Update: This popular deal is still available (now w/ a slight price drop).
Costway via Walmart has
Costway Lithzen 12000 BTU 18.2 SEER2 WiFi Mini Split Air Conditioner/Heater (White-208/230V) on sale for $395.99 ->
now $391.49.
Shipping is free.
Thanks to SD
Skillful_Pickle for finding this deal
Note, product will be sold/shipped by Costway
Top Comments
Most companies listed in a phone book or with a website aren't going to install them. The reason is equipment sales is where most of their profit comes from and they don't want to be responsible for chasing down parts that their local supply houses don't stock.
Your best bet for someone who will install it is Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. The problem with that is that the installer probably isn't going to do it all properly - and that's what should be your biggest worry or you're going to be paying far more than the system cost periodically just trying to keep it going.
Expect to pay $1500+, with most probably quoting around $3k.
If you do it yourself to ensure it's done correctly and lasts, you need to understand what's involved. Expect to invest 20+ hours of watching YouTube videos of actual pros installing these things. Then you'll understand that you're going to need around $1k in tools, including a two-stage vacuum pump, tank of nitrogen + regulator, micron gauge, core removal tools, adjustable torque wrench, orbital flare kit, Nylog blue sealant, etc and investing more time in how to properly use those tools. One shortcut option to avoid some of the tool set and knowledge cost would be to do the physical install yourself, but then just hire someone to triple evac it and vacuum it did down below 500 microns.
You're going to need to do electrical work as well. And don't forget to add a surge suppressor at the disconnect, due to the way the controller boards try to time the inverter cycles with the power phase, these things are all very sensitive to voltage spikes and dirty power.
You need to flush and pressure test the lineset with nitrogen before vacuuming. It pushes out contaminants and helps remove moisture. I've never seen an inverter install manual that doesn't specifically say to triple evac the lineset and ensure that it passes a pressure drop test. Your cheap installer isn't going to do that.
That being said, once you have all that under your belt you can install these for friends and family and service your own equipment and save thousands down the road. It isn't rocket science and certainly doesn't require a specialist, but it needs to be done properly which anyone willing to invest the time, energy and money into tools and knowledge base can do themselves.
The biggest hurdle on these is getting the flares correct. 99.9% of the problems with these are leaking flares / low refrigerant issues because they weren't flared or torqued properly. A thin coating of Nylog on the faces can help with that, but it has limits. This is where hiring the reputation-less installer is going to bite you, they aren't going to pay attention to any of that and if you stand around telling them how to do the job they're either going to walk off or charge you more.
Also you're going to need to buy replacement black UV-resistant lineset insulation and rip off the white insulation because it's been shown to react with the copper when water is present and creates pinhole leaks over time. Low bid installer isn't going to do anything about that, either.
If you don't want to deal with the tools, flares, installers, corner cutting, etc, you're going to need to spend more and buy one of the MR COOL DIY units with their patented pre-charged no-vac linesets. It's decent equipment with a warranty from a company that's been around for a while now. That's probably going to be the best route for most people.
I have since installed a couple dozen of these for myself, family, and friends. Fairly DIY friendly if you get the right tools.
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47 Comments
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REQUIREs a dedicated circuit with disconnect.
These are the real DIY going forward.
They are down to about $1k.
https://mrcooldirect.co
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Yes it would be a huge project for a complete newb DIY, but any homeowner who has a few projects under their belt and just a little common sense can spend 8-12 hours watching YouTube and figure out how to do this. I used to be scared of HVAC stuff just because I always was afraid of a leak but since I've installed 5 units that are going on 2 years old, not a single issue. They're cooling perfectly in our current 100+ temps.
bending the line behind the indoor unit and through the wall is kinda hard with just one person (bend indoor unit's lines 90 degrees and only have to deal with lineset from outside reduces so hassle)
doing electrical work correctly takes experience (how much wire to strip, crimping spade terminal correctly), and fighting the cover to connect cables to outdoor unit
dealing with refrigerant, is the vacuum pump working correctly, gauge reading in different scenarios
a lot of doing things in the optimal order is not obvious from the installation manual
Yes it would be a huge project for a complete newb DIY, but any homeowner who has a few projects under their belt and just a little common sense can spend 8-12 hours watching YouTube and figure out how to do this. I used to be scared of HVAC stuff just because I always was afraid of a leak but since I've installed 5 units that are going on 2 years old, not a single issue. They're cooling perfectly in our current 100+ temps.
And if you don't actually fix the leak, you'll be doing this constantly.
Assuming you have the EPA 608 cert to buy the stuff (use skillcat app on play store to get it). You'll end up buying a lot more refrigerant than you need if you want a good price per pound. If you try to buy a small 2 pound charge you'll pay the same amount that you'd jus pay an hvac company to come out and charge it.
And if you don't actually fix the leak, you'll be doing this constantly.
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