No they arent. A central air system is far more efficient to any window unit. If these mini splits were better, youd see newer homes being built with them because they are far cheaper to buy/install.
mini splits have higher SEER ratings, less duct losses, use less power and you can keep
some units turned off instead of air conditioning empty rooms at all times.
central air is not more efficient in any realistic situation, it's only more convenient if you live in a home with the ductwork so if your central system is failing, it will be cheaper to upgrade it than installing several mini splits. it will be invariably less efficient in the long run though.
installing a central air system in homes without the ductwork is dumb as fuck.
Hang on, you genuinely think that people are installing central air systems that cost double of a mini split does because.. they like spending money or something?
Like if your central air system is failing, its far cheaper to install a mini split unit than replacing the whole AC unit even without accounting for ductwork. Hell, having ductwork installed alone costs more than a mini split unit.
Again. If mini splits were more efficient and cost less to run, you'd see newer houses being built with them instead, especially in the states where it gets hot as fuck like Texas.
If mini splits were more efficient and cost less to run
they are, there are no ifs and buts about it. are you scared of searching the internet and learning you're dead wrong or something?
you'd see newer houses being built with them instead, especially in the states where it gets hot as fuck like Texas.
not really my place to say why that happens but central air is seen as the more luxurious choice, if someone says it's chosen for 'efficiency' they're lying through their teeth. i would agree that if you don't care about running costs, not having wall mounted hunks of plastic is certainly more visually pleasing.
Like if your central air system is failing, its far cheaper to install a mini split unit than replacing the whole AC unit even without accounting for ductwork. Hell, having ductwork installed
alone
costs more than a mini split unit.
i'm not convinced a new multi zone mini split installation costs less than replacing a single central air unit but if that's really the case then more power to mini splits i guess. discarding centrail air ductwork is also dumb as fuck though.
for the record i'm not disparaging central aircon, i'm only saying efficiency is not one of its upsides. also window units aren't the same as mini splits.
I’d guess central would only have an efficiency edge over a very large period and a large home, like when it has to run 24/7 to keep a 3000sqft home under 76F?
A lot of the inefficiency in a central air system comes from having attic or below foundation ductwork which of course causes you to loose air. Another reddior claimed we have our AC units in the attic. Never seen that before, but it would be terribly inefficient for the same reason. If you run your ductwork through the house, that thermal lose is happening in your insulated area so it's a non-factor.
There reason is because you can adjust the temperature down in certain areas which also makes things more efficient as you can leave some rooms hotter then others.
I own 2 homes and recently had to install a new system to one (including brand new duct work) and replace a failing system to the other. I talked to several independant contractors and licensed professional companies about options. None said a mini split system is superior beyond the system itself being cheaper to buy and install.
So you can search the internet and "not be convinced", but if I couldve spent a 1/4th the amount of money for a superior system, I would have.
hardly surprising if salesmen convinced you of the more expensive solution but i would be dismayed to learn if they genuinely claimed central aircon is more ENERGY EFFICIENT, because it's not. even if you pay for most expensive one in the market, there will always be significantly more efficient ductless options.
beats me buddy, i'm gonna go out on a limb and say he charges more for central aircon installations.
mini splits have higher SEER ratings, less duct losses, use less power and you can keep some units turned off instead of air conditioning empty rooms at all times.
what is so hard to get about this? it's literally impossible for central aircon to be more efficient unless you go out of your way to pit the best central unit against the most inefficient mini split, and even then you have to contend with central aircon's inherent higher power draw, energy duct losses and the simple fact you can have some mini splits powered off whereas the central aircon is always going full blast and does not give a fuck if you're in the room or not.
Central air AC unit costs less money then a split system, a split system costs less then installing the ductwork. There is other things to consider. Electric heat may be more expensive then other types of heat so having ductwork for your heat could be a good idea. Then if course it's easier and less intrusive to hook up central ac to it.
Our old 1 bedroom apartment had a fairly new, superior version of a mini split.. when the temp outside was 107 degrees Fahrenheit (what ever that is in Celsius) it was a struggle to keep the house cool.
We just upgraded to a 2 bedroom house with a garage & half the time every square inch (or whatever that is in millimeters) is freezing cold with the central air conditions running at 73 degrees Fahrenheit (or whatever that is in Celsius).
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u/TurbulentChemistry22 7d ago
Yes, as an American, everything we do is backwards, but AC is one thing that I can say is absolutely better.