Mini Split Installation in Fort Collins, CO
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Step 1 of 3: Equipment
A mini-split here runs most of the year
Fort Collins needs heat or cooling ten months a year, and nearly all of that is heat. Winter nights average 15°F from December through February, and a mini-split has to hold a room's temperature against that cold night after night for months at a stretch.
A unit built for this has to be rated for it. Any mini-split manufactured from 2023 on has to meet 14.3 SEER2 for cooling and 7.5 HSPF2 for heating. In a climate where the heating side does the real work, that heating number matters more here than the cooling one.
- 10 months
- September through June, your system heats
- 15°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 76°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- Is a mini split worth it?
- For a room the furnace does not heat or cool well, yes. A mini split handles that space on its own thermostat, and cold-climate models keep producing heat even when it is 15°F outside, which is what winter nights here run through December, January and February. Homes here need heat from September through June, so a unit put in for one room gets used most of the year. A contractor can look at the room and the rest of the house and say whether a mini split or extending the ductwork makes more sense.
- How many rooms can a mini split cover?
- A single outdoor unit can run one indoor head or several, depending on the system. Multi-zone systems support more than one indoor head, each heating and cooling its own room on its own thermostat. How many a given system should carry depends on the size of each room and how much heat or cooling it needs, which is why a contractor sizes the system room by room rather than working from a fixed number.
- Can a mini split heat a whole house?
- It can, if it is sized and placed for that. A multi-zone system with an indoor head in each room can replace a furnace as the only heat source, but it has to be a cold-climate model rated to keep producing heat at low temperatures, since winter nights here average 15°F from December through February and heat is needed from September through June. A unit that loses capacity in a hard freeze will leave the house short on the coldest nights. A contractor can size the system to the house and confirm it will keep up.