Open floor plans are popular in homes and commercial spaces alike. While these layouts offer many benefits, they present some unique challenges for your heating and cooling system. When set up correctly, ductless mini-splits can keep your open floor plan comfortable year-round. 

How to Use Ductless Mini-Splits for Your Open Floor Plan

1. Utilize Zones

A ductless mini-split system uses a compressor that attaches to your indoor units. To take advantage of this, your contractor should help you separate the building into zones. For example, in a standard home, you may want a zone for the great room and home office, with a second zone for the bedrooms and bathrooms. This will allow you to customize how hot or cool each area is, separate from the others. 

Open living spaces will likely fall under the same zone. Therefore, set this area to be approximately 70 degrees, as this is the temperature the greatest number of people feel comfortable at. 

2. Choose the Right Size

Ductless mini-splits come in various sizes, with larger units providing a higher BTU output. This evaluation refers to how much heat they can remove from the room in an hour. 

Generally speaking, a 5,000 BTU unit can cool around 100 square feet. A 10,000 BTU unit can cool up to 450 feet, while a 21,000 BTU unit can cool up to 1,200 square feet. Increase the BTU value by 20% to 30% if the ceiling height is higher than 8 feet, the space is poorly insulated, there are large windows in the room, or the outside climate often reaches higher than 90 degrees Fahrenheit. 

3. Skip Small Rooms

The general rule of thumb for ductless systems is to have one unit per room. However, smaller spaces—such as hallways, powder rooms, or small offices—don't need one as they will get adequate airflow from the larger, adjacent rooms if there is proper ventilation.

If you are interested in energy-efficient HVAC solutions, we at Jon's Plumbing & Heating will analyze your living spaces to determine your heating and cooling needs. We are a Mitsubishi® Diamond Preferred HVAC contractor for ductless mini-splits and have earned an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau® for our dedication to customer satisfaction. To learn more about our offerings, visit the website. Call (740) 392-5667 to set an appointment. Read reviews from some of our clients on Google.