Midea’s PWHP: A heat pump you can install yourself

Mini-splits are very popular for many reasons: the ductless versions don’t require ductwork, they can heat and cool, and are generally more powerful and quiet than a window air conditioner.  They do, however, require professional installation in most cases.  What if you could get the advantages of a mini-split in an alternative that the average homeowner can install themselves, runs on a regular wall outlet, and is portable (you can remove it if you’re renting or need to move it to another room)?  This is what the new Midea Packaged Window Heat Pump (PWHP) offers.

This innovative design was born out of a challenge, New York’s Clean Heat For All Challenge of 2022.  The challenge called upon manufacturers to develop a packaged cold climate heat pump that can be installed through an existing window opening to provide heating and cooling on a room-by-room basis.  It urged them to reduce or eliminate the barriers that prevent many from upgrading their heating/cooling: costly electrical upgrades, long refrigerant pipe runs, drilling through walls and floors and other construction aspects which result in high project costs, and significant disruption to residents.   Midea is a Chinese company with a presence in the US; its Louisville, KY office does R&D and worked in partnership with the Chinese locations in order to produce 36 prototypes, which were installed at a city-owned public housing complex in Queens in the summer of 2023. The units could then be tested by tenants as air-conditioners, and then as heaters the following winter.  Now 150 units of the final design were recently installed by New York’s housing authority, and Midea also started selling the units to consumers through its distributors, at prices ranging between $2,800 and $3,000. Eventually, the company may sell the product directly at big box stores like Home Depot or Lowe’s. (I tried a sleek new window heat pump that can be installed in less than an hour)

Here are some more “pros”:

• This window unit is configured in a saddle shape, which doesn’t obstruct window views

• It doesn’t drip-drip-drip condensate while it’s cooling (the condensate is atomized and “blown” out so that it doesn’t drip on someone else’s balcony or window unit. 

• Minimal drilling/destruction of the existing wall/window is required. 

• The heat pump works in lower temperatures than other heat pumps (100% heating capacity down to 5 degF, and continuous operation down to -22 degF) because Midea redesigned the compressor unit.

• The unit can be installed in a regular 110v, 15amp outlet. 

• It’s designed to heat a living space between 300 and 500 square feet 

Heat pumps work similar to traditional refrigerant-cycle air conditioners in cooling mode, and a special valve enables the cycle to be reversed to provide heat.  Therefore, this little unit could keep apartment dwellers comfortable all year long.   If you’re familiar with HVAC lingo, this unit is rated for 9000 Btu/hr heating down to 5 degF.  The cooling is 9450 Btu/hr at 92 degF (33.3 degC), which reduces as you increase outside temperature, to 7000 Btu/hr at 109 degF.   These are great numbers for New York.  There’s a general rule of thumb that requires 20 Btu’s per square foot for heating or cooling, which varies according to the climate region (including humidity, because water vapor in the air uses up cooling capacity).  Therefore, 9000 Btus divided by 20 Btus per square foot lands us at 450 square feet (or less with high ceilings or when it’s very humid or cold).   It saves energy costs over space heaters, gas furnaces, boilers (radiators) and traditional air conditioners, which makes great financial and ecological sense.  Although the unit doesn’t provide fresh filtered air (you still need a filtered ventilator to do that, maybe try a SWERV), it’s definitely a welcome addition for the comfort of your small home or apartment. 

Alas, these units are hard to find (only a few offered on eBay at the moment), but if you’re interested in trying one out soon (check out the specs here), we suggest you contact Midea.  Hopefully the federal tax credit of up to $2,000 on qualified installations, available through the end of 2025, will be renewed as well, making this unit even more of a no-brainer!