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The best mini-split ductless heat pump/ac models list

Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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I made a listing of top heat pump/ac mini-split ductless brands and models. Right now models listed range from 8,500-36,000 BTU for different brands: Daikin, Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, Panasonic (formerly Sanyo), LG, Samsung and Friedrich. These are all mainly Japanese (who invented it) models and always seem to be in the forefront, though some manufacturers are catching up and closing the gap.

The category of heat pumps/ac units listed are mainly mini-split ductless single zone wall mounted heat pumps and air conditioners (some cool only which are highlighted in blue). All models include inverter compressor unless noted. Prices listed are the lowest I could find on the net (reliable dealers a must, so I just list those prices). You can use the prices as a reference to make sure you're getting a good deal. Right now for all sites I checked shipping is free on all models listed. Here's the list:

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There are many other brands that are also less expensive, but I'm making a list of the MOST RELIABLE ones as well as their more efficient models. Personally I don't want to sacrifice reliability and performance for a cheaper brand only to find shortly down the road I need another unit or costly repairs. Right now I have a 32 year old Rheem ac unit that has been running with no problems (in Arizona yet), but the SEER rating is about 7 or lower (standard for the time)! Bout time I get a new unit, hopefully nearly as reliable!

General rule of thumb for sizing BTUs needed to cool for lights (BTUs/1,000 watts):

Unvented bulbs: 3,000 BTU minimum up to 6,000 BTU/1,000 watts.
Vented bulbs: 2,000 BTU minimum to 4,000 BTU/1,000 watts.

Well FEEL FREE to chime in with any other makes and models and your reason(s) why I should include them in the list.
 
G

Guest 18340

Lg has recently added two new models, a 9k btu 28 seer and a 12k btu 26 seer.
On those two models LG has upped the warranty to match that of Mitsubishi, 5 years parts 7 years compressor.
I myself run a Mitsubishi and an LG.
Fujitsu will not honor a warranty on an internet bought unit, so beware.
Daikin's are hard to get in the U.S. but I'm slowly starting to find them. They are waaaaaay over priced and, imho, inferior to Mitsubishi.
Anyways, I would definitely put LG on that list.
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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Thanks for the heads up evlme2. Yeah LG has been really catching up w/the Japanese brands. You're right about Daikin, overpriced and overhyped like Apple (well my friend loves Apple don't want to digress too much there)?
 
P

prune

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evlme2 said:
Lg has recently added two new models, a 9k btu 28 seer and a 12k btu 26 seer.
On those two models LG has upped the warranty to match that of Mitsubishi, 5 years parts 7 years compressor.

Daikin's are hard to get in the U.S. but I'm slowly starting to find them. They are waaaaaay over priced and, imho, inferior to Mitsubishi.
Anyways, I would definitely put LG on that list.
Click to expand...

Daikin seems to concentrate on commercial and industrial applications in the States and has very little consumer information or support. They do offer the same 5&7 warranty that is standard with other upper echelon manufacturers, and are built heavy-duty with durability in mind.
However, as evlme2 points out, they are not available everywhere and pricing reflects that lack of competition. If you have a local dealer and don't mind the slight premium (particularly on larger units), Daikin is not a bad decision.
 
Hurk

Hurk

Member
I'm in hvac and I've installed a few daikin units and never had a problem with any of them. I was talking to a guy at the supplier the other day and he said that out of 3 lg art cool units he installed he had 2 compressor failures within a year. I would personally try to find a local hvac supplier who would sell to the public instead of buying one online just because of any warranty issues.
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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OK prune that makes sense about Daikin and durability. Their SEER & EER stats seems lower than the other brands of similar BTU rating and I figured just that, the price premium is for component durability and availability.

Panasonics (formerly Sanyo) are priced similar to LG units, so I may lean towards the Panasonics. And Fujitsu has good models but I heard questionable customer service, challenging even for the repairman. But heard they are pretty reliable.

I remember 20 SEER was about tops for even geothermal heat pumps about 15 years ago. There could be another leap in efficiency if they can somehow water cool the outside coils effectively on a smaller scale. Or even run a fast drip system over that. Water exchanges heat 25 times faster than air I believe.
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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True watts, that's how they've been in the past on the heating side (unless geothermal). Nowadays heat pump makers claim all the way down to 5 degrees F and even below that. From Mitsubishi spec sheet: "12,000 BTU delivers 100 percent of rated heating capacity at 5 F and 80 percent at -13 F outdoor ambient temperatures." When I 1st saw 5 degrees on the net I thought they meant C not F. Not sure if they have an aux heating element.

So lights out or on, looks like they're working better these days at least.
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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Update: LG is now in there, at least you can see where LG does price/specs wise. I also completed the rest of the manufacturer's models up to 15,000 BTU. LG and Panasonic didn't have any 15,000 BTU models so I added their 1 1/2 ton ones. I should follow suit for the others (at least to 1 1/2 tons)... Note there are other models of the same tonnage from each manufacturer, I just list the "top of the line" models from that maker. With lower tonnage mini-splits, I figure if you can afford the cheaper models it isn't that much more for the premium.
 
G

Guest 18340

Hurk, if 2 outta 3 LG's that the supplier installed failed at the compressor then I'd question the installers skills. The compressor on any mini split is (99% of the time) the last part to go. Thats why the warranty is higher for the compressor than the parts. See, it's the parts that separate the crappy brands from the good ones.

watts, heat pump models certainly do put out heat at very low outside temps.
Standard is 14 degrees, hyper heat models go down to 5 and some go below 0.

