It still makes all 12,000 Btu/h at −15 °C. Not 8,000. Not “up to”. The number on the box is the number you get on the coldest morning of the year, and it keeps running down to −30 °C.
|
25.0
SEER2
|
12,000
Btu/h at −15 °C
|
−30 °C
keeps heating to
|
Most mini-splits sold in Canada quote their capacity at 8.3 °C and quietly lose a third of it by −15. Then the backup baseboard kicks in, and the power bill you bought the heat pump to avoid shows up anyway. This is the other kind of machine: a cold-climate inverter whose 17 °F output is higher than its 47 °F rating, because the compressor is sized with headroom it only spends when the weather asks.
Sizing. Roughly 500–550 sq ft of cooling, or 300–400 sq ft as the only heat source in a well-insulated space on PEI or mainland Nova Scotia.
Why this unit
- Rated output where it counts. 12,000 Btu/h at −15 °C and 7,100 at −30. Size it for the room, not for the derating curve – there isn’t one until −20.
- SEER2 25.0, HSPF2 9.0. HSPF2 9.0 in Region V means 9.0 Btu of heat per watt-hour across the season. Electric baseboard gives you 3.41. That is roughly 264 % seasonal efficiency against baseboard’s 100 %, on the same meter.
- Built for salt air. Gold-coated anti-corrosive fin on both coils, not just the outdoor one. On this island that is the difference between a ten-year outdoor unit and a five-year one.
- Rebate-eligible, verifiable today. AHRI reference 218372889, ENERGY STAR certified. Look both up yourself before you order. Without them a heat pump cannot be rebated in Canada – which is what makes the cheap uncertified unit the expensive one.
R-454B, not R-410A. GWP 466 against 2,088. R-410A is on its way out of new equipment across North America; a unit bought today on the old refrigerant is one whose service gas gets scarcer and dearer every year it ages.
Which size – and why not the bigger one
Pick by the heating load, never the cooling load. In an Atlantic winter the heating side runs out first, and an oversized unit short-cycles: it blasts, stops, blasts again, never reaches steady state, and pulls almost no moisture out of the air in a humid July. Undersizing costs you comfort on six days a year. Oversizing costs you comfort on all of them.
| Model | VY-12THIS UNIT | VY-18 | VY-24 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rated capacity | 12,000 Btu/h | 18,000 Btu/h | 24,000 Btu/h |
| Heating at −15 °C | 12,000 Btu/h | 17,800 Btu/h | 22,400 Btu/h |
| Heating at −30 °C | 7,100 Btu/h | 9,800 Btu/h | 12,000 Btu/h |
| SEER2 | 25.0 | 23.5 | 22.5 |
| HSPF2, Region V | 9.0 | 8.8 | 8.6 |
| Cooling area guide | 500–550 sq ft | 700–800 sq ft | 950–1,100 sq ft |
| Sole winter heat source | 300–400 sq ft | 450–600 sq ft | 600–800 sq ft |
| Outdoor unit height | 602 mm | 699 mm | 803 mm |
| Outdoor sound | 57 dB(A) | 58 dB(A) | 61 dB(A) |
| Breaker | 20 A | 30 A | 30 A |
| AHRI reference | 218372889 | 218399920 | 218399921 |
| Container Run, per unit in a lot of 5 | $1,059 | $1,249 | $1,649 |
| From stock, single unit | $1,549 | $1,949 | $2,199 |
If one head will not cover the space, two single-zone units will almost always hold a steadier minimum output in deep winter than one multi-split. We will tell you that even when it means selling you one box instead of two.
Working alongside another heat source? Our Standard line is the same cabinet and the same refrigerant at a lower price – less output below −20 °C, rated to −25 °C instead of −30. See the VY-12S – Container Run $859 per unit.
What’s in the box
- Wall-mounted indoor unit with mounting plate and drilling template
- Inverter outdoor unit with base-pan heater fitted as standard – not an option box, it is how every Cold Climate unit we bring in is built
- Infrared remote control with wall holder
- Drain hose and connection fittings
- Installation and owner’s manual, English and French
- Ten-year compressor warranty, five-year parts warranty
What is not, and we will say so before you ask
- Line set – tell us the run length at order and we supply a matched set
- Wall sleeve, line-set cover, condensate pump, outdoor stand or wall bracket
- Electrical disconnect, breaker and wiring
- Installation. R-454B is an A2L refrigerant; in Canada it must be handled by a technician holding a valid refrigerant handling certificate. We do not install, and we will not sell a unit to a buyer who tells us they plan to charge it themselves.
