Warranties on mini splits?

[Hank11]

It appears that the top line manufacturers require that the unit be bought from and installed by a licensed HVAC company. I keep getting insanely high bids - so high that I could just buy a new unit if the first one died without warranty. And that might be my path.

What are y'alls thoughts about this? Are any manufacturers offering warranty on professional install of customer purchased units?

Thanks in advance.

 

[thammel]

I have a mr slim minisplit. The indoor coil failed. This was installed in 2016. I did the installation but had a HVAC tech do the leak check and final piping connection. (I got his name and number when he did another job for me while working for an HVAC company). Anyway, a month ago my regular HVAC company came and found the failure and the part is covered under warranty. Now, I did fill out the warranty info back in 2016. Glad I did!!!

 

[SVibs]

In most cases, the warranty isn't worth the paper it's printed on. All of the ones I looked at covered parts only so you'd have to pay the labor costs for diagnosis and installation of the covered part. I too started by getting quotes from HVAC companies. I was quoted over $5500 to install an 18K BTU Daikin mini split in my garage.

I ended up getting my EPA 608 Universal certification, ordering a Senville Leto 24K BTU from Senville for $1200. Tools (Micron gauge, vacuum pump, valve core removal tools, tubing bender, flaring tool, etc.) cost me approx $500, supplies (equipment pad, service disconnect, service whip, breaker, Romex) added another $250 or so, and electrical and mechanical permits were $110 total. All in, the system cost was bit over $2K.

I submitted the warranty registration paperwork to Senville and included my EPA certification number in the HVAC Contractor License Number field and received a confirmation that the warranty was successfully registered. I assume this means I'm good to go if I need to file a warranty claim. If so, great. If not, not a huge loss. I've saved enough money installing it myself that I can actually buy two+ new systems before I exceed the cost of a "pro" install.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Every conventional system generally has a 10 year parts and labor warranty

 

[SVibs]

Every conventional system generally has a 10 year parts and labor warranty

Parts yes, labor no. Most manufacturers eliminated labor coverage years ago.

 

[WildBill]

The Mr.Cool DIY series are covered when you do the install. I put a 24k setup in my shop two years ago by myself and love it, super quiet, super efficient, really easy install. I would look at the different places to buy it for the best after sale support, some places even add a year warranty if you buy it from them. I think they are made by Midea, just like a bunch of other brands. With their sealed and charged lines I did't need any special tools to do the install, no pumps or gauges needed.

 

[SVibs]

While I think the Mr Cool DIY series is a great concept, I was turned off by the huge price premium and the fact that you can't shorten the line set which means that the extra length needs to be coiled somewhere. In my case, I needed 18 feet of line set which would have meant horizontally coiling 7 feet a line.

 

[fitter30]

Because minis are built so compact, have very small orifices and electronic valves they need a dry, clean and correct charge if lines are extended. That is one reason diy units use precharge lines.
Warranties if there would be a problem with the refrigeration circuit.
Compressor, three way valve or a electronic expansion valve in the condenser i would replaced the whole condenser. The reason the only way to replace these parts correctly is purge with nitrogen when sil-fos 15 copper brazing rod. Without purging the copper oxidize leaving black flaky soot on the inside of the connection just waiting to clog orifices that might be inch away way before a filter dryer or strainer.

 

[WildBill]

While I think the Mr Cool DIY series is a great concept, I was turned off by the huge price premium and the fact that you can't shorten the line set which means that the extra length needs to be coiled somewhere. In my case, I needed 18 feet of line set which would have meant horizontally coiling 7 feet a line.

I paid less for my MR.Cool setup than any other brand I was looking at. Not sure what you mean by huge price premium, they seem to be about middle ground on price, and you don't need $400-500 in tools. My 24k setup was around $1,400 from Costco. I just coiled my extra 7-8ft of tubing up flat below the outside unit, you can't even see it without looking up under there. I know some people say its bad because oil will accumulate in the extra coils, but there doesn't seem to be any solid evidence either way and I did it as the MR.Cool documentation suggested.

 

[Hank11]

Just to give an example, I've gotten one quote for $11,000.00 for a Mitsubishi dual head 12/24 unit installed. This in a new building, walls wide open, power run, and with me supplying the pad. I guess between the messed up super high demand for any construction related work and the tax credit offered they figure they can ask any crazy amount of money. I've been sending them out the door pretty quick.

 

[jjrbus]

I had a quote for $6k for a central unit with new duct and $10-12k for dual head mini! If you search here you will find warranty's are parts only so close to useless. I opted for 3 separate units to eliminate one very long run and to have redundancy.

