We should have started the process of installing air conditioning a month earlier.  Its June now and in Baltimore it can get into the 90s with high humidity… and has.

We’ve decided to stay ductless.  We’ve compared brands online and settled on the Mercedes of Mini-split systems: Mitsubishi.  After a visit from a contractor that Home Depot lined up, we got a quote for a Mr. Slim system: $14,000 installed.  HA!  That’s not going to happen.  We looked up the exact parts he quoted and found the parts to be around $4000.  We’ll see how I feel once its installed, but $8000 for labor is a bit ridiculous.  In classic Mike & Siri manner, we’ve gone and jumped in with both feet (4 total) and bought the same system online.  We can do this ourselves.

The Guts

We’ve picked everything up and it looks good.  Like our washing machine, fridge and dishwasher, this thing is a scratch and dent model.  There is a little dent on the  service cover, but once this is on the roof, nobody will ever see it.  We got a $200 discount for this which covers the line set.

The technology for this is more advanced, but the same concept as our True fridge.  There is a compressor / condenser unit that is separate.  In this case it will go on our roof.  It connects via power and a high and low line set to the indoor units.  This compressor supports 3 circuits.  One for each floor.  The indoor units are about 3′ x 1′ x 1’and mount on the wall.  A 3″ hole is made in the wall for the line set, power wires and condensation line.  We’re going to run these up the outside wall to the roof where we will put the compressor.  Speaking of the compressor, this thing is BIG.  Bigger than I thought it would be at least.  It stands around 3′ tall and is just as wide.

Siri is taking a trip next week and I hope to get this mostly set up while she is away.  I’ll need to mount the wall units and drill the holes through the walls in 3 spots.  I’ll also need to recruit some  helpers and get the compress onto the roof where I’ll bolt it in and wire it up.  Next step is getting the line sets installed. This will be tricky 3 stories up on a ladder, but I imagine I can handle it.

For the final step, we will be calling in a licensed HVAC guy who will basically turn a knob on the compressor and sign off that it works.. and then take a few hundred dollars from us.  This is lame, but we need it signed off on so we can get our 7 year warranty.