Selection of our Heat pump (Indoor and Outdoor unit)

After a thorough research on what would suite our needs, we ended up with agreeing on purchasing a LG Heat Pump mini-split AC with 3 zones. This would meet all our requirements that we had and this unit was capable of heating as well as cooling. The specs look decent and efficiency was also great. This combination qualified for the 30% federal tax credit as well. Additionally this unit had the good looks compared to the off-white/cream looks of the evaporators of other models.

In the world of mini-split AC's there are a few established players and as long as you stick to them you should be good. The ones I trust based on their reputation are

• Daikin
• Mitsibishi
• Fujitsu
  
• LG
• Sanyo
  

There are a ton of other lesses known brands but you are better off avoiding them, but some of them are so cost-effective that you might as well risk it.

The outdoor model which we bought is a LG LMU245HV

The indoor models for our evaporator are LMAN095HV X 2 (for our 2 bedrooms) and  LMAN125HV X 1 (for our living room)

 

In our rated configuration, these units will have the following efficiency numbers

• Cooling
• EER = 12.5
• SEER = 18.7  
• Heating
• COP = 2.6
• HSPF = 9.6
  

 A little explanation of the acronyms used above

• SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating) is the measure of efficiency. The higher the number the more energy efficient the unit is. 
• Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) is a measure of how efficiently a cooling system will operate when the outdoor temperature is at a specific level (95oF). The higher the EER, the more efficient the system.
• COP (coefficient of performance) of a heat pump is the ratio of the change in heat at the "output" (the heat reservoir of interest) to the supplied work.
  
• Heat Seasonal Performance Factor (HSPF) is the most commonly used measure of a heat pumps heating efficiency. The higher the HSPF, the more efficient the heat pump.

More information in this can be found on the EnergyStar website