Stonefree69, the LG's you listed are not the ones I was talking about. It's these;
http://www.goductless.com/LG-Air-conditioner-Ductless-Mini-Split-Heat-Pumps-p/13840.htm

http://www.goductless.com/LG-Air-conditioner-Ductless-Mini-Split-Heat-Pumps-p/13841.htm
 
A

azsupratt

Member
This might not be the correct thread but I am planning on snagging http://www.goductless.com/LG-Air-conditioner-Ductless-Mini-Split-Heat-Pumps-p/13841.htm the LG 12k BTU 26 Seer Mini Split for my 5x5 tent with c02 because at that rating its hard to pass up and money is no option for this setup. This is my first time running a Mini split so I was wondering how I use this for lights off with co2.The indoor unit will be INSIDE the 5x5 tent mounted on the wall. I was going to place Back-flow preventers on an intake exhaust setup to vent for 10 minutes every 4 hours at night just to refresh air but I was thinking the MINI will probably open those with the cfm suction alone because I saw on low its still something like 300cfm. Is there a better way to set it up for nights? Also more relating to the thread, I saw they offer condensation removal pumps for this, like I said first time with a mini-split and I was just wondering if these are required to help with humidity during night lights off. Any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks all.
 
the gnome

the gnome

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that is a great sale price they have azsu,
I'm looking into getting a minisplit.
how reliable is the LG brand? never heard of it.

i wish they had the single zone 30,000btu units without the heatpump
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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OK evlme2 & azsupratt, thanks for your input. Listed LG's 9,000 BTU/28 SEER & 12,000 BTU 26 SEER models too. To keep
things somewhat short and sweet, I just list the outdoor model number in 1st column. That's really impressive, 28 SEER
model tops Fujitsu on the efficiency columns.
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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the gnome: heat pumps usually aren't much of a premium over the cool only ac models, but I guess the difference goes up w/the higher BTU models. Grow rooms do need to be heated in winter w/lights off. Efficient ductless heat pumps can save on grow rooms attached to homes electric bill in winter, unless your home already has one.
 
G

Guest 18340

azsupratt said:
This might not be the correct thread but I am planning on snagging http://www.goductless.com/LG-Air-conditioner-Ductless-Mini-Split-Heat-Pumps-p/13841.htm the LG 12k BTU 26 Seer Mini Split for my 5x5 tent with c02 because at that rating its hard to pass up and money is no option for this setup. This is my first time running a Mini split so I was wondering how I use this for lights off with co2.The indoor unit will be INSIDE the 5x5 tent mounted on the wall. I was going to place Back-flow preventers on an intake exhaust setup to vent for 10 minutes every 4 hours at night just to refresh air but I was thinking the MINI will probably open those with the cfm suction alone because I saw on low its still something like 300cfm. Is there a better way to set it up for nights? Also more relating to the thread, I saw they offer condensation removal pumps for this, like I said first time with a mini-split and I was just wondering if these are required to help with humidity during night lights off. Any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks all.
Click to expand...
Don't want to derail this thread but I'd be negligent if I didn't point out that 12k btu is WAAAAAAAAAAY to big for a 5x5 tent. In fact, in a space that small you'd be better off with a portable AC...
 
the gnome

the gnome

Active member
Veteran
Stonefree69 said:
the gnome: heat pumps usually aren't much of a premium over the cool only ac models, but I guess the difference goes up w/the higher BTU models. Grow rooms do need to be heated in winter w/lights off. Efficient ductless heat pumps can save on grow rooms attached to homes electric bill in winter, unless your home already has one.
Click to expand...


thanks for the reply stonefree
I'm in the deep south and the bloom rooms day starts at 7pm so the heating if needed would come from the 6+ 1KW bulbs and their is natural gas available to the room for heat.
I'm still learning about mini splits but the more i see um the I likes em :)
yesterday I was walking in town between buildings and one business had a mini split condenser unit there, when i saw it i was 40ft from it and couldn't here anything, so as i got closer I kept listening, 10 ft from it i still didn't hear it but had to look to see if the blades were moving and they were, of course i had some background noise from the street but these condenser units are extremely quiet !
 
Stonefree69

Stonefree69

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Don't worry evlme2, you've been a huge help so far. ;) Thought I did hear about some 28 SEER units just coming out a month or so back. Yeah, 12,000 BTU will not cycle right and it could get way damp in that small a space.

This seems a general sizing rule for 10' ceilings (so 8' ceiling would add another 20% sqft), actually taken from an LG ductless model page:

9,000 BTU 150-350 sqft
12,000 BTU 350-500 sqft
18,000 BTU 500-700 sqft
24,000 BTU 700-1000 sqft
30,000 BTU 1000-1250 sqft

Note that's rated for a regular mini-split installation, not a grow room. My mini-split will be supplemented by house ac and heat, which is inefficient for now. So I size BTUs accordingly.
 
A

azsupratt

Member
evlme2 said:
Don't want to derail this thread but I'd be negligent if I didn't point out that 12k btu is WAAAAAAAAAAY to big for a 5x5 tent. In fact, in a space that small you'd be better off with a portable AC...
Click to expand...

What makes it to big? Im running 2 x 1150watt gavitas,1 x 300 lep gavita plasma and 1 x 600 watt open gavita with co2 in the room aswell. I still have lots of physical space with my custom hydro setup so I figured 12k would be good.what would you rec?i always welcome more advice
 
W

watts

ohms
Veteran
the ac would be shutting on and off to much most likely... and really it's not good to run more than 1200 watts in a 5 x 5 in my opinion.
 
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