We've had all five of our multizone ductless wall units - served by a branch box - off for the last 12 hours yet the dedicated circuit has used 3kWh of electricity. What is using the power? Obviously, with the heads off, there is no air circulating to test the room temperature as there would be if the units were on but not calling for cooling. Outside temperatures have been in the high 70's to high 80's.

I know it's not much electricity, but it seems excessive, not that I would know what's normal.

I'm in the Chicago suburbs and looking for a heat pump (with ductless minisplit) to cool/heat our primary bedroom that is 200 square feet. The bedroom is on the second floor and is an additional built in the late 1980s. There's no attic in the addition, so the room is always hot or cold, and we have to blast A/C or the furnace to get the temp decent enough to sleep. The additional is all siding with four casement windows in the bedroom. No ceiling fan.

I contacted our HVAC company that's installed both our furnaces and A/C units and does our annual maintenance. They are always reasonable and do great work. They came out yesterday to look at the room and the outdoor area. They did not do a manual load calculation.

But, the quote I just received is for $10,000 after ComEd rebate, and this seems insane to me. From basic research, I thought a single zone heat pump and mini split would be $2500 to $5000, maybe a bit more. Am I wrong and this quote is reasonable? I am going to get two more quotes a was interesting in one of them being the Quilt system, but that seems to be expensive just for one room.

Here's what's included in the quote:

Mitsubishi Heat Pump Condenser, 1.5 Ton, Outdoor Ductless: MXZ-2C20N4-U1

Mitsubishi Deluxe Wall-mounted Indoor Unit, 0.75 Ton, Ductless: MSZ-FX09NL

Ductless Linseed 50'

Recorseal RSH-50 Surge Protector 115v/208v/230v

Genesis - 14/4 Stranded THHN 600V Tray Cable Black Minisplit Wire - 50' coil

Brame 20916 Ductless Wall Bracket

Labor and installation

10-year factory warranty on all parts and labor

Hi all, I have been searching for a window heat pump that doesn’t cost $3000 and was wondering if anyone has experience with the TCL Q Series 12000 BTU Unit https://a.co/d/08rWi0YL
I ask because I’ve seen conflicting information on its lowest outdoor operating temp. On Amazon someone claims TCL support told them -5degF, on Lowe’s TCL support claims only 47degF, calling them myself they claimed 61degF (not sure if the support agent quite understood what I meant because that seems really high).

I would go with the more tried and true GE models but they stopped making them in march. And I don’t really trust any of the random unknown brands you see a lot unless someone has some experience with one of them.

And I’d go with something mini-split but I live in a rental I cannot modify like that. And since I live in the Berkshires the Midea window models won’t work because it regularly gets into the 20’s degF here.

Thanks in advance!

I’m in Maryland and need to replace my **15-year-old 2-ton heat pump** (**Trane XL20i - high end premium, previous owners were both doctors so yeah lol**) with variable speed Air Handler (upstairs unit). Two different HVAC companies confirmed the **compressor has failed**, so I’m replacing the system rather than repairing it.

Here are my quotes and experiences:

**Quote #1: Lennox Dealer (Only difference between the package is variable vs single phase air handler and 5 year labor wrrnty)**

**Silver** 2 Ton Heat Pump

Lennox M#ML14KP1-024-230
Lennox M#CBK48MVT-018/024-230-\* - variable speed
Lennox M#ECB48-9CB-P

\*5 Year Labor Warranty on System\* ---- **$12,579.00**

**Bronze** 2 Ton Heat Pump

Lennox M#ML14KP1-024-230
Lennox M#CBK48MVT-018/024-230-\* - variable speed
Lennox M#ECB48-9CB-P

\*1 Year Labor Warranty on System\* ------------ **$11,986.00**

**Economy** 2 Ton Heat Pump

Lennox M#ML14KP1-024-230
Lennox M#CBK45UHPT-024-71 ---- single stage
Lennox M#ECB45-10CB-P

\*1 Year Labor Warranty on System\* --------------- **$8,697.00**

They can install soon. 3-4 days.

