Job takeoff
Mini-split installation takeoff
Capacity for the room, the plan area the outdoor unit and a margin round it take up, and the fall its condensate needs.
A takeoff is the trade word for the shopping list a job produces — every material, and how much of each, worked out by its own cited calculator.
- 4Measurements in
- 3Trades out
Give the job once
Every figure on the right follows these, in the units you choose.
Been given a quote for this job?
Paste it into the mini-split installation quote check: each line is read against these same calculators — what it leaves out, what it adds, and what to ask.
Check the quoteEvery trade, from those dimensions
then change a dimension, and each line shows what moved.
| Trade | Quantity | |
|---|---|---|
Air Conditioner Size CalculatorA first-pass capacity from area and conditions — not a load calculation.How this figure was reached
Resting on
Change any other figure on the Air Conditioner Size Calculator | 8600 BTU/h | |
HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint CalculatorThe unit's plan area plus a uniform 0.15 m (6 in) margin on every side — not the concrete to pour, and not the airflow, discharge or service clearances, which come from the installation manual and decide the position.
Why this quantity?
Resting on
Change any other figure on the HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint Calculator | 8.67 ft² | |
HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope CalculatorThe total fall the drain needs over that run — continuous, with no rise anywhere.How this figure was reached
Resting on
Change any other figure on the HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope Calculator | 2.06 in | |
Air Conditioner Size CalculatorA first-pass capacity from area and conditions — not a load calculation.How this figure was reached | 8611.13 BTU/h | |
HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint CalculatorThe unit's plan area plus a uniform 0.15 m (6 in) margin on every side — not the concrete to pour, and not the airflow, discharge or service clearances, which come from the installation manual and decide the position.
Why this quantity? | 0.78 m² | |
HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope CalculatorThe total fall the drain needs over that run — continuous, with no rise anywhere.How this figure was reached | 52.08 mm |
Estimates, not a quote. Each row gives its base, the allowance on top, the adjusted figure and what to order; change an allowance on the row, or open its reasoning to see every figure it rests on. A trade's own page carries what it does not cover — open the one you are about to order against.
Labour and programme
Person-hours for the rows going in, from trade rules of thumb: a range for each piece of work, never a price.
Every row here is a size or a check, not a piece of work.
3 rows carry no hours of their own
- Air Conditioner Size: a size or a check, not a piece of work
- HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint: a size or a check, not a piece of work
- HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope: a size or a check, not a piece of work
Labour and programme
Person-hours for the rows going in, from trade rules of thumb: a range for each piece of work, never a price.
Every row here is a size or a check, not a piece of work.
3 rows carry no hours of their own
- Air Conditioner Size: a size or a check, not a piece of work
- HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint: a size or a check, not a piece of work
- HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope: a size or a check, not a piece of work
Setups you have saved
The build-up, the dimensions and any allowance you changed — kept on this device, and reusable on any job. Your prices are not copied in: they stay in your price book, so a setup never holds a stale one.
How far does a budget go?
At your own prices, with this build-up unchanged.
About this job
Mini-splits are oversized more often than any other piece of domestic plant, and oversizing one makes the room worse rather than better. A unit with too much capacity satisfies the thermostat quickly, shuts down, and never runs long enough to dehumidify — so a correctly sized unit and an oversized one reach the same temperature and only one of them reaches it comfortably. The capacity row here is a rule-of-thumb estimate from floor area and a few conditions; a real selection is a room-by-room load calculation.
The footprint row is the one people discover late. An outdoor unit needs a level base, clearance for airflow on every side it breathes from, and enough room in front for somebody to service it — and the clearance, not the unit, is what usually decides whether the chosen spot works. Those clearances differ side by side and come from the unit's installation manual; the row adds a uniform 0.15 m (6 in) all round, so it is a first check on the space, not the clearance and not the concrete. The base only has to carry the unit — a technician can stand on gravel.
