Mini Split Heat Pump Warranties

Don’t make this mistake with your mini split warranty!

In order to have the full warranty you may have to register with the manufacturer. Registering your new ductless air conditioner or heat pump will qualify you for the most warranty available. And in most cases it must be registered within 60 days of purchase.

Procrastination can be expensive. You could have more warranty available and no body will inform you.

Some of the information in this article may change with time but at least you will have some ammunition to combat the terrain of warranties.

Most manufacturers offer a minimal warranty right out of the box. Usually around 5 years for parts and 7 years for the compressor.

By completing the registration you might increase the warranty period. Be aware that with some models you may have to have a qualified installer do the work or the possibility of voiding the warranty does exist.

And, that installers qualifications may have to be some type of association with the particular brand you have chosen to install.

A good example of this is with Mitsubishi products. All Mitsubishi mini split products come with a 5 year parts warranty and a 7 year compressor warranty even if you don’t register the product.

Mitsubishi products that are registered online receive a 10 year parts and compressor warranty. But, if you don’t register your new equipment within 90 days all bets are off. You’re back to the 5 and 7 that it comes with out of the box.

Register your Mitsubishi ductless installed by a Diamond Contractor or what they call a Ductless Pro and you can get a 12 year parts and compressor warranty.

The length of a products warranty can even vary between different models of the same brand. Check it out and get it in writing.

Keep in mind that most manufacturers of any equipment don’t necessarily love to push the idea of registering. It’s in their paperwork but they are not your mommy and they will not remind you about things like registering warranties.

Read Your Warranties Fine Print

Warranties are tricky and manufactures know all the nuances of there particular documents. If you have ten year warranty and a compressor fails after 9 years and 11 months, you will get a new compressor.

Labor is not covered unless you bought a separate policy to cover cost to install the new compressor.

But here’s the tricky part. The new compressor is only warrantied for one month, which is the remaining time left in the original period of the ten year warranty.

If you plan on installing a new ductless system and selling your home you can likely kiss your warranty goodbye. Even your out of the box 5 year warranty will not be passed on to the new owner.

At least with Mitsubishi anyway. Original owner is mentioned 13 times in there limited warranty statement.

That’s why reading the small print is so important. At least I’ve raised the question for you and you’re aware of the possible loop holes. Check this warranty stipulation for your favorite brand.

What About Labor Warranties?

Manufacturers don’t do labor warranties. It’s an extra offered by a 3rd party through the company that installs your equipment.

If it’s not in writing you don’t have a leg to stand on. Most legit companies that install and service HVAC equipment offers some type of warranty on there labor.

Typical labor warranty on new equipment is one year. Typical warranty on service repairs is 90 days.

But that is not a given and can be as little as 30 days because the only thing that governs companies policies as far as I know is the company themselves.

I seldom even get asked how long my service labor warranty will run. There was a time when we advertised a lifetime labor warranty on some parts. Knowing that if the part failed it wasn’t very expensive and we kept the customer.

Especially if that customer moved and the new owner saw a lifetime warranty sticker on the furnace or attached to something then they would surely call us for any type of problem.

Make Sure You Have The Proper Paperwork

Do I Need Maintenance For A Valid Warranty?

You know I don’t remember having a customer be denied a warranty because of lack of maintenance. But I’m getting up there in years and have forgotten at few experiences.

Some of my suppliers have denied claims for repeated failures that indicate an installation problem. Installation problems are often construed to related to a poor quality in the equipment or that somehow they got a lemon.

It’s important to realize that many problems, especially with heat pumps are installation related and nothing to do with the brand.

Lemon laws were written for automobiles, but a federal law called the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act would relate to HVAC equipment. Check out my article on what to do if you think your heating equipment is a lemon.

Conclusion

Ask a lot of questions. Go here if you don’t know what questions to ask when buying a new HVAC system. I put together 30 questions to ask.

Get all the paperwork together and review it for accuracy and fact check it to be sure it says that you have the warranty that you thought you should have.

Don’t assume anything because the people that offer these warranties know all the loop holes and they don’t like spending money.

Don’t purchase from the company that offers the lowest bid just because it’s the lowest. Do some research by asking for referrals or even get referrals from friends and relatives that have had work done and are happy with what they got.

The most expensive HVAC equipment can be the cheapest unit installed wrong. The mistakes that installers make will show up long after you have seen there tail lights leaving you home.

Installation errors are what night mares are made of and believe me I have seen a ton of them. Even in new construction.

I’m not dissing on them but, your local county inspector would not even recognize some of the mistakes an installer can make.

For example: Who would know and when would they know if your installer didn’t perform a proper evacuation on the refrigeration lines that connect the indoor and outdoor units.

It just wouldn’t show up for some time. No body knows when, but it will show up and you will think you got a lemon.