Mr.Cool 2-3 Ton Install, On Existing Furnace

My install of a 2-3 Ton Mr cool heat pump on a traditional furnace.
My ac was aging and decided to swap it out with one of these Mr cool condensers, a rebranded Gree Flexx. with the specs of this unit my goal is to ditch natural gas completely, So far im impressed.

[@EverCreateStudio]

I just did mine and put it on the goodman LP furnace. I bought the universal evaporator coil and had a bunch of modifying to do to the sheet metal, but it was doable. The one thing I wish people would mention on these videos is the dual heat thermostat that is required. Good job though. Well done.

[@Bobdudeman1988]

Dual fuel if you use it yes. Most t stats with a reversing valve terminal are so I didn't even think to mention it. I use a sense thermostat. Works good

[@christopherbaksh9443]

I love mrcool

[@ricklines8755]

I believe the new aluminum coils are not susceptible to pinhole formation from corrosion like the copper coils are

[@Bobdudeman1988]

I assumed it was cost. But maybe your right. So far it's been working well

[@NeilPBrooks]

If your condenser just dies would it be generally a good idea to add this? Is it possible?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@NeilPBrooks depends on how it died, if you had say a burnout or it blew up shooting metal debris into your evap..no.

[@chinalamb2605]

I lived in China for 23 years, the only primary heating and cooling units for the majority of the country are heat pump systems. Where they aren't used, they have radiant heat from either floor heat or radiators on the wall. And Gree is a major brand for China, but you can expect 5-6 year life with heavy use. Still, a new one every five years versus 2-3 times the price?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

Doesn't hurt my feelings, comparable domestic condensers run 10k for the same performance. Least right now. If it blows I'll simply repair or replace. The roi on it is short as well

[@adamton7274]

Thanks for making this video. I noticed in the manual it says to make a non return bend taking the lineset to the top of the outdoor unit then back down to the hole in the house. I like the clean look your install has...do i need to do this non return bend?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

My indoor coil is only about 4 ft lower than my condenser. I can't recall exactly but the gree manual said if it's less than x number you don't need it.. I wish I remembered what it was. I didn't do it and it's been running fine. About 15 months so far

[@CubanMofo]

My 4-5 ton Mrcool barely lasted a year. It was always breaking down. First 6 months the evaporator coil had a major leak. It took weeks for ingram to send out a new one. Then the compressor went out. My Ac tech said these are from China. Warranty department is the worst

[@Bobdudeman1988]

its been over a year with mine and its been great, They are made in China by Gree, who is probably the largest ac producer worldwide iirc, failures happen, im sorry yours has not worked well. not many domestic techs work on these kind of units.

[@CubanMofo]

@@Bobdudeman1988 my tech actually laughed when he saw the name brand . I was like yeah I know LoL. I bought a carrier cause I didn't want any more problems. I live in south Florida and I have to have my ac cooling

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@CubanMofo nothing wrong with carrier units. I like there rtu,s. Wisconsin can be just as nasty humid in the summer as Florida believe it or not. I'd die without ac too lol

[@Egleu1]

Can you post an updated video once you get a really cold winter day? It's smart to have the gas furnace too, I'm just wondering if the heat pump can still keep your house warm if the air temp is below zero.

[@Bobdudeman1988]

So far. It's been great. It has not been that cold yet here though. 19f at night was the closest and it had Zero issues. Iirc it was pulling 10 amps and ran for about 9 hours out of 24 hours. 1600 sqft house

[@Egleu1]

@@Bobdudeman1988 WOW that's like the power usage of two space heaters. Very impressive.

[@Bobdudeman1988]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWrUZ5uHo6l9p8ksi=JPEW1mCn91u8lsTV

[@ocastego8645]

So I have to do something in the unit if I don't need the heat pump because I have my gas furnace running?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

No. But they do make a unit that's 700 bucks cheaper if you don't need the heat pump function

[@chinalamb2605]

So you just used the Mr Cool pump with your Rheem evaporator unit. Any reason you didn't use a Mr. Cool? or they don't have them?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

With my specific install the Mr cool unit was too tall. And I have no more head room to raise the duct. This way it was a direct swap

[@scottlanier5133]

Does your new condenser just cut on or off? Specifically, your fan is blowing full speed or nothing correct? I did this and since I didn't replace the evap coil or air handler, uts not modulating the condenser fan...it's full blast or nothing. Is yours like this too?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@scottlanier5133 condenser varies it's compressor speed and fan based on load and outdoor Temp. Indoor fan runs at 900cfm fixed regardless

[@Bobdudeman1988]

I should also had my indoor coil has a txv. With a piston it might not regulate as well on the outdoor unit? Not sure

[@scottlanier5133]

What did you do to get it to do this? Mine is running full speed on outside and then cuts off. I am using an ecobee lite thermostat but it doesn't seem to be ramping down​@@Bobdudeman1988

[@scottlanier5133]

​@@Bobdudeman1988mine has a txv as it had an older heat pump

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@scottlanier5133 sounds like something might be wrong. It should do it out of the box. I hate to ask but I don't know your skill set.dont take it personally ..Did you evacuate to sub 400 microns? Service valves all the way open? Did you add any refrigerant if you have over 20 or 25 feet of line set? There any codes on the control board? There is a free flexx service manual out on the web that can help you troubleshoot

[@BirdDog.]

