Fujitsu 09LZAS1 Mini Split Review and Power Consumption

[SupraSPL]

The Fujitsu Halcyon 09LZAS1 (rebadged as RUUD) is 33.1 on SEER2 scale or 18EER or 530% efficient at 9K BTU rated cooling and 14.2 on HSPF2 scale or 5.3COP 530% efficient at 12K BTU rated heating. Max power draw can be as much as 2300W in powerful mode heating so it is available in 240V only. Cost was $1400+$100 tax free shipping from a high feedback eBay liquidator. Seller crated the condenser and the unit arrived in flawless condition.

Since my system is all 120V when off grid and the Fujitsu needs 240V I installed a dedicated 24V to 230V 60HZ inverter (Vevor 3000VA aio $300).

I installed the unit late November 2023 and so far it has been awesome. I can barely hear the indoor unit and the outdoor unit must be 100X quieter than my old R22 condenser, basically makes a slight buzzing sound with occasional slight demonic sound when compressor is running, can't even hear the fan. Outdoor unit is mounted on wall bracket and zero vibrations or sounds come through.



The RUUD/RHEEM version indoor unit is 36" wide and the Fujitsu version is 38.4", I think because of the lack of wifi module in the RUUD. I really needed to save few inches for this space, so that was awesome but the wifi would have been nice to have. Maybe I'll add an ir wifi device.



12K BTU easily keeps my 1500 sq ft upstate NY house warm (some rooms are closed off), even running in economy mode in December. When we get below 15F I will just run the woodstove unless I have excess power to burn off.

I put the condenser in a sunny spot hoping to gain a little efficiency. I don't mind the penalty during cooling season because I will have a glut of power then anyway.

Electricity was $0.18/kwh this month plus $17/month for service so if the outdoor temps are 25F or more and I am out of solar battery power, I switch the Fujitsu to the grid to conserve oil and firewood. When temps are in the 30s it takes about 750W or 18kwh/day to run the Fujitsu. Plus 6 more kwh to run the whole house basics plus 5 more when hot water/TV/cooking is needed aka gf is visiting.

 

[SupraSPL]

Trying to check standby power, I clamped the AC side and it read 0.4A at 230V or about 92VA. The unit was turned on but not running the compressor or outside fan. 92W would be disappointing and I would have to manually disconnect the unit whenever possible when off grid in winter. A little googling and I saw other people had similar confusion. One tech suggested that it was due to power factor and they were correct.

So I clamped the DC side of the inverter with the heat pump disconnected and no load, it was about 22W standing by. With the Fujitsu reconnected and turned on it was 33W total so the Fujitsu was pulling 11W more from the batteries. So on the AC side that is about 10W standby, even when the indoor unit is running the fan gently to sample the air temp.

Next I need to catch it in defrost mode and run downstairs to clamp the DC side to verify actual power draw. When I clamped the AC side during defrost it read 2.7A 230V or 620VA. Power factor should be about .9 so estimated 560W on the AC side. The defrost runs 5 to 10 minutes and attempts to sense the frost but it sometimes runs longer than necessary and sometimes it waits a bit too long to kick on when it is needed. Not a perfect system but it does pretty well.

It was only a few nights that the unit was frosting up, high 20s low 30s and very high humidity. The vast majority of the time there is no frost on the coils at all.

When running in economy mode heating the unit is not allowed to run the compressor more than 60% power so it draws anywhere from 170W to 1100W on AC side. When in powerful mode heating I have seen it draw as much as 2100 Watts AC side.

I haven't tested the cooling mode yet but according to the data sheet it can reach as high as 827% efficient (28.3 EER) when running at minimum (110W) and 530% efficient at rated 9K BTU (600W). For comparison a typical window unit is 300% efficient at rated BTU and the Midea U is 430%, which is better than most mini splits. I have seen Midea U for $100-$200 many times so in certain situations that is awesome tech too.