lot of mess or expensive renovating.
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I love where the Go Green campaign has taken American society….and my solar business lol.
We are in an unfortunate situation where we use a window unit. But, we just replaced our old model with a new energy efficient one. It has many new features such as energy saving mode and more. The savings to the environment and us are great.
Woodys last blog post..Make Your Own and Save
Great information. More and more people are installing air conditioning and face a lot of problems because at the time that their house was build, it wasn’t made with future plans for air conditioning in mind.
I do not totally agree with “Today with global warming having air conditioning is not just a luxury but actually a necessity.” because there are still many other options to keep your home cool without air conditioning.
Did you know many utility companies offer incentives to homeowners who install high-efficiency HVAC systems.
While this is not the greatest for business, I know of quite a few homes that are older that take advantage of this. And it works well. The only problem I see is that quite a few of these types of homes also don’t have great insulation, so the actual cost of cooling can get rather high because the cool air dissipates to quickly. Other than that, they are great.
I really liked your blog!
Mini Splits are actually becoming very popular in homes that are centrally ducted. As more and more people cannot afford the $6k pricetag on a replacement unit installed, they are turning to mini splits to take up the slack and spot cool.
Good article!
Mark
Great post and some good ideas from the commenters,
It is a lot cheaper than getting AC.
Great blog.
Alister
The split systems are the more cost effective way of cooling a house with each room a unit is located in being on its own thermostat. Where people mess up, is leaving a door open and wondering why the room does not cool down. A simple example of this is to ask “would you leave the door open on your refrigerator and expect it to keep cool”. Why cool the whole house when half the rooms are not in use and you can just close their doors to save the heat escaping.
Someone correct me if I am wrong but are the ductless air conditioners will cost you more in the long run, because of the amount of electricity they use, compared to a 13 seer split system.
Yes, a ductless air conditioner is usually more expensive to run, electricity wise than a split system
The ductless air conditioning system is a nice option but I have found that they are pretty darn expensive. I know that adding duct work and such is more expensive however, it is surprising that these ductless systems are not cheaper than they are.
This is so true the ever changing climate has go more and more of us looking into getting AC’s. I know that here in South Africa the summers have really changed and gotten hotter, like now we are only in the beginning stages of spring and the temperatures are already soring. Nice post easy read and great information.
I have to agree with many of the comments,due to global change and the increase in temperatures more people are turning to getting Ac’s and they are incredibly expensive.
Nice interesting post.
We’ve used these several times to add A/C to condominiums. Often times in an open plan or open loft, one unit is sufficient. It really is a cost effective way to add A/C but also it is more efficient to heat in the winter too using this system.
I wanted to get that system. I think that those ductless air conditioning systems are the way to go but they are incredibly expensive. But getting your ducts cleaned is not cheap either. One you pay a lot on the front end and the other option you pay a lot on the back end.
Clinton
Having a fancy house with the best interior decor money can buy still doesn’t make you house a comfortable livable home if it is freezing in winter and sweltering in summer. Passive energy control is ultimately the most cost effective as it doesn’t consume any eletricity, eg ceiling insulation and double glazing. Aircon should be the cherry on top, with the bonus being that the properly insulated home will require the aircon to work much less in order to achieve the same comfort levels.
The mini splits are getting to be very popular. They are not expensive and work great. Most home owners that are some what mechanical can easily install the units themselves.