The Cost Benefit of Using a Mini Split vs. Central Air
When deciding whether to heat and cool your home with central air or a split system, numerous factors come into consideration, including costs. Making sure your home is comfortable through the seasons requires a bit of budgeting, but where and how should you spend your money? Here are the cost benefits of using a mini split versus a central air system.
Energy Usage
Heating and cooling are influential factors in high energy bills. Although many components affect the amount of energy needed to run your temperature control devices, mini splits generally use less energy, keeping your bills low.
Central air systems, as their name suggests, use one base of operations to control indoor temperature. Mini splits allow you to connect multiple separate ACs to one condenser and provide individualized zones. A building operating with central air uses more energy because it’s heating or cooling every room simultaneously. It’s often left on all the time. Meanwhile, mini splits allow you to turn ACs in certain rooms off while still heating or cooling used spaces.
System Efficiency
In tandem with energy usage, mini splits also save you money with their performance efficiency. On average, a heat pump requires anywhere between 700 to 2,000 watts per hour to maintain a comfortable temperature.
Meanwhile, central air networks range up to an intake of 3,000 to 3,500 watts per hour because they constantly run and cover more rooms at the same time. Their intricate vents and ductwork throughout the building’s structure also minimize efficiency because heat gets lost traveling along the duct systems. This inefficient method requires more power and produces more wear and tear. It increases the need for maintenance, adding more costs on top of high energy bills.
Green Tax Credit
Did you know Energy Star-certified HVACs allow you to claim a tax credit? Green taxes are government incentives to encourage people to switch to a more eco-friendly lifestyle. Implementing energy-efficient systems into your home qualifies as a movement toward a greener lifestyle. Most mini splits, especially ones from us at Pioneer, qualify as Energy Star certified due to their efficiency. They allow you to get money back on your taxes. Central air, on the other hand, uses more energy, making them ineligible for the green tax credit.
There are numerous cost benefits to mini splits over central air systems. Their energy usage and efficiency allow you to save money. Although not the most cost-efficient option, central air systems do offer various other benefits. For a heating and cooling system that combines the advantages of both a traditional mini split and central air, check out our ducted split system HVACs. They use compact ducts, optimizing the efficiency of ductwork while still giving you a way to control multiple rooms with one system.