* **Quote #2:** Recommended **Trane or Carrier**, said they don’t like Lennox because of evaporator coil issues and parts availability. They estimated **$10k–$12k**, but they can’t install for almost **2 months**, so I never received a formal quote. Also my unit is located under the deck, so the clearance could be an issue according to this guy, though deck is 7 feet high from ground. Recommended getting side vent unit and not top vent. Current Trane is side vent.
* **Quote #3:** Ballpark estimate over the phone was also around **$10,000 by an HVAC guy**.

Some additional information:

* This is a **2-story house with two separate HVAC systems**. The **main-floor unit is working**, and the **upstairs unit is the one that failed**.
* I plan to stay in this house for about **6–8 years**.
* I’m looking for a **reliable, decent system**, not necessarily the highest efficiency or most expensive option.
* The Lennox dealer offers a **1-year labor warranty**. They also offer a **5-year labor warranty**, but it requires purchasing a maintenance plan at **$185/year**, so I’m not sure it’s worth it.
* I’ve read mixed reviews online about Lennox evaporator coil leaks and parts availability, but I’m not sure how much of that reflects current models versus older ones.

My questions are:

1. Would you choose the **Lennox ML14KP1** at around **$9,000**, or wait and pay closer to **$10k–$12k** for Trane or Carrier?
2. Are Lennox coil and parts concerns still a real issue today, or are they overblown?
3. If all three brands are installed correctly, is there a meaningful reliability difference over the next 6–8 years?
4. Would you prioritize the **installer** over the **brand** in this situation?

**Should I get a third quote from a different HVAC guy? Probably Carrier?**

******************************************

UPDATE: Goodman Quote

Goodman, Goodman Heat Pump 14.3 SEER2, Single-Phase, R-32, 2 Ton, Heat Pump - Model: GLZS4BA2410

Goodman, Multi-Position,Multi-speed Air Handler with PSC R-32, 2 Ton, Air Handler - AMST24BU1300

ecobee - ecobee 6 Enhanced Smart Thermostat - EB-STATE6P-01

Goodman - HKTSD10X1 HEAT ELECTRIC KIT W/ Breaker (9.6KW) - CUSTOM-5UIHXM

Sale Price       $11,516.00

Special Discount (if accepted installed by 7/31)    - $1,000.00

Utility Rebate (Instant) Air Source HP - TIER 1 ( 15.2 SEER2 - 7.5 HSPF2 )

- $475.00

Total Investment

$10,041.00

Only Caveat - Initially the quote was higher for a High Efficiency unit(Goodman, Horizontal Discharge 16, 2 Ton, Heat Pump - GZV6SA2410), ended up downgrading to the current unit. On the estimate, made it look like $1000 discount added for accepting the contract in a week and not really because of the downgraded unit. Clearly a sales pitch. But the rate looks ok?

**********************************************

I’m hoping to hear from HVAC technicians as well as homeowners who have owned these systems for several years.

Thanks!

Hey everyone,

We recently replaced our old heat pump with a Jetson Home 3‑ton cold‑climate system (actually a MrCool HyperHeat 3 ton outdoor: CENTRAL-36-HP-C-230B00-O, indoor MVP-36-HP-MUAH-230A00-O) (I posted a while back about it), and the entire experience was good for the most part. The installation seemed to be professional, and the system itself is designed to stay efficient even down to 5°F, which is a huge upgrade from standard heat pumps. However, since the system moves more air, I got a whistling sound in the return duct. TBH: I think it is such an expected issue and such a drop ball for them to not foresee that a bigger system will move more air, hence you need to look at the return duct area + do calculations on the expected air velocity FPM that will result from running the system with that duct area.

The MrCool air handler with published CFM values of:

• Low: 865
• Medium: 970
• High: 1082
• Turbo: 1188

My return has a 20x20x1 filter and originally only a 14" round metal return duct. I was getting a whistling noise at Low/Med/High. The installer came back and added a 10" flex duct to the return box. After that:

• Low speed is now quiet
• Medium and High still whistle

I did some back‑of‑the‑envelope math:

• 14" duct area ≈ 1.07 sq ft
• 10" duct area ≈ 0.545 sq ft
• Total ≈ 1.61 sq ft

Hence, the expected in FPM is Velocity = CFM / area:

• Low: ~536 FPM (quiet)
• Medium: ~601 FPM (whistling)
• High: ~670 FPM (whistling)
• Turbo: ~735 FPM (whistling)

This lines up perfectly with typical return noise thresholds. Once you get above ~600 FPM, turbulence + flex duct friction = noise.

