Mr. Cool Advantage Mini Split Heat pump/AC

[Sigarms]

When I filled out for the warranty after installing mine , I was curious how it would work so I decided to call the help line to see if a real person answered or if it was going to be a recording, much to my surprise a real person answered the phone and appeared to be pretty knowledgable about troubleshooting and A/C work in general, he told me that if I ever had a problem to just call them on the phone and they would walk me thru a series of test's to determine the problem if a code wasn't already showing what the problem was, so hopefully that's how it will work the day a problem comes up, I do know someone else who after several years had a problem with his and it was showing some sort of code and they sent him the replacement part and walked him thru the repair, with no questions asked. On a side note I have looked at several different brands and they all look like clones, if they didn't have the name stamped on them you couldn't tell one from another. Oh and I believe the registered servicing dealer is a company out of Kentucky and they handle all warranty issues on DIY Series and that's where the guy I talked to on the phone said he was.

What you're telling me is that they don't have much market share per numbers in the US (think about it, on servicing "dealer" for all of he US calling one phone line). Been down that road...

It works out great, but if thry grow their market share, others may not be as lucky.

I know from the top mini split manufacturers in the US, homeowners who buy their own system and call in may not be so lucky.

So... Buy a mister cool and if you have a problem, call it in, and it's taken care of no problem. When it becomes a problem, don't complain.

 

[cqaigy2]

What you're telling me is that they don't have much market share per numbers in the US (think about it, on servicing "dealer" for all of he US calling one phone line). Been down that road...

It works out great, but if thry grow their market share, others may not be as lucky.

I know from the top mini split manufacturers in the US, homeowners who buy their own system and call in may not be so lucky.

So... Buy a mister cool and if you have a problem, call it in, and it's taken care of no problem. When it becomes a problem, don't complain.

I you lived near by, i'd call you and pay the going rate for diagnostics. You can pay upfront for the cost, or after the fact, none of it's free.

 

[fatjay]

LMAO!

This is why I don't give professional advice in my own trade on a publicly read internet forum.

My own house. Started the job at around 0800 on the weekend. These two pics were taken around midnight that same day.

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Congrats. I just shared my personal experience. I got 3 quotes between $6-7k. I thought that was outrageous, I bought it for 1k, and did it myself in a couple of hours. I could screw it up 6 times before I'd be losing money. I did research, watched videos, and learned a lot. Then I did it and managed to get it right on the first shot. There's dozens of videos on youtube detailing their process, so clearly I'm not the only one doing it myself.

 

[3Ts]

How many microns did you pull to ?

I don't know, I don't have a micron gauge. I was told to leave it for 15 minutes. I left it for 45min, closed it off, let it sit for 2 hours to make sure the guage didn't move so I was confident I didn't have any leaks. Then opened the system and released the freon as it was precharged for up to 25' of line. I figure the worst case scenario i have to call an ac guy to properly vacuum it and recharge it which I had already priced at about $400. I bought a vacuum and gauges off amazon for $100, a kit to hide the wires for i think $70. 30a double pole breaker but it was right on the other side of the wall from my electrical box.

LMAO!

This is why I don't give professional advice in my own trade on a publicly read internet forum.

My own house. Started the job at around 0800 on the weekend. These two pics were taken around midnight that same day.

View attachment 658853View attachment 658854

I am not in the HVAC trade and I installed a mini-split myself also, but I also agree with Sigarms. If you don't understand the terminology, you either need to find out or let someone else do it. I also didn't understand how a micron (as a unit of distance) applied to pressure. So, I looked it up. A micron is also a mico-meter of mercury of pressure and 1000 microns = 1 millimeter. So the picture in Sig's post shows that he pumped it down to 1/4 mm of mercury of pressure. There is no analog gauge that can measure that. Also, how about the time he took to vacuum out the lines. There is a reason to get down below 300 um and to hold it for awhile. Look up what happens in the copper matrix when a vacuum is applied and how long it takes to happen. Also, look up what happens over time when a little moisture is left in the lines and the Freon is released.

