Can I just run a duct from the house into the garage?

It is the common instinct and it is rarely the right move. The equipment in the house was sized for the house, so adding floor area divides the capacity rather than adding to it, and a garage has no return path to bring the air back. With an attached garage there is a further reason: sharing a system with the living space means moving garage air into the bedrooms, which is worth avoiding on its own account.

Will a ductless mini-split heat a garage through a Kansas winter?

A mini-split heats by moving heat rather than by burning anything, and how much it can move falls as the outdoor temperature falls. Equipment differs a great deal in how it behaves at the cold end, and so does the building it is asked to heat. That is exactly why the honest answer is a sizing conversation about your space rather than a yes — we would rather look at the building and tell you what it would take than promise something from the driveway.

Do I need to insulate the garage before a mini-split goes in?

Not necessarily, but you should know which version you are buying. An uninsulated space needs more equipment to reach the same temperature and then works harder to hold it, so insulating first usually means less equipment and lower running costs afterwards. Sometimes that trade is clearly worth making and sometimes the space does not need to be that comfortable. We will tell you what each one looks like and let you decide.

Can in-floor heating go into a shop that is already built?

It is dramatically easier before the slab is poured, which is the honest headline. In-floor tubing is meant to go in with the concrete, so a shop that is already standing on a finished slab is a much bigger piece of work than a shop that has not been poured yet. If a building is still at the planning stage it is well worth raising then; if it is already up, a ductless system is usually the more practical route to a comfortable space.

How many indoor units does a shop or garage need?

It depends on how the space is divided rather than on how big it is. A ductless head conditions the space it is mounted in and does very little for a room around a corner, so one open bay may be served by a single head while the same floor area split into a shop, an office and a storage room may not be. Where the heads go, and how many, is worth settling before any equipment is ordered.

Mini-Splits

Heating and Cooling a Garage or Shop in Wichita

A garage, a shop, or a room that was added later is asking the house system for something it was never sized to give. The answer is usually a separate system for that space rather than a bigger one for the house.

Published: September 6, 2026
Reading time: 11 min read
Category: Mini-Splits

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There is a space like this on a lot of properties around Wichita. A garage that is fine in April and unusable by the middle of July. A shop out back that gets worked in from October to April and abandoned for the rest of the year. A porch somebody closed in, or a bonus room over the garage that has never once been the same temperature as the rest of the house.

The instinct is to reach for the system that is already there — run a duct out to it, put a vent in, be done. It is the cheapest-looking idea and it is usually the wrong one, and the reason why is worth understanding before you spend anything, because it also tells you what the space actually needs.

What a Kansas garage or shop is actually up against

South Central Kansas asks a great deal of a conditioned space and considerably more of one that was never meant to be conditioned at all. A detached shop can move further in a single afternoon than the house moves in a week, and it does that in both directions across the year — the same building that bakes in August is the one nobody wants to walk into in January.

That is not a fault in the building. It is what the building was built to be, and it is the reason the space behaves nothing like the room on the other side of the wall from it.

What sets these spaces apart from the rooms inside the house:

A large door that opens straight onto the outside, with a seal designed to keep rain out rather than heat in.
Walls and a ceiling that were often built to enclose a space rather than to insulate one.
A slab sitting directly on the ground, with nothing conditioned underneath it.
Little or no return path back to any equipment, even where somebody has run a supply vent.
More exposed wall and roof per square foot of floor than any room inside the house has.
Dust and grit, which is a real consideration in a part of the country that moves both around every spring.

Add those together and you have a building that loses and gains heat far faster than the house does, and that has no path back to the equipment even if it could be reached.

Why extending the house ductwork is usually the wrong answer

A furnace and an air conditioner are sized for the house they were put into. Adding conditioned floor area to that house does not add any capacity to the equipment — it divides what is already there across more space. The rooms that tend to notice are the ones furthest from the equipment, which are usually the rooms that were already the least comfortable.

There is also nothing to bring the air back. A supply run into a garage or a shop pushes air into a space with no return, and air that cannot get back to the equipment is air the system is not really circulating.

The attached garage is a separate case

With a detached shop the objection is efficiency. With an attached garage it is not only that. Tying a garage into the same system that serves the bedrooms means moving garage air into the rest of the house, and a garage is where the vehicles, the fuel, the solvents and the paint live. That is reason enough to keep the two apart regardless of what it would do to the heating bill.

What that leaves

Once extending the existing system is off the table, the question changes shape in a useful way. It stops being how to reach the space with what you have, and becomes what that space should have of its own — which is a much easier question to answer well.

What works for heating and cooling a garage or shop in Wichita

Two approaches cover most of what we install in these spaces around the Wichita area, and they are good at different things. Neither is a default. Which one fits is decided by the building and by what you do inside it.

