Mini Split v Central Air

[David Stone]

Initially I thought u could get a mini split for about $10k. Then the cost crept up to $20k. But, for about $25-30k, I can get central air I stlled and not have those boxes hanging on my wall. The installer said the central air would cost a bit more to run, but probably just a few hundred $ a year.

What do I do?

[fixtureman]

How many heads are you going to have with the mini split.  You can controll the temp in each room with them onlike central air. Also they have heating capability. I got whole house heating and cooling with a 95% effecient furnace for $ 8000 installed. got 4 estimates and they all came in about the same I think it was only $ 200 difference in all 4

[Gary G™]

Initially I thought u could get a mini split for about $10k. Then the cost crept up to $20k. But, for about $25-30k, I can get central air I stlled and not have those boxes hanging on my wall. The installer said the central air would cost a bit more to run, but probably just a few hundred $ a year.

What do I do?

Sounds like a big place.
Do you need different temps in different locations?
Do you have areas which only need controlled temps part time?

[EricU]

There's no way I would have put central air in this place.  It takes up a lot of room, and space is tight.  Running ducting through the attic is going to waste energy unless you find a really amazing installer.  I don't think those people exist, at least not within driving range of here. And I didn't want to give up space in the basement, that's my shop. You get used to the wall units.  Even some new expensive houses have minisplits nowadays.

I was going to get 2 minisplits, but finally got one.  There is an issue with them on different floors, if that's how your house is set up.  They aren't fully independent, so the downstairs might be cold in summer and the upstairs might be too hot in winter.  I wish I had gotten one for each floor, but I didn't get a quote for that. But it's less complex too. Mitsubishi has an add-on device to keep units from running if they are keeping the temperatures too far out of whack. The company we went with isn't familiar with them.

[Snipe Hunter]

How many heads are you going to have with the mini split.  You can controll the temp in each room with them onlike central air. Also they have heating capability.  I got whole house heating and cooling with a 95% effecient furnace for $ 8000 installed.  got 4 estimates and they all came in about the same I think it was only $ 200 difference in all 4

Crazy. Not sure how big your house is or what equipment you bought but that sounds real cheap. A 3-1/2 ton heat pump replacement in these parts starts around 10 grand for low end (Goodman/AirTemp) and starts again at about 12-13k for the better single stage stuff. Variable speed and 2 stage will start another 2 grand higher.

[fixtureman]

Crazy. Not sure how big your house is or what equipment you bought but that sounds real cheap. A 3-1/2 ton heat pump replacement in these parts starts around 10 grand for low end (Goodman/AirTemp) and starts again at about 12-13k for the better single stage stuff. Variable speed and 2 stage will start another 2 grand higher.

Thats because you live in a high cost state.  I have a 60k furnace and 2-1/2 ton Bryant systom.  The othere systems were American Standard and Carrier equipment

[Snipe Hunter]

Thats because you live in a high cost state.  I have a 60k furnace and 2-1/2 ton Bryant systom.  The othere systems were American Standard and Carrier equipment

Ok, that makes more sense. Furnaces are pretty cheap compared to a heat pump. And there's a big difference in price between a 2-1/2 ton AC unit and a 3-1/2 ton heat pump. Maybe 40% cheaper?  and a furnace is going to be under $1000. So that price sounds about right.

[abernat]

I live in California (definitely a high cost state) and went mini split - and I'd go back in a second. It's totally worth the added expense. Most rooms have emitters buried in the ceiling so there aren't boxes on the walls (one cathedral ceiling has a wall unit) and even when it's on the wall you stop seeing the emitter very quickly.

Pro: per-room temperature control. My kids keep their doors closed all the time and now they can actually have cooling; before it would either be too cold or too hot. 
Con: if you have multiple emitters off one heat pump, be aware that the entire system can either be heating or cooling but not both (physics!). That led to some fun family spats last winter, where one room was too hot and one was too cold. 

I am still looking for a good whole-house thermostat system that takes this into account. I tried building my own but I ran out of time to fiddle.

[APZ]

Recently had an estimate for AC on my mom's side of the house; under 1,000 square feet.  Blank slate with easy access to the attic above and electric below.  $20,000 for central air, $17k for mini splits.  I just installed a new Midea window unit in her spare bedroom and if that works out will install the same in her bedroom and her dining room.  We're out of here in a couple of years and I don't think we'd make back the $20k when selling.