cjboffoli
wsgolfer: My recollection was that it was just north of $7K installed, which includes the cost of the electricians. So obviously even though it is whisper quiet and barely uses any electricity to run, throwing a $300 window unit is going to be a LOT cheaper, if less elegant, in the short term.
It is worth noting that, because it is technically a heat exchanger, you can throw a switch on this unit and use it as a primary heating system in the winter if needed. Though I’m told it works somewhat less efficiently (in terms of power consumption) as a heater.
That price was in May of 2007 before the housing market took a dive. So I expect you might get a better deal now than I did. I’ve seen prices on the Net for the same unit I have, exclusive of installation, for $3500.
I also remember getting 3 or 4 bids and that there maybe was a lower bid than the one I went with. But PNW Energy impressed me as being conversant in aesthetics as well as mechanics.
I think a lot of Seattlites still have a problem with the notion of having air conditioning. But the summers have been getting ever hotter here for a long time now. There are certainly significantly more than just “a couple weeks” of hot days. My Modernist house has a lot of commercial glass windows and a southern exposure which means that 65 degree sunny days can mean 80 degrees inside. Great in the winter. Not so fun in the summer.
This system was expensive but it was worth it for me. And I think it will definitely add value at resale time.