MRCOOL DIY Mini Split, Seriously, I Think...

[eddieK]

I'm sure you mean well, but this just doesn't make sense. The lineset for the DIY series comes pre-charged and has shrader type valves and oring seals where they attach to the condenser valves. Connect them, open freon valves and go. There is no place for any moisture to get in.

They carry a 5/7 year warranty. Not sure how difficult a claim may be, but Ingrams has been very responsive and provide coverage and service.

I got quotes for right around $5k per unit for contractor installed like units - I have about $2500 all in for the two DIY units. I could replace them 3 more times and still be even. The old sales and service model for this type of product is no longer reasonable or applicable in my opinion. Anywhere in the world it costs about $50 to install a minisplit, but at least a couple of grand here in the US.

But you're right, time will tell the whole story. In the meantime we're enjoying our comfy home and my $$ are still in my bank.

I realize some don't understand, when you make that connection, there is air trapped...I realize many dont think its much, but what it is not is a loop in a deep vacuum. There's actually a valid reason why techs spend the 2 -4- 6 hours or overnight making sure the loop is at less than 500 microns. Once the refrigerant system is compromised it is always compromised.


Parts are free after you pay for them, after you send in the "bad" component and get reimbursed if they verify the component has failed. Getting to the components is a whole other story, just as diagnostics is a whole other story. First you need to determine which component failed...and why it failed.

You always get what you pay for.

 

[yeldogt]

The last I looked at the connection -- it's maybe 1/8 inch of possible trapped air. I would be more concerned with the quality of the pump down of the heat unit/ line set.

 

[eddieK]

The last I looked at the connection -- it's maybe 1/8 inch of possible trapped air. I would be more concerned with the quality of the pump down of the heat unit/ line set.

Not worth the risk, especially when it's unnecessary - convenience is as poor an excuse as is just being cheap. Trapped air turns to moisture...any trapped air. It is not a deep vacuum, there's a valid reason why triple vac's are advised.

 

[yeldogt]

Not worth the risk, especially when it's unnecessary - convenience is as poor an excuse as is just being cheap. Trapped air turns to moisture...any trapped air. It is not a deep vacuum, there's a valid reason why triple vac's are advised.

I believe these things are much more robust vs what people think -- they are being used all over the world with mush less concern to install vs what we do in the USA.

 

[Commendatore]

Actually it sounds like you’re an ******* because you didn’t pay HIM $10k

 

[Mguilicutty]

Hey guys - Another place to look is acwholesalers.com. Not sure if they sell the Mr Cool units but I bought my Mitsubishi 9k 30 seer unit a few years ago for around $1200. I did all the physical installation and had an hvac buddy come over and pull a vacuum on the lineset and make sure everything was good to go. I bought a 15' lineset w/ the proper flared ends and connected the indoor unit myself. He cut off the extra few feet and put a flare on the outdoor side. All it cost me was $50, a steak, a stuffed potato, some garlic toast and a few beers.

Anyway, I couldn't be happier with the outcome. I use it to heat / cool what used to be a breezeway that I've walled in to use as my office space. It is super quiet inside and out and costs a fraction to run compared to my old window unit / resistance heater solution. You can literally stand right next to the thing and not know it's running. I don't know that it has paid for itself but our electric bills actually dropped quite a bit once it was installed, especially in the winter. It runs 24/7/365. I set it to cool to 74 around April and to heat to 76 around the end of October. I don't touch it otherwise except to clean the filters. I think it's one of the best purchases I've ever made.

 

[eddieK]

I believe these things are much more robust vs what people think -- they are being used all over the world with mush less concern to install vs what we do in the USA.

Again - Time will tell, a refrigerant system is a refrigerant system.

 

[yeldogt]

Again - Time will tell, a refrigerant system is a refrigerant system.

I live in Africa part of the year now ... you should see some of the installs. They make the ones I used to see in Asia look like a trade show setup.

