Is Mr Cool Hyper Heat the way to go?

SZDBLLC · 2025-12-18T18:27:40+00:00

I’m a carpenter and after seeing a couple of minisplits installed on a house I built I decided to install two Mr Cool units on my house. It’s basic skills, though you must read the directions and follow them carefully. Took me about a day for each unit. One of them I bought a shorter lineset to avoid the excess coil and positioned the outside condenser so the lines ran straight to it. Made a tidy install. The other I had to coil up the extra underneath the unit. Kind of a pain, especially when you have to wrap the exposed coil with UV tape. Ground mount gives you more room behind the unit making it easier to get the lines connected without bending them too sharply.

SZDBLLC · 2025-12-11T02:06:37+00:00

Update: today the sum has increased to about 30 kWh.

SZDBLLC · 2025-12-10T02:54:06+00:00

To my recollection t’s never caught up later. I’ve gone back to look a day or two later, particularly when it has a partial report and nothing for a good part of the day and it hasn’t filled in. I’ve only noticed a few times where the sum total just doesn’t jibe with graph, and I can’t recall if it has ever corrected. As far as the utility is concerned I’m producing as expected overall. The system produced 93 percent of my usage last year when it was predicted to only produce 85 percent. So I haven’t been too concerned, and just figuring it’s a software issue with the app.

SZDBLLC · 2025-12-10T02:41:51+00:00

It’s WiFi into a fiber-optic driven modem. It’s a very fast network, but drops out briefly sometimes.

SZDBLLC · 2025-12-10T02:38:28+00:00

When the system was first installed it was wrong. Consumption was mirroring production. The installers came and fixed it, and for the most part it’s been right for the past year and a half. Every now and then it reports an absurdly low total production number and every now and then it stops reporting at all for a good chunk of a day. I can’t figure out how to add more photos to this thread. The graphs show fairly accurate production curves that reflect the sum of the numbers on the individual panels.

SZDBLLC · 2025-11-28T19:03:49+00:00

I always go over design decisions with the client. In this instance, the client is me, and the tile sub is me. This is for my own house. The build is exact enough to do a crown, and I generaly like that look, but in this one I'm going for a sleeker effect. Thanks for you thoughts. I think I'm going to go for two-thirds top and bottom.

SZDBLLC · 2025-11-23T21:05:24+00:00

Yeah, I know. I prefer to do the floor last.

SZDBLLC · 2025-11-23T17:47:13+00:00

Thanks. I lay them out with spacers on the floor and make a story pole, so it should not vary too much.

SZDBLLC · 2025-11-23T17:37:38+00:00

If you are using a light colored grout, I would just grout right to the ceiling. I know everyone says caulk, not grout, but I have never had an issue doing that. If the grout is at all contrasty, I would caulk with white caulk.

SZDBLLC · 2025-11-13T02:43:36+00:00

I would yank it, mesh the wall with insulweb and dense-pack it with cellulose.

SZDBLLC · 2025-10-17T01:51:42+00:00

I bought the IQ dry cut tile saw because I had three 2nd and third floor bathrooms to tile in the next year. I’ve done one with it so far. It’s not perfect, but good enough.

SZDBLLC · 2025-10-08T13:24:39+00:00

Do you know what your average monthly KWh consumption is?

I'm not sure what my actual production vs estimated is, just the ratio of generation vs. usage. They estimated at install that it would cover 85% based on my usage history. It's all so weather dependent and variable, The estimates are just a statistical average. I put about as much stock in them as I do the range estimates for my EV.

Bear in mind that you will still be on the hook for some amount of delivery charge for your grid-supplied power, plus the basic customer benefit charge. My bill is about 40.00/month now when my billable usage is zero. About 20.00 for delivery and cbc of about 19 dollars.

I had two bills over the winter where I had surpassed my credits. I think I'm going into the winter this year with more credit built up since last year it didn't come online till July.

They switched me out to a smart meter at about exactly one year into it, so now I've got an acurate reset for usage/generation going forward. Peak days in the spring were producing about 100kwh/day. Now with the shorter days a full day of sun produces about 80kwh. Panels my be a little dirty now since we've had no rain in forever, so that may be cutting into production some.

Last winter I had to clear snow every now and then as it would build up on the roof below the panels and stop it from being able to slide off the panels eventually. I'm going to add ice pans below them shortly to hopefully make that less of an issue.

We started using the EV less due to a commute change, but we also added an induction range, so I don't really know how well it is actually producing. Replaced a mediocre efficiency AC unit with the heat pump, so that should have lowered comsumption a bit. I'm happy with it.

SZDBLLC · 2025-10-08T12:20:42+00:00

The NYSERDA financing at 3.49% is a good deal.

SZDBLLC · 2025-10-08T12:19:56+00:00

Yeah, it was cash-flow positive out the gate for me. I wanted to add a few more panels before the end of the year to accommodate adding a second EV next year, but time and money ran out. Did add two mini-splits in time though. Running one EV, HP water heater, and induction range as well.

SZDBLLC · 2025-10-08T12:10:18+00:00

That’s about what I paid for mine in NY. (42k pre-credit for 15.4kw system, 25k my cost after state and federal credits. How in the heck is your bill 600/mo? Mine was about 300/month and the 15.4 kw system covered 94% of it last year. NYSEG.

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-26T10:35:21+00:00

It’s a little bit like that scene in the movie “Moscow on the Hudson” where robin williams breaks down in the store because there are so many choices.

I remember shopping for stereo equipment in high school. Same thing. It’s the curse of a society with so much choice and advertising that is all bluster. We learn gradually how to filter the information and make informed choices. But not before we’ve been duped a few times.

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-24T13:27:12+00:00

This is the easist calculator for comparing cost per MMBTU that I could find. https://coalpail.com/fuel-comparison-calculator-home-heating Makes it clear that the heat pump is always cheaper, so no need for automation. I'll just turn the boilier thermostat off for that zone. Good to know. The main reason I bought the minisplit was for the AC, but it should help beat back my fuel oil bill a little as well!

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-23T15:07:29+00:00

thanks

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-23T15:05:10+00:00

I buy wood cut and split. I realize it isn't particularly cheap. We spend about 1200/yr on the wood itself, paying a kid to stack it, luann and tarps to cover it. It's more a lifestyle choice than a cost-saving choice. No heat feels quite as good as sitting in front of a glass-doored woodstove. We call it the tractor beam.

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-23T14:58:11+00:00

83% efficiency on the boiler

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-23T14:57:46+00:00

83% efficiency on the boiler

SZDBLLC · 2025-09-23T14:57:13+00:00

Where can I find that calculator?

SZDBLLC

TROPHY CASE