Installer’s explanation

They emailed me saying:

• A 3‑ton system “needs 1200 CFM,”
• The 14" duct was “pulling 1000 CFM,”, yes sure, but at what velocity 1000 fpm 🤣?
• The added 10" flex “added 400 CFM,”
• Total “1400 CFM,”
• And the noise is “structural to the metal ductwork at full capacity.”

They propose:

• Rebuilding the return plenum with acoustic lining
• Adding canvas connectors
• Installing high‑airflow grilles

They also said space constraints prevent enlarging the ductwork further.

My concern

A 10" flex duct also can’t realistically carry 400 CFM at normal static pressure. And the 14" duct is not moving 1000 CFM at reasonable air velocity for residential applications.

The noise pattern (quiet at Low, noisy at Med/High) matches velocity, not “metal duct noise.” Acoustic lining and fancy grilles don’t reduce velocity, so I’m skeptical they’ll fix the whistling.

The straightforward fix seems to be increasing return area:

• Replace the 10" flex with a 12" duct: ~1.85 sq ft, and 583 FPM at High speed.
• Replace it with 14": ~2.13 sq ft, and 506 FPM at high speed.
• Add a second 10": ~2.15 sq ft, and 500 FPM at high speed.

Either would drop velocity below 600 FPM and hopefully the noise threshold. Are these target air velocity for return good enough for a quiet system? Or still too high?

What do you all think?

Is my reasoning sound?
Are the installer’s acoustic fixes likely to help, or am I right that this is a return‑sizing issue?

Would love input from folks who’ve solved similar problems.

Thanks guys and I'm sorry for the long post.

The current plenum is a 30"x20" plenum box and the two current returns look like this

I had my house built in 2024 and how I have 18 months of usage. It is a One story on slab 1820SF house in Michigan. It was a custom build and designed for efficiency with in my budget. Underslab r20, walls r40, ceiling r60. Triple pane u21 windows.

I have a Daikin 3 head mini split system and an HRV. I have an all electric house on well and septic.

In the last 12 months my average electric bill was $135 month. And this winter we had 2 cold snaps with single digit temps for 1 week each. My highest bill was $255(january) and my lowest bill was $85 (june).

My HVAC system was $21k during the build.

The House has always felt very comfortable and the system never struggled at all to heat or cool. I set the temp at 68F in the winter and 74F in the summer season. I find those to be the most comfortable temps for me.

I hope this detail might help some folks see how they perform in an actual house(admittedly one that is built from the drawing board to be made for it.) I honestly designed the house to get solar too but with such little electric usage the payback is hard to justify for the solar panels.

Two months ago I moved into a 1500 sf newly completed home. In my previous home I would set my thermostat to the desired temp and forget about it. I like to sleep at 67-68 degrees and have the temp at 72 or 73 when I get up. I couldn't figure out why it was still 68 when I got up each morning, fo I called the HVAC contractor to find out what I was doing wrong. Keep in mind I'm a 75 yo woman, so be kind when I say I had no clue all systems weren't like the one in my other home.

I have a Trane 5TWR4024A1000AA - which I have come to find is a 1-stage system. What do you all think the likelihood is of the contractor trading my 2-month old unit for a new 2 stage unit if I'm willing to pay the difference in cost and labor?

Due to an ongoing heat wave, we've switched to cooling with our heat pump, rather than relying on trapping the cool night air during the day. 2000 sq ft house with average insulation. Half the house is one story, half two stories. 3.5 ton Mitsubishi outdoor unit sized for the larger heat load. Five heads (15, 12, 9, 6, 6) on a branch box. Minimum output of the compressor is 1.25 kW at 82 degF, according to AHRI.

Around 11:00pm, the 9k upstairs bedroom suite unit was set to 75 (vs. 80 earlier) and the other units were set to 80 (vs. 77 earlier). Room temperature runs about 2 degrees cooler than what the unit is measuring at the head (set for 77 degF, room stays around 75). All units are set to cool and auto fan - except for the upstairs unit which we left on high fan during the day graphed below. The outdoor temp on this day reached 100 degF and didn't drop below 75 degF until about 2am.