I did the installation myself because I couldn't get an HVAC guy to do it for less than $4k. I could buy 2 systems for that price so I figured it would be a learning experience. I did a lot of research before I attempted it.

Yes, you can "pull" a vacuum in 15 minutes, but does it accomplish what it needs to?

 

[Lineman North Florida]

What you're telling me is that they don't have much market share per numbers in the US (think about it, on servicing "dealer" for all of he US calling one phone line). Been down that road...

It works out great, but if thry grow their market share, others may not be as lucky.

I know from the top mini split manufacturers in the US, homeowners who buy their own system and call in may not be so lucky.

So... Buy a mister cool and if you have a problem, call it in, and it's taken care of no problem. When it becomes a problem, don't complain.

That's exactly what I did, so far so good, if it quits and I can't fix it I'll get another one of some sort.

 

[kenmac]

LMAO!

This is why I don't give professional advice in my own trade on a publicly read internet forum.

My own house. Started the job at around 0800 on the weekend. These two pics were taken around midnight that same day.

View attachment 658853View attachment 658854

I thought you would get a good laugh out of what his answer would be.. That's the reason I asked ! :laughing::laughing::laughing:

They have no idea what contamination in the system can/will do...
''I saw a video of someone doing it on U Tube'' !!!!! ''they must know what they are doing ,or they wouldn't post it'' !
:laughing::laughing

You got to love it though.. At least I do:cool2:

 

[kenmac]

While we’re in the subject of AC does anyone know much about vehicle ACs? The AC on my suburban was only working decent last fall. About 60 degrees at the vents was the best it would do. I hooked up a set if gauges and the high side and low side pressure checked good. In the process of that one of the fittings didn’t seal and it leaked down. It’s not been very hot since then so I haven’t messed with it. I’ve got a new fitting to screw in it and I’ve got a vacuum pump to vacuum it down but that still doesn’t fix the barley working problem. It’s been since last fall when I was working on it but I don’t recall seeing any frost buildup on the outside hoses like there’s an obstruction.

Gauges do no good on a vehicle. You have no control on the ambient air temp, or the air flow across the condenser at any given time
Like many new home systems, you must weight in the charge

 

[kenmac]

I should just give up my state certification, give up having to go through continuing education every year, and just watch U Tube videos.

Static pressure ? Who cares. it blows the curtains off the walls , it must be good enough air flow !!!!
......How many microns did you vacuum the system down to ? Well I don't know but, I left the 2 cfm single stage vacuum pump on for 15 min, what could go wrong ?

Doesn't matter to me anymore. I sold out a few yrs ago and retired...I still get a good laugh every now and again though

 

[monster318]

Well I didnt think this topic would turn into a pissing match of who is right and who is wrong but here we are....

Anyways, an update:

The church ended up going with an 18k btu kit from Senville. Not sure how they landed on that decision but i really dont care. They said due to covid-19 it would be a 4 week lead time after ordering. Well 3 days after ordering the unit, my wife called me at work and said it had showed up. Before proceeding any further I wrote up a document stating that the church is aware that by me installing it, it will void any warranty on the unit. Also that I am not responsible for the sizing of the unit or responsible for the unit after install. Then had the head trustee sign it. Just to Cover my own tail.

The install went well. I got the indoor unit installed within a few hours. Placed the outdoor unit on the pad. Connected the lines, used a two stage vacuum pump and pulled the system down to -30inHG for 2 hours. Closed the manifold gauges turned off the pump and held the vacuum for 6 hours. During this time I put the line covers on lines going to the indoor unit and ran the 220 put to the disconnect and to the unit. I then released the refrigerant to the system, buttoned up a few more things and started the unit. It was 80 degrees inside the church at 7:00pm and by 10pm it was down to 68 degrees in the church.

Right now its 90 degrees here in eastern PA and my wife said she has the unit set on 72 degrees and the indoor temp hasnt moved off of 72 all day.

Now all we can do is hope this is a decent unit and they can get at least a few years out of it.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

Congratulations, keeping the congregation cool is a good thing, good luck.