Ductless minisplit, Heat Pump Question.

[quakerboy]

We got one of these a while back. A bit beyond my comfort zone for diy, but still home improvement.

Strangely, we noticed that it seems to work drastically better when its windy outside.

Give for example a chilly day. Say, 42F outside. No wind. The thing seems to struggle to keep our room in the 50's when its set to 60. Next day, temp drops to 39, and the wind kicks up. Suddenly you can feel the heat coming off the indoor unit, and im kicking off the blankets, as it sure feels closer to 65/70 even though its still set to 60.

Can anyone explain this phenomena? Are we alone in experiencing this?

[MADem]

1. I have no idea but could it be that your thermostat is somehow responsive to wind chill effect? nt

[quakerboy]

2. I dont think so

I believe the thermostat is inside the house, as thats the area with a supposedly set temperature. And while our insulation is not great, we do seem to be mostly immune to drafts.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

5. I agree with post number 4 but....

I wonder if there IS an exterior thermostat. Some higher tech systems base some of what they do inside on what is happening outside. Just a thought

[Turbineguy]

3. Is the fan

on the outside unit working?

[jeff47]

4. Heat pumps "pump" heat from one location to another.

So when it heats your house, it cools the outside. When it cools your house, it heats the outside.

Wind helps because it replaces the cooled outside air with warmer air. It's the same job the fan on the outside unit does, but wind moves a lot more air.

If the difference in performance is quite large, you may want to confirm that the fan on the outside unit is working, and that you aren't getting ice forming on the unit.

[quakerboy]

6. That was my general surmise

It makes sense, but I wondered if there was some other aspect I am missing

I went out to look around, the fan does seem to work. Ice, I dont know, but it should be able to defrost itself, according to the manual. Its only 6 months old.

The part that confuses me is that I could swear that its making the inside far warmer than the temperature I set it to, when the wind is blowing. We don't turn it above 62, But there have been nights I am kicking off the blankets and sometimes even the sheets.

[OffWithTheirHeads]

7. My money is on a defective thermostat.

Based on the house overheating. The unit will only do what the stat tells it do do. Get a thermometer. If your unit is still running when your house reaches the temp you set + or - a degree or so, the stat is bad. You can replace the stat yourself but when you remove the old stat make sure you write down which color wire goes to which terminal and replace them on the same terminal with the new stat. Also, be sure you turn off all the power th the system or you will fry your transformer.

Edited to add, check the temp right where your stat is. The stat only knows what the temp is at that exact spot. It has no idea what the temp is in, say, your kitchen. Also, make sure the new stat is for a heat pump. Stats are different for different systems.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

8. It's all good advice

on a thought quakerboy ,have you thought about calling the manufacturer 800 number and asking to speak to a tech, rep ? Because that is what I do when I am not certain.-it's just a thought.

Have your manual on hand .


give em a call.!