Ex-Googler designed a heat pump you'll want in your home
fastcompany.com
fastcompany.com
I retrofit a Fujitsu 4-zone split system into my house, that I bought online. I installed a hidden air handler in a centrally located closet to cover the open-floorplan downstairs, which mostly made that space useless for other storage. I also installed 3 recessed flush-mount ceiling-mount units (called a "ceiling cassette") in the bedrooms, which luckily had attic access above. They were 22" wide to fit between the rafters. Nice unobtrusive look. They also offer a floor mounted unit that is less obtrusive than the ol' box on the wall, but it has a slightly lower SEER rating. And can limit where you put your furniture.
Also LG has one called the "Art Cool" which is essentially a very thick picture frame you can hang on the surface and disguise with a pretty picture. They should make one built into an OLED TV...
But there are probably a ton of videos out there from people with better video production skills and a more pleasant presentation style than mine. I really taught myself HVAC installation from YT videos and reading the equipment manuals a lot.
https://mrcool.com/diy-ceiling-cassette/
I have a 100+ y/o farm house, so retrofitting can require some creativity. These recessed units should work, but I'm also toying with the idea of integrating mini-splits into built-in cabinets/dressers. I've been obsessed with greeting a nice large format wood CNC and I like the idea of hiding the return unit behind cosmetic panels.
I like the idea of recessed units within the central wall with condensers in the attack. I need to vent the heat somewhere. Maybe if I get rid of all the gas (water, furnace), I can vent out the chimney.
What model did you buy? How complicated was the install? How did you buy it online - I understood Fujitsu to sell through distributors / installers? Where are you located?
The most complicated thing is preparing and flaring the copper tube ends, then pressure testing overnight. R410a is a high pressure refrigerant, the manual has very specific dimensional requirements for the flare to get a good seal. You need to cut the tube end well, then file it it perfectly square and deburr, and use a special orbital flaring tool that costs around $100 to get a flare that meets the required dimensions.
For pressure testing, the manual said to use Nitrogen at the system operating pressure of around ~450 PSI. So you will need to own/beg/borrow/steal a high pressure gas bottle and a regulator. I was too lazy to drive to the airport and borrow my friend's N2 bottle so I used Argon from my TIG welder, it it worked out fine. But yeah, most people do not have a source of 500 PSI inert gas just sitting around. You will also need a vacuum pump and gauge to evacuate the lines, but the compressor comes pre-charged with refrigerant so after evacuating, you just open the valves and start running it, no charging manifold or refrigerant fill needed.
I'm in the Pacific Northwest USA, I purchased from eComfort.com , no financial affiliation. One reason I chose Fujitsu is that all the installation and service data was easily available, but Fujitsu is a REAL pain about selling parts/aftermarket support unless you are licensed distributor. I found a guy through Reddit that I have used to order parts (I broke a thermistor wire by being ham-handed)
Nothing wrong with Midea or Gree, though they tend to be considered to be second-tier to Mitsubishi and Fujitsu, but the markup seems quite a bit for a marginally (debatable) better appearance.
[1]: When you see a mini-split, if it's not Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, or Daikin, it's likely made by Midea or Gree.
Meanwhile, I'm still waiting for Tesla to make residential heat pumps/air conditioners as per Master Plan 3.
Now as I was reading through that article I kept thinking things like "How are they gonna rug pull buyers?" "What's gonna happen when they hold someone's home heating to ransom because they aren't paying some backend service subscription?" "Who're they planning upon selling room occupancy and energy use data to?" "How much legitimately purchased and expensively installed hardware is gonna end up bricked when this "20% project" get's graveyarded because the person driving it got distracted by some new shiny project?"
That certainly doesn't inspire confidence.
Regardless of the reality of the character of any individual Google employee or ex employee, the point is valid that Google's name comes with a different, and worse, impression today than yesterday.
Several years ago I had 3 zones of a 4 zone mini split installed, and then after they filled up with mold and dust in one year (thanks, "eco" mode) I discovered it's practically impossible to clean the blower inside.
I did it anyway, by taking them all apart while still attatched to the lines, but I had to flex the lines as the units had to come off the hangers away from the wall to get the blower housing apart. This was obviously not something you do very many times before you spring a leak and I never did it again.
It was also super ungainly and messy and required moving everything out from underneath each unit, which was super inconvenient since this incuded book shelves and dressers and wall mounted shelves etc.
