Any stories from you guys on the mini split to cool the garage ?

20x26 10 foot ceiling

Ideally.. that's the perfect scenario for one in my opinion.

Only downfall I’ve seen working around them, if the drain clogs or if it gets just a little out of level, you’ll have a lake. They work really great though.

If you wanted something cheaper (but a bit noisier), a PTAC is awesome, best if you’re building new so you can frame for it.

I put one in our garden room last year. Took about a week on shipping. We installed the head unit and set the compressor. Had an electrician add the 220 circuit and the quick shut off. Had an AC company hook the freon lines up and test it. That part was required for the warranty. 17x35' room with 2 walls walls of 8' windows and 10' ceilings. We ran the drain line to a 5 gallon water bottle for plants. Total cost about $1,700. Works well for our use.
Senville LETO Series Mini Split Air Conditioner Heat Pump, 24000 BTU 208/230V, Works with Alexa, White https://a.co/d/5LrEmzr

We put one upstairs. We have a barn-do kind of house and only one upstairs bedroom/bathroom and it's significantly hotter than downstairs. So I unhooked it from the main AC and put in a mini split. I installed it all except had an HVAC guy add the freon and leak test.

Works fantastically. Couldn't be happier with it. My daughter is able to set her own temp and it only runs when she's up there. If she gets home and it's hot, it takes 10 minutes for her to cool down the entire space. Within 5 years, it will have paid for itself based on how much we were having to run the 5-ton downstairs unit to keep the upstairs cool.

We got a Daikin, which has a bit longer warranty than the made-in-china cheaper units. But you'll hardly see a bad review on any of them.

We bought a Daikin last summer -24000 BTU- for the living area of our house. The electric bill has dropped maybe 20% and it does a good job heating as well as cooling. Have had 2 service calls under warranty and seems to be working great now. I didnt use the wood burning stove at all this past winter.

I installed one in my shop, about the same size, a few years ago and it has run flawlessly ever since. 18000 BTU single zone has been perfect, very easy install, just had my AC guy make sure it was charged correctly at startup. I love the mini-split systems!

All Good! No bad or ugly!

We’ve installed several of them on various projects. I haven’t heard anything negative yet. Just positive!

We just had an 18,000 BTU mini-split installed for a customer. Room was 4500 cubic feet. It will freeze you in there and it's really quiet. About $5K installed.

A buddy of mine (who is a certified HV/AC person) put one in my 20X30 shed two years ago. Works GREAT. I'll turn it on, go mow the lawn (about 1 1/2 hours) and by the time I'm finished it is nice and cool/cold in there.

When I just go out to work in the shed, it will cool it off within 1/2 hour in the heat of the summer.

Does it require a hole in the outside wall of the house where it is mounted? I have wanted one for years, just didn't know how they install.

Thanks guys, on brand names any better than other? I think I am going to get one. I need to add one light and tint the windows and then blow insulation in over the garage. After that I think I am gonna get one.

Avoid the online specials like Mr Cool. Many brands are made by the same company and rebranded under different names, a lot of wholesalers and dealers don’t even know that. Mideaductless.com is the largest manufacturer in the world and makes many brands including Carrier and all it’s associated brands.

Yes you’ll have power and linesets going thru the wall.

Agree a lot of the non name brands are just cheap units repackaged. If you're going that route the senville from amazon is the best price and they generally get good reviews although there is a reason they all have 1 year warranty vs 5-10 for the big name brands.

I got my Daikin from this company, which was cheaper than other options I could find:

https://www.sylvane.com/daikin-mini-split-air-conditioners.html