I went even cheaper. I bought a used (professionally removed) Gree unit from Craigslist. It was $120 delivered.

I bought the copper lines and fittings, did most of the install myself, and then called a 'professional' to braze the lines, nitrogen pressure test, evacuate, and start the unit up.

I have a functioning 2 ton unit for $800 and a bit of labor.

The hardest part was finding a service person/installer to come and finish off the job. Most guys have zero interest in doing the last 10% of a job. Can't say that I blame them, but that's life.

If I were doing another one I think I could do it all now that I've watched the process, on the other hand, you need a lot of tools to do it right.

How time flies :) The Mitsu has been performing great but unfortunately we are moving and it will stay behind :( But it sure was a selling feature for the sale of our home . I am building another man cave that is 24 x 28 with 12 ' ceiling and I will probably buy another Mitsu . I have enough line set , drain tubing and vinyl chase left over from this one so I won't have to purchase . That alone saves several hundred dollars .

The Mitsu that I used has been discontinued for a higher SEER replacement but I found an online retailer that still has some in stock with a decent discounted price . We are moving next W/E so probably won't pull the trigger until the end of the month . Stay tuned for man cave part II :D

Pulled the trigger on another Mitsu 2 ton mini split today , same 18 SEER unit that I had in the Marietta man cave. Found a vendor in FL. that sold it for $1994.00 delivered to my door it was the best price I could find . I didn't need to buy any accessories because I have all items left over from original purchase . Should be here in the next two weeks now I have to get the man cave finished so I have a place to install it :D

Will install this one the same as the first , rough install then call a HVAC guy to " professionally " finish the install . Stay tuned SmileWavy

Installed a Mitsu 1.5 ton in 26x28 very well insulated garage. Perfect. Cooling and heating.
Inexpensive to run, 10 years warranty if installed by dealer.
These things have been around for 20 years overseas especially in the Middle east. Well proven.

Update to Man Cave Part II :D So I am about 95 % done on the man cave I'm building at our retirement home , and the past few days I have completed the " rough " install . Have an HVAC dude coming tomorrow to give an estimate for completion . It is the same 24K unit I had at the Marietta house but this garage is MUCH better insulated . Walls are 2 x 6 with plywood on the inside and out , R19 Kraft faced insulation , house wrap and metal siding . The ceiling is metal panels also with R19 for now to be increased in the fall/winter . It has two insulated 10 ' x 9 ' garage doors and four double pane vinyl windows . I am expecting the mini split to perform with excellence :D Should have it up and running this week ( I hope ) :D The temp wood supports on the outside unit have been replaced with metal braces attached to the structure . SmileWavy

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1536613379.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1536613379.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1536613379.jpg

She's been up and running now for six days , whisper quiet ( as expected ) and plenty of cold air ! :D Standing outside watching the drain line it is amazing how much humidity is being pulled out of the building . I went online and registered both units for warranty and that went smooth also . The install went great , pulled a great vacuum with no leaks and the installer was impressed with my " rough install " to the point that he lowered his install price by 100.00 ! He said my work made it very easy for him to complete . I think the 24K size is about perfect for this garage , will be interesting to monitor electric usage for the next few months especially when it starts being heating season . I highly recommend a mini split for a garage application and especially a Mitsubishi the quality is just so good . SmileWavy

UPDATE: So I have been running the AC 24/7 on " econo cool " and 76 degree setting . I just picked that as a baseline setting so humidity would be pulled out of the garage while I'm not in there . When I go in there if I need/want it cooler I just drop the temp or set it on " regular cool " . We just received our first electric bill since the install and to be honest don't see much of a difference ............. maybe $8.00 difference ! It is still warm and humid here with 80 degree temp's and the last 2 days have rained off and on due to hurricane Michael . But cooler temp's are just around the corner .

Based on the performance I saw at the previous garage and what I am seeing so far on this one I am glad I made the choices I did . Excellent performance , whisper quiet and rock solid reliability . I think the unit will heat the space with no issues , I highly recommend a mini split for this type of application .

Excellent.

I am expanding my shop space incrementally and will take a deep look at the split when it makes sense.

Place looks great!

Seahawk thanks for the comment :D I see you are in Maryland how cold does it " generally " get there in the winter ? I think most mini splits perform well down to mid to high 20's any colder and their efficiency is compromised but that is the same for any heat pump system without additional heat strips .