I looked at Mr Cool but was not having a big coil of lineset at the front of the house, out behind the barn maybe. I learned to put excess lineset in a serpentine fashion behind the condenser. A vertical coil is an oil trap!

I have had to buy a couple parts and wonder, instead of buying 1 quality unit if buying 2 or 3 cheap units and having a supply of parts might be a better option?

Mini's can be a real pain to keep clean a couple companys have addressed this with an easy to remove blower wheel, that is who I would go with next time. Don't remember the names. Google clean mini split, they do not show that in the sales brochure's

 

[SVibs]

I paid less for my MR.Cool setup than any other brand I was looking at. Not sure what you mean by huge price premium, they seem to be about middle ground on price, and you don't need $400-500 in tools. My 24k setup was around $1,400 from Costco. I just coiled my extra 7-8ft of tubing up flat below the outside unit, you can't even see it without looking up under there. I know some people say its bad because oil will accumulate in the extra coils, but there doesn't seem to be any solid evidence either way and I did it as the MR.Cool documentation suggested.

That's a great price. I must have been looking at their 4th generation system pricing which seems to hover around $2500 to the 24K BTU setup.

 

[pcmeiners]

"I submitted the warranty registration paperwork to Senville and included my EPA certification number in the HVAC Contractor License Number field and received a confirmation that the warranty was successfully registered."

Same here, I used my EPA cert number for Fujitsu minisplits and warranty confirmation came back. I my situation (5) minisplits, just parts replacement may come in handy.

 

[WildBill]

That's a great price. I must have been looking at their 4th generation system pricing which seems to hover around $2500 to the 24K BTU setup.

Wow, they went up a bunch, you are correct. I haven't looked since my brother bought a 24k DIY 4th gen this summer on sale (Costco maybe?) for around $1,600. Looks like the 18 seer 24K DIY system is still in that range but the 20 seer one is about $2,500. Not sure if the 18 to 20 seer difference is worth $800-900 more.

 

[pcmeiners]

"Not sure if the 18 to 20 seer difference is worth $800-900 more."

2 points difference alone is not worth it, counting any technology upgrades may make it worth while.

 

[rlitman]

"I submitted the warranty registration paperwork to Senville and included my EPA certification number in the HVAC Contractor License Number field and received a confirmation that the warranty was successfully registered."

Same here, I used my EPA cert number for Fujitsu minisplits and warranty confirmation came back. I my situation (5) minisplits, just parts replacement may come in handy.

Back to the warranty isn't worth the paper it is printed on argument, just because you were able to register it, doesn't mean it will ever be honored.

 

[pcmeiners]

There is nothing in the Fujitsu warranty stipulations the rule out my qualifications. If they want to deny a parts warranty I can cause a lot of legal aggravation before I am done.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Parts yes, labor no. Most manufacturers eliminated labor coverage years ago.

My goodman has parts and labor 10 years. Have had them out like 3 times, never paid a penny.

 

[SVibs]

My goodman has parts and labor 10 years. Have had them out like 3 times, never paid a penny.

Are you sure this isn't the "Asure" extended warranty coverage: https://www.goodmanmfg.com/support/extended-service-agreement

The standard warranty appears to cover parts only.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

There is nothing in the Fujitsu warranty stipulations the rule out my qualifications. If they want to deny a parts warranty I can cause a lot of legal aggravation before I am done.

Fujitsu doesn't really ask for much out of the ordinary when it comes to warranty, but they specifically state they will NOT warranty anything purchased online.

Copied verbatim from my warranty paperwork on the three Halcyons in my house:

"This Limited Warranty applies only to Systems that are installed by contractors who are licensed for HVAC installation under applicable local and state law (Licensed Contractor), and who install the System in accordance with: (a) all applicable building codes and permits; (b) FGAI’s installation and operation instructions; and (c) good trade practices."

"Any Fujitsu General HVAC systems purchased on the Internet, from an online retailer or any similar e-tailing website, OR where the original factory serial numbers of the display have been removed, defaced, or replaced in any way WILL NOT BE COVERED BY WARRANTY."

Tommy

 

[pcmeiners]

"Fujitsu doesn't really ask for much out of the ordinary when it comes to warranty, but they specifically state they will NOT warranty anything purchased online."


Read the warranty a couple of times already.
Picked up my units at brick/mortar. Bloomsburg, the county or the state does not require a contractors license; I have an EPA universal. Adhered to all county/state/Federal laws.
Taken enough business law to know they would have a hard time denying me a parts warranty.

 

[Notgrownup]

For what I saved by installing my own Blueridge 18k btu 18 SEER unit myself I can pay for another one and still be cheaper than local quotes I got.