Ducted systems are efficient when the ductwork is good. Ductless (mini-split) systems are efficient regardless, skip the duct losses entirely, and let you zone different areas independently. For homes with bad ducts, no ducts, or additions without ducts — go ductless. For newer homes with solid duct systems, ducted usually wins on cost.
When we walk into an older Vancouver home to quote a heat pump replacement, one of the first decisions is whether to keep using the existing ductwork or go ductless. It's a bigger decision than most homeowners realize, because the ductwork itself is often the biggest performance problem in the house.
What ducts do — and what they steal.
A ducted system uses one central piece of equipment (furnace, air handler, or heat pump) to produce heated or cooled air, then distributes it through sheet metal or flex duct runs to supply registers in every room. Air returns through return registers back to the equipment.
When it works, it's elegant. When it doesn't, you lose 20–40% of your heating and cooling to:
- Leaky duct joints. Older systems with mastic-free joints or failing tape can leak 15%+ of conditioned air into the crawlspace or attic.
- Uninsulated duct runs. A metal duct passing through an unconditioned attic or crawlspace loses heat to the surroundings even before the air reaches the room.
- Undersized trunks. Many older homes have ducts sized for the original (smaller) furnace. A new higher-capacity system overpressurizes them.
- Too few returns. Single-return systems can't keep all rooms balanced — some rooms are always hotter or colder.
Most Vancouver homes built before 1990 have at least two of these issues. Some have all four.
What ductless does differently.
A ductless (mini-split) system skips ducts entirely. There's one outdoor unit and one or more indoor "heads" mounted on walls or ceilings in the rooms you want conditioned. The refrigerant lines between them carry the heat energy directly — no air moving through leaky ducts, no losses to unconditioned spaces.
Every indoor head has its own thermostat, so different rooms run at different temperatures. A 3-zone ductless system can heat the living room, cool the bedroom, and leave the unused guest room off — independently, at the same time.
The cases where ductless clearly wins.
1. Your ducts are in bad shape.
If a Manual D duct analysis shows 20%+ leakage or major sizing issues, you have two choices: spend $4,000–$8,000 to fix the ducts, or go ductless and skip the problem. The ductless option is often cheaper, and the efficiency you gain is real.
2. You're adding a room, an ADU, or a converted space.
Extending ductwork to a garage conversion, a basement finish, or a detached ADU is expensive and usually performs poorly. A single-zone mini-split is the right answer almost every time — $4,500–$7,500 installed for a well-matched system.
3. You have wildly different needs in different areas.
Upstairs bedrooms hot at night, downstairs freezing in the morning? A single zoned ductless system puts each area on its own thermostat. Ducted systems can do zoning too, but with dampers and a zone controller — more moving parts, more failure points, more complexity.
4. You want the highest efficiency available.
Premium ductless systems like the Mitsubishi H2i lineup we install reach 22–30 SEER2 because they don't have duct losses and run on fully variable-speed inverters. The highest-efficiency ducted systems top out around 20 SEER2.
The cases where ducted clearly wins.
1. You have good ductwork already.
Homes built after 2000 in Vancouver generally have reasonable duct systems. If yours tests under 10% leakage and the sizing is close to right, replacing the central equipment is the fastest, cleanest upgrade. A whole-home ductless retrofit would cost more without performance benefit.
2. You want invisible HVAC.
Ductless heads, even the nicest ones (Mitsubishi's "Designer Wall-Mounted Units"), are visible fixtures on your walls. Some homeowners hate that aesthetic. Ducted registers in the ceiling are far less obtrusive. There are ductless options that mount in ceilings, but they're more expensive and more complex to install.
3. You have a large, open floor plan.
Open-concept homes don't benefit from zoning as much — one big space, one temperature. A ducted system with properly placed registers often outperforms trying to cover the space with multiple ductless heads.
4. You want the lowest installed cost.
If ducts are good, a straight central-equipment swap is cheaper than a ductless retrofit. For a 3-ton replacement, expect $2,500–$4,000 more to go ductless on a whole house.
The hybrid answer.
We often end up recommending a mixed approach: keep the ducted central system for the main living areas, and add a ductless head for a problem area — a bonus room over the garage, a basement, a master bedroom that's always hot. Total installed cost stays reasonable, and the problem gets solved directly instead of fighting ductwork that wasn't designed for it.
A note on Mitsubishi Diamond equipment
As a Mitsubishi Diamond Contractor, we install and warranty the full ductless lineup — from single-zone high-wall systems to 6-zone CITY MULTI setups for larger homes. Mitsubishi equipment qualifies for the extended 12-year factory warranty on parts and compressor when installed by a Diamond Contractor, which is materially better than the 5–7 year standard.
What a good quote should include.
If you're getting competing quotes for ductless vs ducted, make sure each one:
- Includes a Manual J load calculation (not a rule-of-thumb guess)
- Specifies the outdoor unit, indoor units, and AHRI-matched combination
- Shows the efficiency rating (SEER2 / HSPF2) for the matched set, not just the outdoor unit
- Lists the permit fees separately
- Addresses existing ductwork condition explicitly if keeping it
Missing any of those and you're getting a price, not a quote.
Ready to figure out which approach is right for your home? Request a quote and we'll walk through the tradeoffs specific to your house.