Our hats are off to these Boise, ID homeowners: They managed to keep almost all the original heating and cooling equipment in their home working for forty years!
For all that care and effort, they deserved the best when it was time to upgrade. With a new, state-of-the-art ductless system, that’s just what our homeowners got.
We got the call as our homeowners began dipping their toes into the market for a new furnace and central air system. They didn’t know much about their options, but they knew that something had to change.
By now, they were dealing with severe hot and cold spots in every room. No matter how high or low they turned the thermostat, they could never get comfortable anymore.
When we checked out the house, we discovered more at play than just aging equipment: The ductwork design wasn’t all that great.
As a result, they lost a lot of air pressure along the way. The problem got worse as their system struggled to keep up.
Now, our homeowners were faced with a bigger choice than they expected: Do they spend thousands and thousands of dollars more than expected, plus rip up half the house, to fix the ventilation issues?
Or, do they go with an entirely different solution?
They chose the latter: A ductless heating and cooling system, or mini split. It would provide exceptional comfort in every room. It would also bypass the poorly-designed ductwork.
In this case study, we’ll explore:
- How Ductless Eliminates Hot And Cold Spots
- Customization And Exceptional Comfort
- Designing A Whole-House Multi-Zone Mini Split
- Ductless Installation In Boise, ID
Meanwhile, if any of these problems sound familiar — or any of these solutions sound appealing — call or email Snowflake Air. Starting with a free consultation, we’ll help you make your Boise, ID home more comfortable than ever before.
Problem: This Boise, ID home, built in 1978, had hot and cold spots in almost every room. The house had the original furnace, old central air condenser, and poor ventilation.
Solution: Replaced the old, failing conventional system with a multi-zone ductless heating and cooling system. It provides exceptional comfort and even temperatures in each room without using the existing ductwork.
Read More: How Much Does A Mini Split Cost In And Around Boise Metro?
How Ductless Eliminates Hot And Cold Spots
Let’s get right to the point here: How does a ductless mini-split get rid of hot and cold spots and provide consistent, even temperatures throughout the house?
There are three main components behind this:
- Built-In Thermostats
- Inverter Technology
- Sensors And Fans
- Built-In Thermostats
The first big difference from the old forced-air system is, essentially, having a thermostat in every single room. That’s a significant change from using one thermostat (usually on the first floor) to regulate the entire house.
This way, our homeowners eliminate the common frustration with second-floor rooms. WHen they’re’ too far from the thermostat, they never get treated the right way.
Instead, the air handler in each room continuously measures and regulates the temperature in that area. So, if one room reaches the call setting before the others, great! That unit powers down.
Meanwhile, another room that needs more treatment gets just that.
Inverter Technology
Next, the heat pump, or outdoor unit, has a variable-speed blower. It’s called “Inverter Technology” on ductless equipment, and it’s like cruise control for your heating and cooling.
Our homeowners knew their furnace or central air would click on and off a few times every hour. That’s because conventional HVAC only has two modes: On and off.
So, the best they could do was “course correct” as the temperature drifted away from their setting.
With Inverter technology, the heat pump can provide a full-power blast when needed. But, most of the time, it runs a low-power supply of heating or cooling.
That way, the system holds a steady temperature all the time. It’s like how you can coast on the highway with the car automatically making small adjustments to keep a constant speed.
Sensors And Fans
Finally, the air handler uses sensors and fans within the unit to direct warm or cooled air to the spots that need it the most. Even within a room, you can get hot and cold pockets.
It happens especially in larger rooms, open floor plans, spaces with high ceilings — and homes with lousy ductwork.
This way, every spot in the room is comfortable.
Customization And Exceptional Comfort
We threw a lot of technical stuff at our homeowners at first. It all boiled down to customization and exceptional comfort.
First off, remember those built-in thermostats we mentioned? Well, they don’t all need to be set the same.
Instead, our homeowners can create “zones” in the house, each with a different temperature. It’s helpful when, say, they’re downstairs all day and don’t need the bedrooms as work.
Next, each room was just plain more comfortable! Even when the old system worked its best, our homeowners could never get this level of consistent heating and cooling.
Read More: Rebates and Financing For Mini Splits In And Around Boise Metro
Designing A Whole-House Multi-Zone Mini Split
Once our homeowners decided to go with a mini split, we got to work designing a setup just for their Boise, ID home.
Since each heat pump can hold up to eight air handlers, we’d have plenty of power to work with.
We only needed one air handler downstairs. Even though the space was divided into rooms, there were no doors between them. So, one unit could handle the entire area.
Upstairs, we put an air handler in each bedroom. This way, they could adjust the temperature in each one based on when people used them.
After that, it was just a question of finding the best spots in each room to mount the air handlers. Then, we ran the lines through the walls to connect each indoor unit to the heat pump outside.
And with that, our homeowners went from inconsistent HVAC with hot and cold spots everywhere to quiet, comfortable, in every room, all year-’round.
Do you want to make your Treasure River Valley home more comfortable — and customizable — than ever before? Call or email Snowflake Air for a free consultation for a new mini split installation in Boise, ID.
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