 

[bored350]

Slightly off topic....
In the past week, I have been to Venice, Croatia, Montenegro, Greece and Spain. Not one of these countries or various cities within that I have visited showed any preference toward a specific brand. There was even a new apartment building that was almost finished which had at least 4 different brand units on it, obviously based upon cost during the construction phase since they were grouped in quadrants. Ironically, some of the off brand and names I've never heard of have been in service for over 10 years without any service needed according to the various business owners I spoke with. I also noted that they all seemed to blow IMO, much much colder than the temps coming from whole house units. As for installs, most were a 2"-3"hole that was chiseled through the stone wall of the building and then filled with foam, no sleeve.

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk

 

[Fixin'Stuff]

There's actually a valid reason why techs spend the 2 -4- 6 hours or overnight making sure the loop is at less than 500 microns

Where on Earth does this happen? I've watched repairs and installs at neighbors homes and have NEVER seen an HVAC tech spend more than 30 minutes on the pump-down and test. Most are done in 15 minutes. Hit and run work, get to the next paying gig as quickly as possible is what seems to be the norm. They do like to charge prices like they were there for 6 hours though.

 

[fastmnstealth]

I just installed a Hiseer.com Pioneer 24K unit in my cabin. Same issue as the rest of you. I had quotes for $4200 and I bought one shipped to my house with lineset cover and wifi module for $1248.

I did the complete install myself. I have a deep vacuum pump from my DIY auto AC work. I bought some valve core removers (20 micron ones) and a micron gauge. I probably spent $250 on additional tool to cover what I didn't have. I bought a nice yellow jacket gauge set that I didn't end up using, so I didn't count that....but have it for future needs.

The install went great. The only thing I didn't do was to pressurize with dry Nitrogen. I didn't have a tank. I did put vacuum for a couple hours though. I got down to 104 microns. I cycled the VCRs a few times and pulled again...after the jump, I got down to 104 again. I then shut down valves and vacuum pump. I let it sit for 10min and it stayed below 500 microns, so I figured I was good. I then let some freon in the system for about 5 seconds. I did a soap bubble check for leaks and had none, so released the rest of the freon and successful bubble check again.

I powered on the unit and it works awesome. So well, that I'm installing one in my MIL's home. When I build my garage, I will be installing one vs window air FOR SURE!.

Give it a go!

 

[LG63]

I did put vacuum for a couple hours though. I got down to 104 microns. I cycled the VCRs a few times and pulled again...after the jump, I got down to 104 again. I then shut down valves and vacuum pump. I let it sit for 10min and it stayed below 500 microns, so I figured I was good. I then let some freon in the system for about 5 seconds. I did a soap bubble check for leaks and had none, so released the rest of the freon and successful bubble check again.

Can you explain more on "cycled the VCR's"? I've haven't seen this mentioned before.

 

[raco232]

Found this tonight. Do you think is for real, seems to good to be real on the price. 2nd generation MrCool. I need (2) 2 ton mini splits for shop, does anyone think I should go ahead and do it? Does there seem to be a problem with buying these from Walmart?

https://www.walmart.com/ip/MRCOOL-A...=sem&msclkid=bd18ae13cabd181a2a25f5482ef0053d



Just saw that the Advantage line is a low end mini split for MrCool. Their warranty is pretty bad as compared to the DIY line.

 

[Browneye]

Double post...

BTW, also sold thru:
Lowes
Sylvane
Home Depot
Ingrams water and Air (my fav)
Costco online
And several dealers around the country, grow shops, etc.

Costco had the best price for the DIY unit, last check.

 

[930dreamer]

I see the Lubbock, TX Costco has the Mr. Cool for order only again.

 

[Culture]

I installed two mini-splits in my shop. I purchased Friedrich because they are the only name brand manufacturer that does not require licensed installation to obtain warranty coverage. I purchased from ACWholesalers and got a 16 SEER 12k BTU unit for $810 and a 18k BTU 16 SEER unit for $1170.

In retrospect I would not purchase the 16 SEER units, the were obviously some rebranded no-name Chinese units. The installation manual was horrible with some directions included which could get you seriously injured or cause the failure of your unit.

