When Is Ductless Air Conditioner Installation a Good Idea?
If you’ve been researching all the air conditioning options for your home or office, ductless AC has likely come up more than once. While definitely a popular option for many, is it really a good idea in your situation? Learning a little more about what ductless AC is and how it works can help you determine if ductless air conditioner installation is right for your needs.
How ductless AC differs from central AC
As the name implies, ductless air conditioners don’t rely on a system of ducts the way central AC does to force air into your home. While you’ll still have an outside unit, small refrigerant lines are run into your home to connect with air handlers. This is a similar setup to what you might find in motel rooms, except you’ll have the option to select smaller, quieter and sleeker units that will better fit in with your home’s décor.
A primary benefit of ductless over central air conditioning is energy efficiency. Whenever there’s even a small tear in a single piece of ductwork, the efficiency of your central air conditioner can drop dramatically. With a ductless air conditioner, you don’t have to worry about it.
How ductless AC compares to other cooling options
Unlike portable and window AC units, ductless air conditioners are permanent cooling solutions for your entire home or office. In addition to providing superior energy efficiency to these other options, a ductless system will also provide conditioned air to every room, not just a single room.
When ductless air conditioning makes sense
Ductless air conditioners are an obvious choice when the layout of your home or office building doesn’t allow for the installation of ducts. You’ll find this is the case in many older homes. Since the installation of ductwork can sometimes require a massive renovation to the entire building, ductless air conditioner installation is the fastest and most affordable solution.
Even if your building will easily allow for the installation or replacement of ductwork, a central air conditioning system has a fatal flaw in that all rooms are cooled to the same temperature. If you need to provide the occupants of different rooms to decide on their own temperature, a ductless air conditioner is the clear choice.
These systems will also help you save money on monthly cooling costs because you have the freedom to cool each room as needed rather than the entire home at once.