Baseboard heat and window air conditioners are especially common in Angels Camp, CA homes. But, those systems are quickly becoming outdated, as the homeowner here has been discovering. When she learned about mini splits, she became part of the growing group of people replacing their old HVAC systems with ductless heating and cooling.
As the name implies, ductless heats and cools your home without new or existing ductwork. That’s why these systems, often called mini splits, are a good fit for homes here in Calaveras county.
In this case study, we’ll see how the new system stacks up:
- Mini Split Air Conditioner Vs. Window ACs
- Ductless Heating And Cooling Vs. Baseboard Heaters
- Five-Zone Ductless Installation In Angels Camp, CA
And, if you’re curious about how a mini split can make your Angel Camp, CA home more comfortable, contact us at Performance Based Heating and Air for a free consultation.
Problem: A home in Angels Camp, CA had baseboard heating and window air conditioners. The homeowners needed better cooling. But, with no ductwork, they couldn’t install central air.
Solution: Installed a five-zone mini split Hyper Heat heat pump system. It heats and cools the entire home without ductwork. And, it’s more effective and efficient than baseboard heat and portable cooling.
Mini Split Air Conditioner Vs. Window ACs
Both a mini split air conditioner and window AC offer “zoned” cooling. That means the unit focuses directly on the room where it’s located. The advantage? Getting the right treatment for that space, rather than relying on a thermostat in another room. But, the similarities end there.
A mini split offers more even cooling than a window unit. It has a built-in thermostat, plus sensors that detect hot and cold spots in the room. Mitsubishi calls it “3-D” heating and cooling because of how precisely it works.
Even if there’s one pocket in the room that’s not at the temperature you want, the sensors and special fans make sure that spot gets treated.
The other big differences? Cost and noise. You can cut your electric bill in half over the summer — maybe even more — when you go with ductless versus window units. And, the ductless air handlers make nearly no sound at all. That’s a significant comfort upgrade from the constant, loud noise you get from a window unit.
Ductless Heating And Cooling Vs. Baseboard Heaters
Of course, this Angels Camp homeowner wasn’t only thinking about air conditioning. She also wanted to do better than the old baseboard heaters in the house. For a long time, these were the best options for homes without ductwork. But, ductless heating and cooling does the job better.
At first glance, both seem similar: They both use electricity versus propane, and they offer zoned heating. And neither make much noise at all.
But, once again, ductless comes out on top. For starters, your ductless heat pump and air handlers offer both heating and cooling. So, already, you’re getting both with one system.
And, those same benefits for cooling apply here: It’s much cheaper to run your ductless system because it transfers heat instead of burning fossil fuels or other energy sources to create it. And, you get that more precise, consistent treatment.
Along with the sensors and fans, the heat pump uses a low-speed mode to continually maintain the temperature you want. That’s different from baseboards, which will only click on to correct the temperature once the room has gotten a little colder than you wanted.
Five-Zone Ductless Installation In Angels Camp, CA
With all these benefits, a mini split clearly fit the bill for this Angels Camp, CA homeowner. And, once she decided ductless was the way to go, we got to work planning the installation. Fortunately, it’s a fast and easy process: Even a whole-house, five-zone job takes less than a week.
Indoor Air Handler Installations
We started with an air handler in the living room or main room. Then, we put another one in the kitchen. We debated whether to have one unit handle both rooms since there was an opening between them.
But, since the kitchen ran longways from the living room, it would be better to add a separate unit in there. That way, each spot gets enough treatment. It was also easy enough to run the lines behind the wall.
From there, we added a third zone in a workout room. And, we installed the last two air handlers in a bedroom and master bedroom.
We also took advantage of the crawl space where we could. We could run the lines from various rooms beneath the house where we could connect them. Even at the spots where the house was on a concrete slab, we ran the lines along the wall until we could go through the subfloor.
Read More: What Does A Ductless Heating And Cooling System Cost?
Ductless Heat Pump Installation
Even for all the work we did inside, connecting it all outside was fast and easy. It doesn’t take up that much room or draw too much attention to itself.
That’s almost a challenge because a Hyper Heat model is twice as tall as a standard heat pump since it has two fans. But since it’s still skinny and sleek, we can place it close to the house.
Plus it’s super-quiet and uses side-discharge fans. That’s different from AC condensers that push the air straight up. Thanks to those design points, we could put the unit right in between two windows. Our homeowner won’t hear a thing from inside.
After we found the spot, it was just a question of connecting all the indoor units. We bundled most of the lines into one lineset and ran it outside and down the side of the house.
Then, we connected the other from the crawl space, running along the bottom of the house. From out there, all anyone sees is one neat run that looks like another rain gutter.
Here at Performance Based Heating and Air, we’ve overhauled and enhanced the comfort in hundreds of homes in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties in California. Reach out to us for a free consultation if you’d like to learn more about what we can do for you.