We opened the house around 6am to take advantage of the 67 degF air. We closed the house back up areound 11. This is the first of several mornings of doing this that we didn't turn the units off while we had the house open, assuming that because the ambient temperature was below the set point, the wall units wouldn't run. We have DRY air here in Colorado so we don't need to worry about adding humidity to the system.

I'm particularly wondering about the nighttime cycling pattern. The graph below is a 24-hr period from 6am to 6am. I would expect longer pauses between the cycles overnight when the set temperatures of most of the units are near the outdoor temperature. I also can't fathom why there was a peak at 3am to over 2kw.

Is this demonstrative of short cycling since the other heads aren't needing any cooling, even though they're on (but with room temperatures below the set point)? I think I'll try lowering the set point on the other wall units tonight to better disperse the cooling across all units and hopefully get rid of what I'm guessing is short cycling due to an imbalance between the compressor's minimum output and effectively a single wall unit.

Just wondering if there are some concise rules for laying out a heat pump system particularly concerning how far can the compressor be separated from the evaporator for a ductless system? Are there formulas specifying the losses and when it is just worth switching to a centralized ducted system (still requiring some long fluid lines)? How many bends are permitted? What is there radius? Do the lines cause sweating issues and need special care? Etc. Thanks.

I am replacing an aging system in a house from the 1990s, and three contractors have told me three different versions of the same story. One says the existing ductwork is perfectly usable, another says the return side needs to be enlarged, and the third says the equipment can be adjusted around whatever airflow the ducts provide. I would obviously prefer not to open ceilings and walls, but I also do not want to spend a large amount on new equipment only to end up with noisy vents, uneven rooms, or backup heat running more than expected. The current system already struggles with one upstairs bedroom and makes a noticeable rushing sound when it starts, so I am skeptical that a new outdoor unit alone will solve everything.

The quotes list efficiency ratings and warranty terms in detail, but only one contractor measured the ducts and checked static pressure. That proposal is also the most expensive because it includes several airflow corrections. Is refusing duct changes a reasonable way to control the project cost, or am I setting up an expensive new system to inherit all the weaknesses of the old one?

Considering heat pump for a small room. Room size: 97 sq. ft., 724 cu. ft. Worked through some heat load calcs with chatbot:
- heating load: 3100 BTU/hr (11*F design)
- cooling load: 3900 BTU/hr (85*F design)

I have hydronic baseboard, so I'm not wholly reliant on heat pump for winter heat, but would like to shift a large chunk of heating load to heat pump to help reduce gas bill in winter.

Seems I am limited to 6k BTU minisplits as they are smallest available in US. Should I just find models with wider turndown ranges?

I considered incorporating this ground floor room with the bedrooms on second floor, but bedrooms would only be cooled/heated at night, while this home office would only be cooled/heated during the day, so it seems this would be more inefficient (and require much wider turndown range) than going with dedicated 6k BTU unit for this small ground floor room. That said, while a multizone across two floors is less energy efficient than 2 separate systems, perhaps it is more economically efficient? The price of a 4 zone multisplit will be less than combined price of a 3 zone multi and single zone minisplit. In addition to lower HVAC equipment cost, there is lower electrical installation cost - one new circuit instead of two. I guess it's how many years of lower operating expense are required for the separate systems to make up for the higher upfront cost.

Hello all,
Looking at options for heating and cooling my 3 stall garage connected to my house, located in Wisconsin. Its probably around 1000 sq ft. What BTU do you recommend? I understand I should look for special low temperature rated units if I plan on heating in the winter, especially in Wisconsin. Anyone have units they recommend from experience in the frigid North? Thanks

The Gree Flexx install manual says to not install a filter dryer, but one was installed on my system.

I'm wondering if anyone knows how this may impact the outdoor compressor? (Max output, efficiency, ability to modulate, etc...)

My understanding is the outdoor unit is supposed to modulate based on refridgerant conditions?

Trying to figure out if its worth paying someone to remove it?

Edit: adding that the model is GUD36W/A-D(U)

I have been helping a relative compare heat pump quotes, and the most recognizable equipment name is attached to the most expensive proposal by a noticeable margin. The contractor offering it has a strong local reputation, which matters, but another established installer proposed a less familiar system with similar capacity, a detailed load calculation, better explanation of cold-weather operation, and a lower total price.

