Guide to Mini-Splits vs. Heat Pumps
Are you searching for a dependable, affordable home comfort system? If electricity is the ideal or only solution available to you, a central heat pump or ductless mini-split could be perfect for your home. Both systems operate on electric power and run in heating and cooling modes for year-round comfort. So, have you made your choice? If you’re still trying to decide, get the details about each HVAC system to help you determine the right fit.
What Is a Heat Pump?
A heat pump is a type of central climate control system. Compared with a furnace, which creates usable heat for the home by burning a fuel source, a heat pump transfers heat from one place to another. In the winter, it extracts heat energy from the air outdoors and deposits it inside. Then, a built-in reversing valve allows it to perform this process backward in the summer, behaving the same as an AC system to transfer heat and humidity from indoor air and vent it outside.
What Is a Mini-Split?
A mini-split works on the same principle as a heat pump. In fact, it is a kind of heat pump — minus the ductwork. This is why it’s called a “ductless” system. A mini-split is designed as a ceiling- or wall-mounted unit with a built-in air handler. This indoor portion is connected directly to an outdoor condensing unit via a small hole drilled through the wall. Several indoor units can link up with a single outdoor unit, enabling whole-home comfort with no ductwork necessary.
Making Your Choice
Below are key details to consider when deciding between a heat pump and a mini-split for your the U.S. home.
Ductwork & Installation
If your home is currently heated and cooled with a conventional furnace and AC unit, the necessary ductwork infrastructure is already in place. So in this case, installing a heat pump is potentially the more affordable choice.
That being said, if you live in an older home or have just made an addition, you might not have ductwork accessible to use that space year-round. In this case, adding a mini-split is much less complex and is more affordable than putting in the ductwork required for a heat pump.
Unit Control
Heat pumps are managed very much like most other central heating and cooling systems: by using a wall-mounted thermostat installed in a central location. On the other hand, ductless mini-splits use a remote that lets you adjust each wall-mounted unit from anywhere in the room.
Zoning
If you’re satisfied with regulating the temperature throughout the house using a single thermostat, home zoning may not be necessary. But you can maximize home comfort and save energy by heating and cooling separate rooms separately.
Such ‘zoned’ temperature control can be integrated into a central heat pump system by using multiple thermostats and ductwork dampers. But it may be simpler and more affordable to install mini-splits in rooms with specific temperature requirements, whether they’re heated and cooled by a central HVAC system or not.
Design Flexibility
Heat pumps don’t emphasize flexibility. Instead, they can replace your existing furnace and air conditioner and offer whole-house comfort through a network of air ducts.
Mini-splits have greater versatility for where you can put the unit. Homeowners can add one in a single room that you would otherwise find tricky to keep comfortable. You can mount one in a transformed garage or other home addition without adding more ductwork. You can also outfit the entire house with a mini-split air handler in each room, all connected to the outdoor condensing unit for affordable operation.
Energy Efficiency
Modern heat pumps are more efficient than ever. There are even cold-climate versions offered for a performance boost at low temperatures.
All the same, ductless mini-splits are generally more efficient because they don’t suffer the energy losses affiliated with leaky ductwork. The average home loses more than 20% of the air passing through the ductwork to spotty air sealing or a lack of insulation. This means that a mini-split is likely to supply the same amount of hot or cold air at a lower cost.
Appearance
Heat pumps look pretty much the same as central air conditioning units. The outdoor unit is nearly indistinguishable, and the indoor air handler within a utility closet or place in the basement.
By comparison, mini-splits are easy to view. The air handlers come in sleek jackets designed to be unobtrusive, but they are clearly visible in any room in which they are displayed on the wall or ceiling.
Schedule Heat Pump or Mini-Split Installation
No matter which decision you make, Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing can perform the professional installation you expect. Our techs are ready to provide excellent products and services backed by our one-year 100% satisfaction guarantee. To learn more about heat pumps vs. mini-splits or request an installation estimate, please contact your local Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing office today.