 

[Culture]

I got quotes from $9,000 to $12,000 to install two units (12k and 18K). I decided to do the work myself and had to purchase about $1500 in tools.

1) Nitrogen tank
2) Nitrogen regulator
3) Flare nut crowfoot wrench (already had torque wrenches)
4) Vacuum pump
5) R410a gauge set
6) Deep vacuum gauge

No regrets whatsoever. Installation went perfect despite the horrible manual. As a mechanical engineer I happened to notice that the torque values given for the line set were very, very wrong, as were the circuit breaker sizes.

I purchase a preformed line set. If I did it again I would by a flare tool and make the line sets myself. It would make the installation a lot neater, as I had about 2-3 feet of extra line at each unit that had to be creatively taken up.

 

[Culture]

I used the 12K in a 400 SF space and the 18K in a 600 SF space (Houston, Texas area). Both units were oversized because I cool the spaces intermittently and wanted a rapid cool-down when I wanted to cool the space. Both have worked great. That is the advantage of a DC unit, when you want rapid cool down they run at capacity, and one it is cooled they back off.

 

[Culture]

I probably run the 12K unit about 8-10 hours a day, and the 18K unit about 2-3 hours a day (on average). My electric bill for the shop was $30 last month (June-July), which included lights, tool power and a small refrigerator.

 

[Browneye]

Friedrich, Mitsubishi, LG, Daikin, are the biggest names and all seem to have a good reputation. Most of the installers also seem to be very good although it seems there is much more $$ in central ducted systems so that’s what is sold here in the USA. The people in the biz are protective of their industry to the extreme.

AFAIK they’re all made in China except Mitsubishi.

There was recently some big celebration at the biggest compressor factory for the millionth unit or some such. Maybe it was 100-million. LOL


Edit: here it is...GMCC - 30-millionth: http://www.gmcc-welling.com/Homeen/News/detail/id/167.html

 

[matt_i]

For those who have experience, is the lineset preattached to the cassette on the DIY series?

I'm trying to figure out if I can go down inside of a (currently open) stud wall and then go out near the bottom rather than go straight outside and have to run down over top of the vinyl siding.

 

[sleek98]

For those who have experience, is the lineset preattached to the cassette on the DIY series?

I'm trying to figure out if I can go down inside of a (currently open) stud wall and then go out near the bottom rather than go straight outside and have to run down over top of the vinyl siding.

It is attached to the inside unit. The small line appears to be copper all the way though, the larger line is braided stainless steel. I am running mine out the left side of the unit flat with the wall and running it down the inside of the garage then out at the bottom.

 

[Browneye]

For those who have experience, is the lineset preattached to the cassette on the DIY series?

I'm trying to figure out if I can go down inside of a (currently open) stud wall and then go out near the bottom rather than go straight outside and have to run down over top of the vinyl siding.

Do-able if not a bit difficult. The first section of lineset is very rigid, so you'll have to pre-bend it and feed the whole thing down through the wall and then mount the air handler on its bracket. You'll need someone on each end.

Both of mine went straight out the wall and was pretty easy. On one of mine, after some attic space, the line goes through a 3" hole thru the header over the stud wall and down between the studs to a fire block before exiting. It was a pretty easy pull. It's very flexible once you get away from the air handler.

Keep in mind that if you ever have problem with the air handler you need to be able to pull it back out.

I'll find a pic of mine thru the stud wall.
I think this one is up-thread...

 

[Mgnu]

I'm <this> close to pulling the trigger on 2 12k units for my garage. I can barely contain my itchy mouse trigger finger....

 

[Mgnu]

Someone stop me....

 

[PoorOwner]

I'm <this> close to pulling the trigger on 2 12k units for my garage. I can barely contain my itchy mouse trigger finger....

Just get one 240V unit, less current draw on the breakers

 

[Mgnu]

Thought about that but seer rating on 12k is better, and I can only run 1 unit during low cooling need periods, or 2 when it is hotter and I want a quick cool down.

 

[Paul1114]

Someone stop me....