The family keeps circling back to brand recognition because it feels safer, while I keep thinking the quality of the design, installation, commissioning, and local service may matter more than the logo on the outdoor unit. At the same time, choosing the cheaper proposal only makes sense if parts are available, the contractor knows the controls, and the manufacturer will still support the product years from now. Internet discussions often reduce this to "premium brand versus value brand," but homeowners are really buying a relationship with the installer and service network. A technically excellent system can perform badly if it is oversized or poorly configured, and a modest system can work well when the contractor understands the house.

How much extra would you personally pay for a familiar equipment name when the competing contractor appears equally competent and offers stronger project documentation? Is paying for recognition sensible risk management, or are we giving the badge more credit than the installation?

Unfortunately, GE did not decide to keep manufacturing their window heat pumps, despite how well they did perform in extreme cold. These were a VERY affordable option for energy efficient heat that works in VERY cold climates. I am very disappointed by this news and I hope either this means they're working on an improved version, or we'll see something similar from another company.

RIP.

I'm in Rhode Island and own a roughly 1300 square foot Cape style house that had its attic and roof insulated and air sealed last year. I'm looking for some info from anyone that has converted a conventional HVAC system (Central Air and Gas Furnace) over to a heat pump system. Are your electric bills through the roof during the summer and winter months (more so than normal)? What's your highest bill?

Also, do they cool and heat your home comfortably.

Either way, let me know why.

Probably not using the right terminology here, but I just got a 2-ton Jetson unit installed in my 1400 sq ft duplex. Absolutely loving it, except that my next door neighbor is complaining that it's blowing hot air directly in her window now - her house is about eight feet away from my unit. Is there a way I can redirect the exhaust air from the outside unit without damaging how well its running?

Second time I'm seeing this pop up in the app only to find it isn't working. Got an email from them after raising last time saying it wasn't ready and had been included in error. Anyone been able to access a trial?

Just installing a Chiltrix CX65 for our off grid Maine island home. I never imagined a heat pump could look this good against our shou sugi ban siding. This air to water system will heat & cool the mostly 3 season ~2800' sq home (600' sq is basement). The house is a renovated 1970s A-frame with a rectilinear addition, both two stories. There is a basement / mechanical room below the new addition. The structure is tight and well insulated.

We just got a quote for running new line sets and I’m wondering if it’s fair. Our current line sets are embedded in the walls and there’s a leak somewhere.

$3k for the 1st floor and relocating the living room indoor unit to an exterior wall.

$3600 for the 2nd floor, and relocating BR#1 and BR#2’s indoor units to exterior walls.

$450/outdoor unit to raise them to 6’ off the ground. $7950 grand total. We’re located in NYC.

Floor plans and current locations here:

https://reddit.com/r/heatpumps/comments/1srzpn2/oversized_units/

I have a 22 y.o. 3300 sf rancher with basement. The original AM STD heat pump system died 2 yrs ago with the EVAP coil in the air handler letting R410 leak out (ALWAYS when it's 90° outside). The outside compressor AMSTD GOLD 3T mfg 2012 seemed ok so I went with an ADP generic A coil inside. It has 10 more years warranty and seems to be doing fine.

I asked the local AMSTD wholesaler about replacing the 14 y.o. outside coil/compressor/ fan unit and they said, since R 410 is now history here in Canada, "it's a whole new system" and throw out the 2024 $3500 ADP A UNIT...OR..

They have a few AMSTD QUEST (CANADA spec) 4TXD2036A side discharge, new 3T units left..this would seem the way to go. Got calls out for AMSTD Quotes to replace the outer part, keeping the 2024 inner. I see a u tube Toronto AC guy Advertising that same unit, INSTALLED at $5699.CDN. No bids in on the job here in BC yet..they're "busy".

Impressions ??

Thx

Is there a way to turn off the radiant floor from navien ? We had it replaced and pretty sure the thermostat doesn’t commend it and it’s circulating the water around the unit and not into the pipes going to the floors . Navien of course doesn’t give owners support over the phone but I am not sure my installer connected it right. They had removed the solar heating that was connected to it and I think it’s piped wrong . Sq of the house around 1900