try meurice in midtown. have had great experiences with them. they aren't cheap but will fix everything and you won't notice that it ever was ripped

Posted by: justmoved at November 6, 2009 12:41 PM in response to ISO Great Tailor in FG/CH

hey wyckoff - yes, they are flush to the wall. walls are white, grill is white and you can't see the A/C (painted inside of box black). we did a gut reno with creative renovation. don't really know re the space.

Posted by: justmoved at April 17, 2009 4:03 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

know kleen construction - they bid on our gut reno. have seen their work and it's great. eion is a great, honest guy - hard to find in this industry. we ended up going with creative renovations b/c kleen was just a lot more expensive. am happy with creative as well. let me know if you want their details.

Posted by: justmoved at April 14, 2009 10:57 AM in response to contractors

we just did a gut reno for 2 floors in a brownstone and put 2 split systems one for each floor. we used fujitsu 2 split and 3 split system. works great. the air handles are actually inside the walls and we put a wooden (painted in the wall color) grills in front of it so you don't see it. a bit more expensive but you don't see the small units.

Posted by: justmoved at April 14, 2009 10:47 AM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

we just did a gut reno for 2 floors in a brownstone and put 2 split systems one for each floor. we used fujitsu 2 split and 3 split system. works great. the air handles are actually inside the walls and we put a wooden grate in front of it so you don't see it. a bit more expensive but you don't see the small units.

Posted by: justmoved at April 14, 2009 10:46 AM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

we just did a gut reno for 2 floors in a brownstone and put 2 split systems one for each floor. we used fujitsu 2 split and 3 split system. works great. the air handles are actually inside the walls and we put a wooden (painted in the wall color) grills in front of it so you don't see it. a bit more expensive but you don't see the small units.

Posted by: justmoved at April 14, 2009 10:47 AM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

I've had 3 floors of Mitsubishi "Mr. Slim" units for 5 years. They work very well and inside unit is not magnificent but is really not obtrusive. I love the heat/ac capacity for all year use, and the outside unit out back is extremely quiet and not that big. The problem is installation - I'd use Angie's List instead of Mitsubishi Dealer recommendations.

Posted by: CH11231 at April 15, 2009 4:52 AM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

thanks. We were also intrested in creative How much cheaper and how was their work ? We have to do under pinning as well . Also big point did they finish on time?

Posted by: meme at April 15, 2009 12:15 PM in response to contractors

I'm an architect as well and as Architect66 said, the zoned system is the way to go. Both Mitsubishi and Daikin make multi-zoned heat pump systems that are very efficient as well as super quiet. I just installed the Mitsubishi City Multi system with 5 zones in my 3 story with the compressor on the roof. The City Multi is the big brother to the Mr. Slim units. It can handle more zones and has a variety of air handler units that can be concealed within ceilings or walls so you're not stuck with those wall mounted units. Piping distances are not an issue for this system. It's a bit expensive but truly top of the line. Jimmy Wong of Best AC in Queens is the guy to call. He's certified by both Mitsubishi as well as Daikin, does a high quality job, is reasonably priced and really cares.

Posted by: HDL at April 15, 2009 12:23 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

Hey Justmoved - Like that idea - are your wall units fully recessed (ie are the grills flush with the wall), and how much space did you have to build into the top and bottom? Who did that install for you - I am very interested - the only thing that has stopped me from doing mini split in the past are the butt-ugly wall units...didn't realize you could recess them and still get good airflow.

Posted by: wyckoff at April 15, 2009 2:14 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

We had a Mr. Slim in our large (>300 sf) kitchen. Our experience was that the Mr. Slim was so powerful that it was uncomfortable and noisy to be near it. This may have been our fault, in that we had a large unit because we were relying on it to cool a lot of space (about 1200 sf including that kitchen). We also had a problem with the pumps that were supposed to eject condensate up to the roof, and had to retrofit to a gravity driven drain system. We built the air handler into a shelf system so it wasn't too noticeable when not in use. When we renovated the entire apartment, we considered a normal ducted system and a high-pressure mini-duct system and went with the normal system. We used Bob Fano for the a/c work and were very happy with him.

Posted by: PresidentStreeter at April 15, 2009 8:06 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

Is "condensate" water? Could you run it outside to a rainbarrel and use it to water your garden?

Posted by: penandink at April 16, 2009 2:05 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

Ductless units are much more efficient than conventional ducted systems. The Fujitsu systems go up to a SEER rating of 26 which I believe is the highest you can get ducted or not. There are many great brands out there, but as mentioned above, the installer is just as important as the brand. There are several recessed units available now so you won't see the airhandler mounted on the wall.

Posted by: Todd S at April 16, 2009 10:16 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

hey wyckoff - yes, they are flush to the wall. walls are white, grill is white and you can't see the A/C (painted inside of box black). we did a gut reno with creative renovation. don't really know re the space.

Posted by: justmoved at April 17, 2009 4:03 PM in response to Ductless A/C Systems vs. Central

If you do want to stay local, I go to Paramount Tailors, second floor, Livingston betw. Nevins and Bond. They're not chatty, so asking them questions first may not be that satisfying, but they're good and happen to be inexpensive. That said, I haven't done any wovens with them.

Posted by: dnabav at November 6, 2009 9:01 PM in response to ISO Great Tailor in FG/CH