Are you talking about a single unit with two 12k heads? Why would you want two separate 12k units?

 

[BAM2875]

For those who have experience, is the lineset preattached to the cassette on the DIY series?

I'm trying to figure out if I can go down inside of a (currently open) stud wall and then go out near the bottom rather than go straight outside and have to run down over top of the vinyl siding.

Here are some pictures of mine to go with the descriptions others have posted. I wanted to go straight into a stud bay from the left side of the unit, loop it around to hide the lineset, and then straight outside.

You can see in the first picture the mounting plate on the wall with lineset hole. The large rectangular cutout is where I looped the lineset. If I remember right, I ended up enlarging the lineset hole after this picture because with the vinyl sleeve, the tight turn, and the fragile drywall it worked better with a bigger hole. I made sure the bigger hole was still covered by the unit. I probably should have just ditched the vinyl sleeve.

In the second picture, I have bent the lineset so it would go into the drywall hole and make the turn down the stud bay. Bending the tubing was hairy because I wanted to bend it right where the braze joint is and it was wanting to kink right there. Ended up getting it done, but it was a bit nerve wracking. The braided portion is relatively flexible. I had someone help me thread the line into the wall. The vinyl sleeve was what made that more difficult than it needed to be.

Next two you can see how I came pretty much straight out of the wall to the condenser unit. I adjusted the lineset in the wall so that the last turn to head outside was in good position. It wasn't an issue to turn that corner since it was on the braided portion.

And finally everything installed with the lineset coiled in the wall. The turn to go outside is just below the bottom of the picture. You can see where the vinyl sleeve is cut. It got too bunched up and it was hard to judge how much stress was on the lines when doing the loops, so I cut it. I rewrapped most of it after the line was in position. Again, probably should have just ditched it.

I really wanted a clean install and Mr Cool was saying looping the lineset vertically was no problem, so I went with it. Very happy with how the install turned out. Had it for over two years and loving it.

 

[Bigbandguy]

Thought about that but seer rating on 12k is better, and I can only run 1 unit during low cooling need periods, or 2 when it is hotter and I want a quick cool down.

I would balance itch against need and buy one unit as a test and then get the 2nd one if you really end up needing it. One unit running all day might just cool it enough to get you by and if not you would have the experience to quickly install the 2nd one.

 

[Yamahauler]

I just bought a 18K BTU DIY unit from Costco $1200 delivered to my door.

 

[Browneye]

>snip

I really wanted a clean install and Mr Cool was saying looping the lineset vertically was no problem, so I went with it. Very happy with how the install turned out. Had it for over two years and loving it.

2 years - no issues?

What is interesting is them saying okay on vertical loops for extra line - they were very clear to me about keeping any loops horizontally so as not to trap oil. Installers around the forums said the same thing. It made my install I bit more complicated, but works fine. Glad to hear that they work just fine this way as well.

 

[HotRodBoater]

Where on Earth does this happen? I've watched repairs and installs at neighbors homes and have NEVER seen an HVAC tech spend more than 30 minutes on the pump-down and test. Most are done in 15 minutes. Hit and run work, get to the next paying gig as quickly as possible is what seems to be the norm. They do like to charge prices like they were there for 6 hours though.

I was wondering the same thing!!

He's probably right that a properly done triple vacuum install would be better, but I'm with you on not believing the techs are actually doing this. What part of Houston are you in?

 

[kskdesign]

I ran across the Costco Mr Cools recently, and was intrigued. We run an evaporative cooler(Master Cool) for summer months, but during times of humidity, it's worthless. Compared units and mgfr's online and by happen-chance saw HD selling mitsubishi ductless mini split systems. Did a 'lil research obtained a price quote with HD independent installers, only to find out end product and install costs is significantly higher, requiring professional installation if one wanted to quality for energy rebates($1K to $1.5K). Unfortunately, the unit and install labor costs, to comparable sized units to the Mr Cool systems, was upwards of 3x the cost for Mr Cool. With that, the Mr Cool DIY seems a great viable option.