The condensate row looks trivial and causes a surprising share of callbacks. An indoor head produces litres of water a day in summer and drains it by gravity, so the line needs a continuous fall over its whole run. A drain that sags, or that rises to get over a joist, backs up into the unit and puts the water on the wall below it.
How each line reads
- Base
- What the calculator gives for these dimensions, before anything is added.
- Allowance
- Cutting waste, a lap or spare stock — named, with where it comes from, and changeable on the row.
- Adjusted
- The base with its allowance on top.
- Order
- What to buy: the adjusted figure in whole boards, bags, rolls or lengths.
The order this happens in
Quantities do not tell you the sequence, and on this job the sequence is where the money goes wrong.
- Size on the room's load, not on its floor area alone — and be suspicious of a round number.
- Choose the indoor position for the air throw, and the outdoor position for the clearance and the noise.
- Set the pad level and clear of the ground, where snow and leaves will not bury it.
- Core the wall with a slight fall to the outside, and sleeve it.
- Run the line set with generous bends, pressure-test and evacuate properly — this is what decides the lifespan.
- Confirm the condensate falls continuously along its whole run before commissioning.
What this takeoff does not cover
- A real load calculation. Room-by-room heat gain and loss is what a selection should rest on.
- The line set, its length limit, the additional refrigerant charge a long run needs, and the electrical supply.
- Wall penetration, bracket, trunking and the seal around the core.
- Noise at the boundary, which is what planning conditions and neighbours are concerned with.
- Anything requiring refrigerant handling, which is licensed work nearly everywhere.
- The manufacturer's airflow, discharge and service clearances, and the base's size, thickness and what goes under it.
Quote check
Been given a quote for this job?
Paste it into the mini-split installation quote check. Every line of it is read against these same calculators and your measurements. Quantities only, never prices.
What it leaves out
Every line this takeoff has that nothing on the quote reads as.
What it adds
Labour, removal, hire, fees — each named for what it is.
What to ask
One list of questions, ready to copy. Never a verdict.
More takeoffs
Other job takeoffs
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Run this takeoffRecessed lighting layout
3 tradesWhether the fittings you plan give the room enough light, how many a target level needs and at what spacing, and whether the circuit will carry them.
Run this takeoff
Frequently asked questions
- What does the mini-split installation takeoff give for a typical job?
- Opened at Room floor area 40 m² · Outdoor unit width 0.9 m · Outdoor unit depth 0.35 m · Condensate run 5 m, it orders: Air Conditioner Size, 8,611 BTU/h; HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint, 0.78 m²; HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope, 52.1 mm. Opened at Room floor area 430 sq ft · Outdoor unit width 3 ft · Outdoor unit depth 14 in · Condensate run 16.5 ft: Air Conditioner Size, 8,600 BTU/h; HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint, 8.67 ft²; HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope, 2.06 in. Every figure follows the dimensions you give it.
- Which calculators does the mini-split installation takeoff run?
- 3 calculators, one to a line: Air Conditioner Size Calculator, HVAC Equipment Pad/Curb Footprint Calculator, HVAC Condensate Drain Pipe Slope Calculator. Each has a page of its own with its formula and its sources; the takeoff runs them all on one set of dimensions.
- What does the mini-split installation takeoff leave out?
- 6 things, each named on this page: A real load calculation; The line set, its length limit, the additional refrigerant charge a long run needs, and the electrical supply; Wall penetration, bracket, trunking and the seal around the core; Noise at the boundary, which is what planning conditions and neighbours are concerned with; Anything requiring refrigerant handling, which is licensed work nearly everywhere; The manufacturer's airflow, discharge and service clearances, and the base's size, thickness and what goes under it.
- Can I check a quote for this job against the takeoff?
- Yes. The mini-split installation quote check reads a quote's lines against these same calculators and your measurements, and reports what it leaves out, what it adds and what to ask. It reads quantities, never prices.