pioneerminisplit.com Reviews

Davlud2 - 04/22/2016

I purchased this model WYS018GMFI22RL direct from Parker Davis website just days before it was listed here on Amazon. This is a first impression review, having completed the installation just 3 weeks ago. My experience has been all good, with excellent seller responsiveness to my email queries, followed by fast shipping and an easy delivery by Parker Davis chosen freight company. The delivery driver even used his pallet jack to move the skid into my garage for me. Nicely done. Installation is most definitely for professionals or advanced DIYers. I had done quite a bit of research beforehand and had read several different manufacturer's installation manuals, so I felt pretty confident knowing what tools and accessories I needed to purchase (click-type torque wrench & crowfoot wrench set, R410a service gauge & hose set, economy vacuum pump, electrical surge suppression device, etc., all purchased here on Amazon), as well as what skills I would need to have. The installation manual is quite good, though I did struggle with some of it. Bending the 1/2" refrigerant tubing in particular was a skill I never mastered. I tried various techniques but all of them would have resulted in kinked lines (absolutely not allowed) if I had continued trying to make tight bends (necessary to fit the tubes inside of the lineset covers I had purchased). I gave up on the tight bends and settled for wider sweeping bends and just wrapped the tubing with the vinyl tape included by Parker Davis and used 1 long straight section of the lineset cover for the vertical run. I am extremely impressed by the quality and appearance of my new mini-split. The inside air handler unit has clean lines and a high-tech look, and operates smoothly and very quietly. I was surprised by numerous features not mentioned in the sales literature, including: Backlit Remote LCD Screen; Follow Me Feature (option to control room temperature based on thermostat sensor located in remote control); Freeze Protection Mode (vacation mode that allows setting an economical 46 degree heat temperature); Self-clean Function (which dries/cleans unit before extended shutdown); Silence Mode (a very low fan speed that is barely audible); which along with Turbo Mode and Low, Medium, and High Fan Speeds, actually results in 5 available fan speeds as near as I can tell. All of these functions and more are well described in the included printed user manuals. I can not emphasize enough how quiet this mini-split is, no rattles, no creaking, no vibrations, even turbo mode is quieter than any small window unit I have ever owned in the past. The outdoor unit is solidly built, appears to have a flawless heavy enamel paint finish, and is amazingly quiet. We had a couple of 80+ degree days this week which caused my neighbor to fire up his central air, and the noise from that unit in the next yard over was significantly louder than my new mini split which I was standing right next to. I am also impressed by how logically everything seems to function, for example, when switching to heat mode, it remembers that I had set the louvers to point downward, and while in cooling mode, it knows to point them upward. It delays the heat output until it has built up the temperature and then ramps up the fan speed to avoid blowing cold air, and it knows to switch off the high-output turbo mode once set temperature is reached. It just works well. The remote control on the other hand, is not my favorite, but it does work. I am not a fan of single buttons that cycle through modes and speeds, and would prefer to be able to kick the fan speed down a notch without having to cycle up through high speed first (though the unit does delay changing the speed so that multiple button presses get processed together). I also don't like buttons that perform more than 1 function as they are rarely intuitive. For example, the Fan Speed/Silence Mode button requires depressing and holding the button for 2 second...

DavLud2 - 04/13/2016

This is a first impression review, having completed the installation just 1 week ago. My experience began well, with excellent responsiveness to my email queries, followed by fast shipping and an easy delivery by Parker Davis chosen freight company. The delivery driver even used his pallet jack to move the skid into my garage for me. Nicely done. Installation is most definitely for professionals or advanced DIYers. I had done quite a bit of research beforehand and had read several different manufacturer's installation manuals, so I felt pretty confident knowing what tools and accessories I needed to purchase (click-type torque wrench & crowfoot wrench set, R410a service gauge & hose set, economy vacuum pump, surge suppression device, etc.) and what skills I would need to have. The installation manual is quite good, though I did struggle with some of it. Bending the 1/2" refrigerant tubing in particular was a skill I never mastered. I tried various techniques but all of them would have resulted in kinked lines (absolutely not allowed) if I had continued trying to make tight bends (necessary to fit the tubes inside of the lineset covers I had purchased). I gave up on the tight bends and settled for wide sweeping bends and just wrapped the tubing with the vinyl tape included by Parker Davis. I am extremely impressed by the quality and appearance of my new mini-split. The inside unit has clean lines and a high-tech look, and operates smoothly and very quietly. I was surprised by numerous features not mentioned in the sales literature, including: Backlit Remote LCD Screen; Follow Me Feature (option to control room temperature based on sensor in remote control); Freeze Protection Mode (vacation mode that allows setting an economical low heat temperature); Self-clean Function (which dries/cleans unit before extended shutdown); Silence Mode (a very low fan speed that is barely audible); which along with Turbo Mode and Low, Medium, and High Fan Speeds, actually results in 5 available fan speeds as near as I can tell. I can not emphasize enough how quiet this mini-split is, no rattles, no creaking, no vibrations, even turbo mode is quieter than any small window unit I have ever owned in the past. The outdoor unit is solidly built, appears to have a durable thick enamel paint finish, and is amazingly quiet. We had a couple of warm days this week which caused my neighbor to fire up his central air, and the noise from that unit in the next yard over was significantly louder than my new mini split which I was standing right next to. I am also impressed by how logically everything seems to function, for example, when switching to heat mode, it remembers that I had set the louvers to point downward, and while in cooling mode, it knows to point them upward. It delays the heat output until it has built up the temperature to avoid blowing cold air, and knows to switch off the optional turbo mode once set temperature is reached. It just works well. The remote control on the other hand, is not my favorite. I am not a fan of single buttons that cycle through modes and speeds, and would prefer to be able to kick the fan speed down a notch without having to cycle up through high speed first (though the unit does delay changing the speed so that multiple button presses get processed together). I also don't like buttons that perform more than 1 function as they are rarely intuitive. For example, the Fan Speed/Silence Mode button requires depressing and holding the button for 2 seconds for the alternate function, while the Turbo Mode/Self Clean button requires depressing the left edge of the button versus the right edge of the button. Not likely a new user would guess these different techniques. Well only time will tell about cost-to-operate and reliability, but my first impression is very good. I recommend this mini split for your consideration, but suggest that you don't underestimate the installation complexity. This ...

Crosswindjoe - 03/08/2016

This is the second one of these units I purchased. This one is installed in a 575 sq. foot shop. This building has insulated walls and ceiling but has an un-insulated concrete floor. The unit heats and cools this space just fine. At 12 degrees outside you can comfortably work in a t-shirt!!!

Erik - 02/26/2016

I live on the west coast and have a small 900 sq foot house and I was using a wall mount ac/heat unit. It was loud and my electric bills were $450 a month. We looked into having a new ducted standard unit installed but the price was way high. We researched our options and found the pioneer 16seer 18k BTU unit would fit our needs and the price was budget friendly. Ordering was easy and the unit arrived on time, undamaged and on a pallet. installed the duct work and my certified electrician brother did the connections. When the last connection was to be made my brother had a question he needed to clarify. He sent a message to high seer and literally in just 5 minutes a technical support person called the phone and walked us through the process. The unit works great and is amazingly quiet. We have a constant 73 degree temp for the week and are anxiously awaiting the electric bill to see the savings. But based upon the experience so far we would buy again. Erik

Tony S - 08/20/2015

Performance Quality Price This is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks.