Want a Wall Mounted Ductless Heat Pump

The estimate to replace electric furnace with an air handler and put a heat pump outside the north wall that would heat cool the whole house was $$$$$$K.

We haven't really needed AC for most of the 23 years we've lived in the house. Only a few days each summer but it seems like there are more of them each year.

We think we can do the ductless for less than $$k. Maybe substantially less. And we are confident that will lower our heating bills which have also been getting higher.

So yes we looked at central air and heat with a heat pump. It's too much money. My neighbor is a contractor he can tell me if the wall is load bearing but I'm 99% positive it is.

You're right though the $$$$$$k solution would be quieter.

Sorry climate zone is Seattle. I should have said that before.

We looked at whole house central heat pump replacing electric furnace. $$$$$$k

Keep the furnace and have a split units with 1, 2 or 3 ceiling mounted (wall mounted in living room) heads $$$$k, $$$$k and $$$$$k respectively.

They all entailed having the heat pump on the north end of the house on the ground away from the driveway. Did say mounting the unit on the outside wall above the driveway was an option.

Basically the unit cannot sit on the driveway even though it's mostly in the shadow of the fireplace.

Is split the only option? If so any suggestions? Brand model etc.

Let me start over.

We bought 2 Hisense portable 115v 9000 btu heat pumps to cool 2 upstairs bedrooms during the summer. They work great. Kind of a pain as they take up a lot of space and ties up a window but for short term summer use it works

Below is pictured an experimental set up of one of those units in my large un-insulated garage hoping I could get the temp in there warm enough to work on my project car during the winter.

The unit requires a 115v outlet and and external inlet and outlet ducts.

Plus I had to rig up a drain to outside. Heating fills the onboard tank up in maybe 15 minutes so continuous draining is needed. When we use the units inside for AC the units sit on the floor and the onboard condensation tanks have never needed draining for at least the last 2 summers.

Long story short in ambient temps as low as 40 deg F the unit would heat the garage to 66 deg, the lowest heat setting available. And it will keep the temperature there. Experiment was a smashing success. If I decide to permanently heat my garage I will move the unit elsewhere and cut holes in the wall. The garage is my sandbox.

Fast forward a few months. Our furnace failed. I put one of these units on a table in the dining room/ kitchen. It was set up exactly the same as the garage except higher up so I could run the drain through the bottom of the window and not drill a hole in the wall.

Long story short it kept the kitchen/dining room warm plus the living room using a fan to blow air out there. Didn't do the rest of the house of course, and I understand the hot air tends to stay up as opposed to going down stairs which is what the AC cold air would want to do.

And, we could use a unit like this to cool the living room but we can't make the space needed for it, next to the front windows, unlike in the bedrooms. Plus there's the drainage issue if we wanted to use it to heat.

But, what if I built a shelf in the area I want to put the ductless heat pump, set the Hisense unit on that shelf, cut holes for the ducts and the drain? That would work but the Hisense unit doesn't fit the space being about 30" X 20" X 18".

Or I could build an external cabinet sealed so it's part of the internal house volume with a slot cut to let the air in. Have to get on a ladder to clean the air filter. Not real worried about external aesthetics in that area as it's right above where the garbage cans go.

Or I could buy a hotel style floor mounted self contained heat pump but then my stereo has to move and there's no place for it to go.

The Hisense units were about $300 each. Surely there are wall mounted units available that will do this? Think like a window mounted AC except it's a heat pump. And come to think of it why don't they make something like that anyway?

I am sure I can find a solution. But was hoping to leverage off the knowledge and experience on this forum. A relatively flat head (panel) that fits the 22" X 66" space available with a small split unit (heat pump) hanging off the exterior wall above the garbage cans is all I need. Or a compact self contained unit similar to the Hisenses would be good too. Not having to rearrange studs is obviously a big plus.

Looking for the cheap solution. Increasing the btu to 12,000 gives me some extra margin, having too little is worse than too much. And I feel confident it will at least cool the living room in the summer and heat in the winter, i.e. lower our heating bills.

Now what do you say?

My apologies for posting the pricing numbers. They were approximate.

OK sorry I was on a trip. I found this on Ebay. I probably wouldn't buy it there.

Didn't post the link because I wasn't sure about violating price guidelines (again).

It's the whole system.

Only thing else needed would be the external wall mount.

This very inexpensive mounting bracketry (from Amazon) looks like it would work. Says it has rubber isolator mounts.

I will pay somebody to install. 18,000 btu may be more than I need but rather have too much than too little. Have easy access to 220v connections from nearby house electrical panel. I like Mitsubishi but they tend to be pricey. I have been very happy with my Hisense portable heat pumps. I'm sure they have something similar to the above for less.

Am I missing anything? Suggestions for brands or anything else.

As always thanks for the help!

Yes I looked at it. Sorry I didn't respond before. The mini split takes up less space inside and the pass throughs have less impact on the wall. But you're right that is exactly what I was describing previously.

Seriously? I bought a small Sears window unit for an add on upstairs bedroom for a house in Texas. The central air wasn't getting it done. Not sized right I suspect. None the less that window unit worked great for 15 years with no servicing other than cleaning or changing filters. Still working when I sold the house in 2000.

Not being able to mount on a framed wall would be a show stopper. I have 3 heat pumps the 2 portable units for the bedrooms and a third to heat our 15' diameter above ground pool the 2 months a year we can use it. The vibration from the portable units is noticable but not unbearable. Other than sound possibly being an annoyance is vibration really an issue?

I have asked for quotes from 3 contractors via Mitsubishi Web site.

Yeah there's the rub isn't it.

Pin holing?