I do want to clarify or add some words of caution so not to mislead anyone :rolleyes: . My previous garage and now this one are specifically for cars only and really is geared towards being a man cave :D I do not do ANY woodworking in the space ( saw dust ) all wood working is done in the basement or outside . My point is I don't create any or minimal air borne dust/dirt/grime/other . I state that because in a very dirty environment I'm not sure a mini split would be a good choice . Or a PTAC unit as their air filters aren't designed for that type of environment . In a shop that creates a lot of mess I would lean towards a more conventional system strictly for the air filtering capability . Good luck with your future garage upgrades . SmileWavy

Winters are generally fairly mild where I am - the water helps a lot - low 40's.

We will get some blasts but they usually don't last long. I have a propane heater if need be.

I have a nice a/c and heater for the shop but if I expand as designed, I'll need a bigger unit. My shop office has a separate window unit.

I don't do wood either. Woods hates me, I hate wood.

Hey guys I thought I would post an update , the mini split is performing perfectly . Last night was our first cold snap it got down into mid 20's with a pretty good frost . I have the mini split on heat and set to the lowest it will go which is 61 degrees . I just walked out to the garage it feels great for that low setting , I'm sure the low humidity in the building is part of it . Our electric bills hardly reflect the additional usage I am very happy overall . And I still have to install insulation in the ceiling over half of the garage !

Hey guys so I have aprox. four months of run time on the mini split , a combination of AC and heating mode . I am still very impressed/happy with the results and would do it again in a heartbeat . While I'm away from the garage in heat mode I leave it at 61 degrees , in AC mode I leave it at 76 degrees . In either case I can have it at meat locker cold or oven hot in about 10 - 15 minutes ! For my garage this is the perfect solution . Happy new year to all SmileWavy

Great update.

Without reading the post at the start, does it run on 110 or 220?

This might be something for my detached garage.

Pretty amazing technology really. A good mini split runs whisper quiet, barely dents the Edison bill, and runs less than 1/2 the cost of a conventional HVAC install if you are willing to do the rough-in. It is not right for every application but is certainly the way forward for me in both home and man cave.

Mine is 220 they can be had in 110 but not sure how many tons you can get in 110 . Plus I would imagine it would be more energy hungry but I don't know that for sure .

I totally agree . At some point I'm going to put in a bathroom and a game room in our basement and my plan will be to install a mini split with dual zones to cover the AC/heat needs for those two rooms .

Hello everyone SmileWavy So in 2 months the mini split will have been installed and running for a year . Knock on wood it has run flawlessly with no issues . Electric bills barely affected by the use of the mini split . Filters are very clean I am 100 % happy with the performance . There is no rusting of tools or anything I have stored in the man cave so the humidity control is working great . I still catch myself looking at the wall unit to see if it is on/working it is so damn quiet :D Have a great summer guys !

Rick,

Remind me how you insulated the walls and ceiling?

Hey Paul good to hear from you I have been following your build . My walls are 2x6 so I went with conventional kraft faced fiberglass R19 with the kraft paper facing the interior . The exterior of my building is 1/2 " plywood covered with house wrap and then metal siding installed vertically . The interior walls are also covered in 1/2 " plywood and painted . I do have metal aprox. 40 " tall installed at the bottom of the walls as a wainscote effect .

My ceiling is metal roof panels running front to back with one seam in the middle where they overlap . On top of that in the " attic " I layed more of the kraft faced R19 in between the rafters running from the soffits towards the middle of the structure so the insulation runs East to West . This coming winter I will add some R30 fiberglass rolls ( unfaced ) running front to back . By having the first layer east/west and the 2nd layer north/south I think that helps with air leaks . I have full length soffit vents and a full length ridge vent AND I have 4 ' wide refective barrier film stapled to the bottom of the trusses where they meet the roof metal . Remember I started with a pole barn so I only have 6 trusses in total . There is no doubt in my mind the reflective barrier helps . Hope that long winded reply answered your question :D

For the exterior I'm going with 1/2" plywood with Hardy board lap siding to match the house. Interior I may go with 1/2" drywall but not sure yet. I'll insulate in the walls with f/g paper backed too. My roof pitch is very low so I can't get much up there above the rafters, but I could blow-in insulation if I put a ceiling in. I can't crawl up there so getting a hose to blow where I need it to will be a problem. I may have to lay in batt insulation between the rafters as I'm putting up a the ceiling boards.

Decisions, decisions....