Curious to hear folks feedback with use of these systems. Pro's cons, noise levels, energy saving, or energy bleeder.

For our personal use I'm considering these systems for use on humid days, to shut it down evap and switch to mini ductless a/c. Planning on 2 units: one for mstr and bdrms of the home, and a second (larger capacity) one to serve liv/din/kitch areas. I see they can be split ,but also have read there are some issues with running 2 systems tied to a single fan.... thoughts?

 

[Browneye]

MrCool DIY are single head units, 4 sizes only, with a fixed 25' line set. Not the perfect setup for everyone, but surely a helluva deal at a third the cost of a hvac pro install, if you can make one work for your situation.

We are super pleased with how ours work. I would do it again in a heartbeat. After a couple of months living with them would change nothing. Beyond satisfied.

Near as I can tell, my 12K and 24K units running pretty much 24-7 for the last couple of months of summer here, it's been 90 for most of that - about 400kwh of power. It kicked us into tier 3 here where they charge 35cents a kw plus a penalty for going over our 'allotment'. IDGAF LOL

It may just prompt me to drop a few solar panels on the roof to keep our bill down. That's another industry that has simply run away with profits. Pro's are charging $5 to $10 per watt when you can DIY for $2 or less. Solar blvd has quite a few units for a buck a watt.

We run a pool pump, big screen, marine reef tank with chiller, computers, 2 freezer units for beer fermenting chambers, and a host of constant project power consumption, the RV charger, lights, vacuum, etc etc. We jumped form $200/mo to $400. But I doubt will stay up there once it cools off back to 80 again. Monday and Tuesday are forecast for 101. We are really thankful for our AC.

 

[PoorOwner]

MrCool DIY are single head units, 4 sizes only, with a fixed 25' line set. Not the perfect setup for everyone, but surely a helluva deal at a third the cost of a hvac pro install, if you can make one work for your situation.

We are super pleased with how ours work. I would do it again in a heartbeat. After a couple of months living with them would change nothing. Beyond satisfied.

Near as I can tell, my 12K and 24K units running pretty much 24-7 for the last couple of months of summer here, it's been 90 for most of that - about 400kwh of power. It kicked us into tier 3 here where they charge 35cents a kw plus a penalty for going over our 'allotment'. IDGAF LOL

It may just prompt me to drop a few solar panels on the roof to keep our bill down. That's another industry that has simply run away with profits. Pro's are charging $5 to $10 per watt when you can DIY for $2 or less. Solar blvd has quite a few units for a buck a watt.

We run a pool pump, big screen, marine reef tank with chiller, computers, 2 freezer units for beer fermenting chambers, and a host of constant project power consumption, the RV charger, lights, vacuum, etc etc. We jumped form $200/mo to $400. But I doubt will stay up there once it cools off back to 80 again. Monday and Tuesday are forecast for 101. We are really thankful for our AC.

any chance you can shut off one of your units and open some windows at night on certain days? That should take some off the bill.

 

[Browneye]

any chance you can shut off one of your units and open some windows at night on certain days? That should take some off the bill.

Exactly what we do. Set timer to shut off about midnight, usually about 2or3 open the house up and run a couple of fans - by then it's low 70's and cools things off. Stays cool till about 10 before it heats up again.

Rarely ever set them below 74 to 75. On a 95* day 76 feels really nice!

 

[Weekend_warrior]

How would these work in a dusty envoirnment? I occasionally do wood working and sanding or cut metal. Leave the whole garage dusty. I don't have any dust collection. It would be nice, but AC in the summer would be great.

 

[justinjoyal]

How would these work in a dusty envoirnment? I occasionally do wood working and sanding or cut metal. Leave the whole garage dusty. I don't have any dust collection. It would be nice, but AC in the summer would be great.

It would require more maintenance (keep filters clean, occasionnal coil cleaning, fan cleaning, etc.)

Occasionnal is ok..

 

[aunsafe2015]

Anybody know what the minimum operating capacity of the 12k BTU Mr Cool is? In other words, how far down can it's inverter modulate?