If you're planning a new AC installation, you have two common options to choose from — central air conditioning and ductless units. While central AC systems are more common, a ductless system has several advantages to offer. Here’s how it works and how to decide if this approach is right for your home.

How a Ductless Air Conditioner Works

When a gas or liquid gets compressed, it heats up. When it decompresses, it cools down. Heat naturally travels from hot areas to cold ones. A ductless air conditioner uses these principles to move heat from inside your home to the warmer outside — the opposite of the direction it would usually go.

The coils of your air conditioner are filled with refrigerant. In the refrigerator coil inside your home, the refrigerant is decompressed so it cools down and absorbs heat from the air in your living space. The refrigerant is then pumped outside. There, in the condenser coil, it’s compressed and becomes hot, and the heat bleeds off into the outdoor air before the refrigerant is pumped back inside. A ductless air conditioner releases the cold air produced this way directly into the room where it’s been installed, instead of spreading it through the home using ducts.

The Benefits

A central air conditioner needs a duct system to work. If your home doesn’t have one, you’d have to install it, lowering the ceilings to create a crawlspace for the ducts to run through. With duct-free HVAC equipment, though, you can install it in any home without such extensive renovations and without sacrificing space.

Additionally, most ductless air conditioners are actually multipurpose; they can pump heat out of the home, or they can be reversed to heat the home. This will save you money on heat and AC installation since one unit handles both jobs.

Finally, since ductless AC units cool the room they’re in, you can set up multiple zones throughout your home with their own equipment, then maintain them at different temperatures. This is useful when different family members have individual temperature preferences for their space, or when you want to save money by not cooling rooms you’re not using.

For professional AC installation by a trained HVAC technician, choose Fayette Heating & Air Conditioning in Uniontown, PA. Serving Fayette, Greene, Summerset, and Westmoreland counties for over 40 years, they are a Bryant® factory-authorized dealer, providing quality equipment from this trusted manufacturer. They also provide 24/7 service for emergencies. For more on the company, visit their website or call (724) 439-2323.