- Wi-Fi module and app control – optional, ask at order
Key specifications
| Specification | VY-12 · 12,000 Btu/h |
|---|---|
| Type | Single-zone wall-mounted split, 3D DC inverter heat pump |
| Rated cooling | 12,000 Btu/h |
| Rated heating (47 °F / 8.3 °C) | 12,000 Btu/h |
| Heating at 17 °F (−8 °C) | 14,000 Btu/h |
| Heating at 5 °F (−15 °C) | 12,000 Btu/h |
| Heating at −5 °F (−20 °C) | 10,800 Btu/h |
| Heating at −13 °F (−25 °C) | 9,100 Btu/h |
| Heating at −22 °F (−30 °C) | 7,100 Btu/h |
| SEER2 | 25.0 |
| HSPF2, Region IV | 10.5 |
| HSPF2, Region V | 9.0 |
| EER2 | 13.0 |
| Operating range, heating | −30 °C to 24 °C |
| Operating range, cooling | −15 °C to 52 °C |
| Refrigerant | R-454B (A2L), GWP 466 – 1,000 g factory charge |
| Compressor | GMCC KSN140D53UFZ3 twin-rotary |
| Power supply | 208/230 V, 60 Hz, single phase |
| Minimum circuit ampacity | 12 A |
| Maximum fuse / breaker | 20 A |
| Indoor sound, high to sleep | 46 – 30 dB(A) |
| Outdoor sound | 57 dB(A) |
| Indoor unit, W × D × H | 920 × 195 × 306 mm (36.2 × 7.7 × 12.0 in) |
| Outdoor unit, W × D × H | 863 × 349 × 602 mm (34.0 × 13.7 × 23.7 in) |
| Net weight, indoor / outdoor | 10.5 kg (23 lb) / 32 kg (71 lb) |
| Pipe connections | 3/8″ gas · 1/4″ liquid |
| Maximum line length | 25 m total, 10 m height difference |
| Heat exchanger | Gold-coated anti-corrosive fin, both coils |
| Filter | Reinforced high-density, top-opening access |
| Base-pan heater | Fitted as standard |
| Defrost | Demand-based, sensor-controlled |
| Control | Infrared remote standard; Wi-Fi app with voice-assistant support optional |
| Warranty | Ten years compressor, five years parts |
Certification – and why it is money, not paperwork
ENERGY STAR certified · AHRI reference 218372889
Both entries are public. Look them up in the ENERGY STAR product finder and the AHRI directory before you order anything from us.
Canadian heat pump rebate programs require an AHRI number, and NRCan registration depends on a recognised efficiency verification mark. A unit without them cannot be rebated – which is how a cheaper box ends up costing more.
The electrical safety mark and the NRCan verification are issued against the production run. You will get the certificate number and the mark on the rating plate in writing before the balance falls due. We do not describe a unit as approved before that number exists.
How to buy
Container Run · lot of 5 · $1,059 CAD per unit
$5,295 CAD for the lot. Pre-order five units from our February 2027 container. 50 % deposit at order, balance before the lot is released from Charlottetown. This is the price for installers, landlords and anyone doing a whole house at once.
From stock · single unit · $1,549 CAD
For the homeowner replacing one head, or the contractor who is a unit short on a job. We confirm the lead time in writing before you pay – a size standing on the floor in Charlottetown ships in a few business days, anything we have to bring in follows the container schedule, and we tell you which applies to your size at the time you order.
The gap is not a discount. Five units in one movement cost us one pick, one invoice and no shelf time; a single unit carries the cost of landing it and holding it until you need it. Choose by how many you need and when.
Deposits on the Container Run are working capital for the order. They are not held in trust and they are not insured. If that is not acceptable to you, buy a single unit from stock instead.
Delivery and lead time
Container Run. The order closes when the container is full. Production and ocean freight run about fourteen weeks from close; the container lands in Charlottetown in February 2027. Collect from Charlottetown, or we arrange freight within Atlantic Canada at cost.
Single unit. Lead time is confirmed in writing at order, before any money changes hands. We do not quote a date we cannot hold.
Rebate paperwork. We supply the invoice, the AHRI number and the model and serial record in the form the provincial programs ask for. We do not file on your behalf and we cannot promise a rebate outcome.
Downloads
VY-12 Cold Climate – spec sheet
Two pages, PDF. Heating output at every temperature step from 47 °F down, the full specification, certification and both prices.
Cold-Climate Heat Pumps – Catalogue 2027
14 pages, PDF. All six sizes across both lines, the heating curves side by side, the comparison against Senville, and how the two buying channels work.













