Alternate Home Heating and Cooling Systems Discussed at Property Owner’s Meeting

Story by Chris Boyle. 

As many residents are aware, heating and cooling options available in Levittown can be frustratingly limited, due in part to construction issues and the lack of basements.  

However, at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Levittown Property Owners Association, President Jim Morrow presented a possible solution for locals to modernize their climate control capabilities in time for the fast-approaching summer season.

Peter Sutherland, owner of Pete’s Electrical and Mechanical Service of Bethpage, was the special guest speaker at the meeting, and gave a presentation on what he touted as a solution to the temperature woes of Levittown residents - the Midea Mini-Split Air Conditioning and Heating systems.

Available in single and multi-zone versions, these are state-of-the-art, wall-mounted, ductless units that are connected to condensers placed outside of the home. Multiple, independently-operating units can be installed within one home and linked to a single compressor, creating a wide degree of latitude when it comes to temperature control, Sutherland said.

“Levittown has a lot of problems with it comes to heating and cooling their homes,” he said. “You can’t get gas for the most part, and you can’t get central air conditioning, so you’re stuck with oil, and you’re stuck with window units. The ductless system is a perfect solution for Levittown.”

Sutherland explained that this system was not only extremely effective at what it does, but it also won’t put a strain on your wallet, either.

“You can have better-than-central air, and you can have heating quality that’s as good as radiant,” he said. “But instead of spending $4,000 a year in heating oil and high electrical bills in the summer with loud, ugly window units that don’t work well, you will probably only spend between $500-$800 a year in heating and cooling costs with the ductless system...that’s basically just the increase to your electric bill.”

The Mini-Split units, Sutherland said, are quiet, attractive, and dynamically regulate the temperature in their vicinity with far greater efficiency and precision than typical home climate control systems.

“Each ductless unit controls a specific zone, and the average home usually has about five zones, which would require the installation of five units,” he said. “The cost and installation of each unit typically costs about $2,000...a five-zone home, would cost somewhere around $9,500, everything included. However, we offer financing options, and in what you save on oil and electricity, the installation usually pays for itself within three years.”

One Levittown resident attending the meeting claimed to already have had the Midea system installed in his home, and attested to its effectiveness as well as the comfort level it had provided in his home.  

“I’ve had mine since December, and I love it,” he said. “It’s so quiet that I forget that the unit is even on...you don’t even hear it.”

Residents interested in the Midea Mini-Split Air Conditioning and Heating system can contact Pete’s Electrical and Mechanical Service via their website at www.petesmechanical.com.