Ductless Air Conditioning Costs

We just recently received our first quote for installing air conditioning into our 110 year old steam heated and window cooled colonial.  The estimate came in at $18K.  

The recommendation was for a ductless system with one large (18,000 BTU) wall unit downstairs to cool the dining, living, kitchen and parlor; and three wall units upstairs: one in each of the bedrooms (12,000 BTU for the master which is always the hottest room in the house and 9,000 BTU for the other two rooms).  These would be run off two outdoor units.

The equipment is all Trane and the units also happen to provide heating though that wasn't something we were specifically looking for.  The reason ductless was recommended is because our attic is finished and provides no easy access to the second floor for vents via the ceiling.  Ducted work would seemingly require a lot of construction to make happen.

Is this in line with what other folks have heard/paid?  We will be getting other estimates soon but thought it good to crowdsource some opinions on this.  I know there have been other threads in the past but nothing too recent I could find.

Thanks in advance.

no comment on the cost-but we have an 18k btu mitsubishi unit to cool , dining room & living room and kitchen-and I wish it were 21kbtu  (at beach)

Here is a thread from last year.

https://maplewood.worldwebs.com/forums/discussion/id/116130-looking-to-install-split-ductless-air-conditioning

This is one of my dreams for the future of our house.  I wish I could buy my own equipment and do the installation myself but I don't think NJ allows that. The equipment itself is not horribly expensive.

I just did 2 ductless on my first floor and central for 2nd and 3rd floors.  We did an 18k for dining/living rooms and a 12k for the kitchen.  not sure of your sq footage, but every guy we talked to said we needed two (our first floor is about 1100 sq ft) They were $8k for ductless, $22k for everything.  Hope that helps!

Mrincredible, you would have to have a licensed electrician and plumber run lines/drains but I think you could technically install the ductless units yourself...

I think a licensed HVAC technician has to do the hookup.  I've pulled electrical circuits with permits many times. And plumbing the drain lines would be within my skill set too. There's balancing of the refrigerant that would be beyond me.  

One nice thing about this kind of system, versus conventional central air, is that you can add capacity gradually. So for instance you could do your first floor with ductless AC and then do the second floor a few years later. If you wanted to spread out the cost.

Aikon who did you use? I would consider that 8K to do the first floor of our house. Our second floor does okay with window units for now.

mrincredible, what stopped me was that all of the major manufacturers will void the warranty if it isn't done by a contractor.  I would have hired someone to properly charge the system. 18k is beyond me right now.

okay maybe that's what I heard, not a regulatory limitation. 

We used air group.  They did a great job

Thanks aikon101 and everyone.

check with Speer Air. We've only done first floor so far but our specs are similar to yours although we have higher BTU unit on first floor and our quote was less for Fujitsu equipment. Does quote inclue upgrading your panel?

Thanks, Tralfaz.  Our panel was previously upgraded during other renovations so we're all good there.  I'm waiting on another estimate to come in from a second supplier who also would use Fujistsu.

The units themselves don't seem to be 'that' cost prohibitive and my understanding is that the hook ups aren't crazy difficult either with the variables being the capacity of the existing electrical panel and the siting and pouring of the concrete pad for the condenser. 

I meant to call around for some quotes myself.

CapnMarko said:

The units themselves don't seem to be 'that' cost prohibitive and my understanding is that the hook ups aren't crazy difficult either with the variables being the capacity of the existing electrical panel and the siting and pouring of the concrete pad for the condenser. 

I meant to call around for some quotes myself.

You can actually buy a 'plastic' pad to use instead of the concrete pad for the condenser. I know when our generator was installed a 'plastic' pad was used instead of a concrete pad. Something like this: https://www.grainger.com/product/DIVERSITECH-Pad-4E875?s_pp=false&picUrl=//static.grainger.com/rp/s/is/image/Grainger/4E875_AS01?$smthumb$

anyone know how well these units work for heat  we need to install something to hear a bedroom in out condo and the former owners removed the baseboard heat and now there is no heat other than portable heaters that we've used  thx for any input  

vermontgolfer said:

anyone know how well these units work for heat  we need to install something to hear a bedroom in out condo and the former owners removed the baseboard heat and now there is no heat other than portable heaters that we've used  thx for any input  

The gentleman who gave us our first estimate suggested that the heating features would work well for temperatures roughly 40 degrees and above.  We have steam radiators so for anything lower than 40 we'd revert to those if we'd been using the ductless units.

thx, this is a second home and we do have a pellet stove on the main floor, but at night, if we have guests, with the bedroom door closed, it can get a bit chilly.

vermontgolfer said:

anyone know how well these units work for heat  we need to install something to hear a bedroom in out condo and the former owners removed the baseboard heat and now there is no heat other than portable heaters that we've used  thx for any input  

I have Mitsubishi units in my house in Texas and they work well for heat in winter. It actually does get pretty cold here sometimes, just not for months on end like in NJ. In your situation, as a secondary occasional heat source, I think it would be fine, although maybe an expensive option.

We added ductless with heat in our family room. Even on the coldest days, the heat works for us. The only problem has been when there's significant snow, it ices up the fan on the outside unit which disables it, its happened more than once.

Thank you for all your comments, sounds like this would work for us, both winter and summer.  Now just need to find out how much it will cost to install.

keep us updates, vermont, as i'm curious, too.

May be a few months before I bite the bullet but will try to remember to check back in and update.

18K sounds like an awful lot for a ductless system.  I hope your other proposals come in cheaper.  A full house ducted system wouldn't cost much more.  I understand tho why, in these old houses, you want to go ductless.  

If I were at the point of needing  a new HVAC system I would no doubt put in geothermal.  The initial cost is more but the year round energy bills are then minuscule.  payback is very good, especially if the house is well insulated.  Used to be too expensive, but price coming down a lot these days.

Olivebee, air source heat pumps have improved so much that geothermal systems are having a hard time competing on payback.

Just saw this on a news feed - nice slim unit if you dont go for ductless

http://coolmaterial.com/home/noria-air-conditioner/ 

FilmCarp said:

Olivebee, air source heat pumps have improved so much that geothermal systems are having a hard time competing on payback.

Interesting - I will look into this.

Let me know if you find otherwise.  I like to be educated.  

new207040 said:

Just saw this on a news feed - nice slim unit if you dont go for ductless

http://coolmaterial.com/home/noria-air-conditioner/ 

Wow. That just might be the answer to my air conditioning problems (since we have issues with our house that make central air all but impossible). IF it actually works...

it looks like a sleek unit, and small, but the BTU output is in the normal range, nothing outstanding.

Not available until next year.