If you’re in the market for a new heating or cooling system for your home, there’s no lack of options out there to choose from. One option that’s becoming increasingly popular is the ductless mini-split system. We’re going to dive into more details below about what this system is and how it could benefit your home.
Heat Pump Technology
A ductless mini-split system relies on heat pump technology to provide both heating and cooling for your house. It uses three main components, which are the indoor air handler unit, refrigerant lines, and the outdoor condenser unit. During the summer months, the indoor air handler unit will pull in hot air from inside of your home and pass it over the evaporator coil. Inside this evaporator coil is going to be refrigerant.
Heat will naturally transfer to the low-pressure refrigerant and leave the air cold. This cold air is then redistributed throughout your house so that you and your family can be comfortable. During the winter months, this unit will operate very similarly, except that it will absorb heat from the air outside and bring it inside of your home. Heat pumps rely solely on electricity to transfer heat from one location to another.
Ductless vs. Ducted Setup
The only thing that makes the ductless mini-split different from ducted heat pump systems is the lack of ductwork. Unlike traditional ducted systems, ductless mini-split systems rely on having multiple indoor air handler units to control the temperature throughout the various rooms in your home. For example, you’ll have an indoor air handler unit in all of your bedrooms, living room, kitchen, den, and any other major room throughout your household. Each unit is independently controlled from the next, meaning that you can set a different temperature in each room of your residence.
Great for Retrofitting
Ductless mini-split systems are great for households that don’t have existing ductwork. This is most common in older homes that rely on boiler systems that use piping instead of ductwork to deliver heat. A ductless mini-split system is noninvasive to install, as all it requires is a small 3-inch hole in the exterior wall for each room that has an indoor air handler unit. It’s going to be more cost-effective to use this type of system as compared to having an HVAC technician install new ductwork in your already-built home. New ducting would require some of your walls and flooring to be ripped out to allow access for the new air ducts to be run. That process is very invasive and quite costly to deal with.
Zone Temperature Control
Because you’ll have a different indoor air handler unit in each main room throughout your house, you can be more efficient with your energy usage. For example, you won’t have to worry about setting the temperature in your home so cold to be comfortable in your bedroom. Instead, you can set your bedroom temperature to be a couple of degrees colder than the rest of your house. This will ensure that you’re extremely comfortable in your residence without wasting excess energy trying to cool it all down to one unison temperature.
No Toxic Emissions
Because the ductless mini-split system relies solely on electricity to transfer heat from one location to the next, it doesn’t burn any fuel. This means that it doesn’t produce any toxic by-products of the combustion process like carbon monoxide. Therefore, you don’t have to worry about a potential leak building up inside of your home and becoming dangerous for your family.
High Operating Efficiency
One of the most notable advantages of ductless mini-split systems is their high operating efficiency. These units tend to be more energy-efficient than traditional central air conditioning systems because they don’t have to deal with any sort of air loss through leaks or gaps in ductwork. When it comes to heating your home, no other system comes close to the efficiency that a ductless mini-split can offer.
These units can hit operating efficiencies of up to 400% during the winter months. That means that for every unit of input that you’re paying for, your system is producing four times that in the form of heat. With such a high operating efficiency, you can enjoy lower utility bills throughout the year.
Cold Climate Systems
Just a decade ago, ductless mini-split systems were only available for homeowners who lived in a fairly mild climate. Those who lived in colder climates could only benefit from the efficiency of these units when temperatures were above freezing. When temperatures got below freezing, these systems would struggle to pull heat out of the air and required switching over to their backup auxiliary heating mode. That mode is very inefficient.
Fortunately, with the introduction of new refrigerant technology, newer ductless mini-split systems are available in cold climate models. These models are specifically designed to operate efficiently at temperatures down to negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit. This gives everyone throughout the country access to the high operating efficiency of a ductless mini-split system without the worry of inefficient operation.
Tax Credits and Rebates
One other notable benefit of getting a ductless mini-split system for your home is that you can cash in on some great tax credits and rebates. One of the most well-known tax credits is going to be through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This act allows homeowners to claim up to 30% of the total cost of their new system plus labor to install it up to a maximum set amount of $3,200 per year.
It’s crucial to know that this is a tax credit that will reduce the federal income taxes that you owe. You won’t receive any credit in the form of a check if the amount that you owe is less than the total credit that you qualify for. However, you can roll over that credit to the next tax year to maximize your tax credit.
Apart from this major federal tax credit, there are many other rebates that you can take advantage of when you invest in one of these units. Most HVAC system manufacturers will supply you with a tax credit rebate for purchasing one of their units. The amount of the rebate is going to vary tremendously depending on the manufacturer that you purchase the equipment from.
Some other notable credits come from local utility companies that will provide you with a credit on your utility bill up to a set amount if you purchase a ductless mini-split system for your home. You may even find that your local or even state government also offers tax credits when you purchase this type of unit.
Inverter Technology
Ductless mini-split systems come with inverter technology that allows each indoor air handler unit to adjust its energy usage based on your needs. It can operate at different capacities, like 40% or 100%, to help better optimize energy usage.
Reliable Ductless Mini-Split Installation Service
Midway Heating Company offers reliable ductless mini-split installation service to the Clackamas, OR area. We can also help with all of your heating and cooling repair, replacement, and maintenance needs. Simply call our office staff today to book your next service appointment with one of our technicians.