Are you saying I can use my existing coil from my conventional ac on this heat pump?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

Depends on the coil. R22 vs 410a. Also depends on the expansion device. If it's a txv it needs to support reverse flow, some have check valves that wouldn't allow it to work in heat mode. If your coil has a piston you would need to convert to a bi flow txv

[@shawnparks1]

How is the Mr Cool holding up over the last winter, been considering this unit and the Gree flex for my home in Wisconsin, and what did you set your cut off limit to so when your gas furnace kicks in just curious thanks

[@Bobdudeman1988]

Been mild as far as winters go, we did have one nasty cold snap, but overall, it has been flawless. during the cold snap it was more costly to run compared to gas however those costs could be made up by installing solar, like i plan too. As far as a cutoff, i have it programed as straight heat pump, no backup. i haven't needed any form of other heat, this unit has provided it all, all winter... ill be converting the furnace to run on propane and storing 100lbs tank to use as backup if never needed. See my video during the cold snap kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWrUZ5uHo6l9p8k

[@NovvaOfficial]

@@Bobdudeman1988why would you convert to propane when it’s more expensive to run than natural gas? Are your rates that much higher in Wisconsin?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@NovvaOfficial because i haven't used any gas since, and W.E. charges 14 bucks a month just to have the gas line connected even if i dont use it. the propane is just incase my system cant keep up for a a while(haven't had that issue) or it fails and ineed backup heat. most heat pumps have electric backup heat but mine is not set up that way.

[@NovvaOfficial]

@@Bobdudeman1988 Understood. I work for a gas utility and your $14 is the rental fee for the meter most likely. I enjoyed the video. It’s pretty eye opening for people who want to do this and have the capabilities to perform the necessary work to actually get it up and running.

[@rickye7738]

How does the DC variable speed inverter Drive compressor work with a conventional Rheem furnace?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

Works well. The coil on the inside has a txv on it. I'm betting the unit outside monitors superheat to control it in the summer. During winter the txv is not used on the coil and there are 2 exv inside the condenser. Not versed on how they work

[@rickye7738]

@Bobdudeman1988 Sorry, I didn't word my question very good. How does the variable capacity condenser mesh with a single or 2 stage air handle? I'm just trying to figure out how it works.

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@rickye7738 it simply calls for single stage heat or cool. And the condenser literally " figures it out" it's actually pretty impressive

[@rickye7738]

@Bobdudeman1988 That's cool but I'm guessing that if the air handler is operating at full capacity then the condenser is never going be able to reduce capacity enough to increase efficiency or decrease unit short cycling or improve condensation removal. I'm I missing something or is it kind of a waste to have an inverter compressor run an almost full capacity all the time?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@rickye7738 it for sure isn't a waste, it does what It can to maintain a constant suction temperature I'm assuming, but it varies how hard it's ruining based on outside temps and refrigerant load returning from the coil. It does a very good job pulling humidity out of my home. .

[@zeebo101]

Where did you get the condenser stand from?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

I built it from scrap tubing. my idea was to wall mount it like a minisplit but at 250 pounds it was too heavy for commercial offerings I was able to find as well as its width was too large. so I made the sand instead, its holding up well.

[@harmonairllc2368]

How did you wire it ?

[@Bobdudeman1988]

You'll need to be more specific..

[@harmonairllc2368]

@@Bobdudeman1988 The low voltage to the indoor furnace and thermostat from the condenser

[@Bobdudeman1988]

@@harmonairllc2368 it has the thermals for the basic wires y,w,g and b inside the condenser I don't use any heat strips and I didn't want my furnace trying to use gas during defrost. So I left w disconnected. It hasn't been super cold yet so I may change it but so far it's been good

[@Bobdudeman1988]

During defrost it calls for fan or emergency heat ( in my case normal gas heat) during defrost to prevent a chill during it. But it only last like 3 minutes

[@harmonairllc2368]

@@Bobdudeman1988 So the condenser is just missing the component to shunt the 24v and switch the cycle to cooling while in auxiliary for gas heat. Defrost timer/temperature senosr