Quote:
Originally Posted by Servicetech
All this same technology is available in mini-splits at a much lower cost.
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The rest of the world has been buying into the mini-split package. With the outsourcing of our manufacturing jobs overseas, suddenly (within the last decade or so), lots of people can now afford air conditioning for their huts and flats. Only recently has the mini-split begun to gain traction in the American market. Since these systems are already being sold affordably everywhere else, the manufacturers can't really create a highly lucrative market in the USA.
In contrast, the "traditional" split system has a deep entrenchment and long history in the USA. Originally lavish, it has fallen to merely expensive in image. Even now, existing homeowners are coached into buying replacement central split systems (due to the r410a "mandate") of contractor-grade quality. With the lion's share of units sold barely qualified at 13 SEER, the manufacturers have no reason to lower existing prices or charge less for high-efficiency systems.