I also ended up getting cleaner on the bearings. One time, on year-old sealed bearings probably didn't hurt anything, but it's not exactly good to get bearings wet, especially regularly like if cleaning were actually a regular maintenance operation.
The units were clearly never meant to come apart, and I can't understand, why not??? The plastic screen does not actually keep the unit clean. It helps but it's just a screen not magic.
But, nobody who lives in colder climates should buy these given the lack of technical specs Quilt provides. Look at my comment the other day in another thread comparing the Quilt to a GE unit. The Quilt is subpar - especially on the heating side.
It's a sleeker, stylier, VC oriented heat pump!
As an ex-goggler, I'm sure Paul will make millions in the first round and have a great story to tell on the golf course...
The only substantial thing I could find was that the company has it's own installers and fixed, disclosed pricing. Both of these are a plus, unlike the double sided sticky tape veneer add-ons...
Edit: Also considering a 42 SEER Carrier model that will be more expensive initially but cheaper to run.
The greatest minds of our generation (if such things exist) have probably been wasted on serving ads and high frequency trading.
Tech specs mentions Matter on their website.
We just had some installed. Sure would be nice if we had pretty options like Quilt but...no.
The integrated light seems very sensible.
Also, both Japanese brands like Daikin and Chinese brands like Mijia (Xiaomi) and Colmo (Midea) have pretty-looking air conditioners. [1] [2]
[1] https://www.acdirect.com/daikin-12000-btu-mini-split-wall-mo...
[2] https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804135466220.html?gateway...
The innovation seems to be two-fold:
- looks stylish
- vertically integrated installer network
Of those two ideas, “looks stylish” seems like a winner to me, but it is also easily copied.
Anyway, you could always install one of these in addition to your aircon if you want air from the outside: https://broan-nutone.com/en-us/fresh-air-systems/residential
Opening a window would be an obvious alternative but then sound would mix.
The true benefit of mini splits is the hyper competitive market. There is a mini split for all desires and the prices to install are reasonable here in Japan.
This was completely true 10 years ago. These days though mini split is the standard in the US for remodeling. If you go to a slightly wealthier part of an urban city almost every house has them.
Used to be you would put in high-velocity central during a remodel (instead of ducts, it uses smaller pipes, with the air moving relatively fast since the pipe is much smaller). Total it's exclusively mini split.
New construction hasn't fully switched over yet though. Partly because mini splits can't provide enough heating for a northern climate, and since you need a fire someplace, you use that same ducting for the A/C.
It also confused me for a long time that they are called "heat pumps". I'm used to that term describing the technology more broadly, as in heat pump hot water systems, etc.
WHAT???
I can buy a panasonic 1.5hp mini-split inverter, enough for a medium sized room, for <$500, then a couple hundred to install it at most.
And probably a hand-crafted heirloom wood surround/cabinet with solid gold accents for the remaining $~6k.
Heat pumps have to be opted into by choice on a regional basis as an alternative to the default heating options.
"They just work everywhere" isn't true. Not everywhere has natural gas access, not everywhere has oil/propane delivery, not everywhere has access to wood fuel.
So now we're back to making situational decisions about heating technology anyway.
One fuel source that's more universally available than any of the above is electricity.
Electric heat pumps can work in more places than any single traditional fuel source. It's only when you combine all of those fuel sources you can make the "less universal" argument.
Add electric baseboards as a backup for sub -5F temps and you can cover 100% of the country with electricity.
>Add electric baseboards as a backup for sub -5F temps and you can cover 100% of the country with electricity.
Now that is nonsense. They don't work in Minneapolis. Which brings us back full circle to the topic at hand: this "ex-googler" heat pump does nothing to improve on the operations or universality of heat pumps. It just makes them look aesthetically pleasing and that's worthless.
I'm not anti-heat-pump. I just wish they'd be developed into a truly universal solution.
heat pumps work well until about -5F (they still work at temps below this, but max temp is limited)
I know because I live in an area that occasionally sees temps as low as -10F. I removed oil for electric.
when using both in tandem electric heat can work everywhere
but it doesn't matter... only a small percent of the country sees temperatures that low, so it would be fine if they continued using gas
( new targets and requested actions outlined in the letter)
Clean and Healthy Buildings: Creating a goal of 3 million climate-ready and climate-friendly homes by 2030 and 7 million by 2035, supplemented by 6 million heat pumps by 2030, and directing 50 percent of investments to low-income and disadvantaged communities.
https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/07.22.2022...