A ductless mini-split, in most cases

What makes a ductless system suit these buildings is what it does not need. There is no ductwork to extend into the space, nothing to route through an attic the building may not have, and nothing taken away from the rooms in the house — the connection between the outdoor unit and the indoor one is a small bundle of pipe and cable rather than a duct.

One unit heats and cools, which matters in a climate that asks for both. It runs on its own control, so the space can sit at a different temperature from the house, or sit switched off entirely for the months nobody is out there. And because it is a system of its own, sizing it is a question about that building alone.

In-floor heating, where the slab is in play

In-floor heating puts the warmth in the slab rather than in the air above it, which suits a shop in a way that a warm-air system does not. You are standing on the floor all day, the mass holds its temperature rather than starting over every time the overhead door goes up, and nothing is blowing air — and therefore dust — around a space where you may be finishing or painting something.

The constraint is honest and worth saying plainly: it is a heating answer and not a cooling one, and it is far and away simplest when the slab is going in. We install and service in-floor heating in shops and barns, and the best time to talk about it is before the concrete is poured.

Both, in a shop that earns it

In a building that gets used year round, the two go together well — heat in the floor for the months you are out there every day, and a mini-split head for the summer and for the shoulder seasons when all the space needs is a few degrees off the top.

Which of those fits is a question about your building and about what you do in it. It is not a question about the equipment, and it is worth settling before anyone quotes anything.

The insulation question, and why it comes first

Equipment is sized to a load, and the load is set by the building rather than by the square footage. A space that has not been sealed or insulated needs more equipment than the same space would need once it has been, and then it needs that equipment to work harder for the rest of its life to hold the same temperature.

That is not an argument for insulating everything before you do anything. It is an argument for knowing which one you are buying, because the two answers cost different amounts and last different lengths of time.

Worth settling before anything is sized:

Whether the walls and the ceiling are insulated, and how well.
What the overhead door is made of, and whether anything seals around it.
Whether the slab has any edge detail or sits bare against the ground.
Whether the space is finished inside, and whether you intend to finish it.
How the space is used — parked in, worked in all day, or opened up at weekends.
What you actually want from it: a workable temperature, or the same comfort as the house.

That last one moves the answer more than any of the others. A shop you want to work in on a January morning and a garage you want to keep above freezing are two different jobs with different equipment behind them.

Additions, closed-in porches, and the room over the garage

The other half of this is the space that is inside the house but outside its system. An addition, a converted attic, a porch somebody enclosed, a bonus room built over the garage. The house gained a room and the equipment that heats and cools the rest of it did not change to match.

The room over the garage is the hardest of them, and for a structural reason rather than a mechanical one: it has outside above it, outside on the sides, and an unconditioned garage underneath. It is very nearly a detached building that happens to share a staircase with your house.

Two honest options

Either the distribution gets put right — ductwork, return sizing, and where the thermostat is reading the house from — or the room gets a system of its own. Both are real answers and we do both.

What decides between them

Mostly, whether the rest of the house is comfortable. If it is, then the ductwork is doing its job everywhere it reaches and the new room is simply somewhere it does not reach, which points at giving that room its own head. If the rest of the house has complaints too, the distribution is worth looking at before anyone adds equipment to a system that is already struggling to serve what it has.

What happens when we come out

None of the above can be settled from a description over the phone, and we would not try. What we can do is come and look at the space, which is a short visit and answers most of it.

Measure the space and look at what encloses it — walls, ceiling, door, slab, windows, and which way it faces.
Ask what the space is used for now and what you want to use it for.
Work out where an indoor unit could sensibly go and where the outdoor unit would sit.
Check what electrical service is already at the building and what would have to change.
Set out what each option involves, including leaving it alone for now.

And if what the space needs first is insulation rather than equipment, we would far rather tell you that than sell you a system that has to fight the building for the rest of its life.

Common questions

Can I just run a duct from the house into the garage?: It is the common instinct and it is rarely the right move. The equipment in the house was sized for the house, so adding floor area divides the capacity rather than adding to it, and a garage has no return path to bring the air back. With an attached garage there is a further reason: sharing a system with the living space means moving garage air into the bedrooms, which is worth avoiding on its own account.
Will a ductless mini-split heat a garage through a Kansas winter?: A mini-split heats by moving heat rather than by burning anything, and how much it can move falls as the outdoor temperature falls. Equipment differs a great deal in how it behaves at the cold end, and so does the building it is asked to heat. That is exactly why the honest answer is a sizing conversation about your space rather than a yes — we would rather look at the building and tell you what it would take than promise something from the driveway.
Do I need to insulate the garage before a mini-split goes in?: Not necessarily, but you should know which version you are buying. An uninsulated space needs more equipment to reach the same temperature and then works harder to hold it, so insulating first usually means less equipment and lower running costs afterwards. Sometimes that trade is clearly worth making and sometimes the space does not need to be that comfortable. We will tell you what each one looks like and let you decide.
Can in-floor heating go into a shop that is already built?: It is dramatically easier before the slab is poured, which is the honest headline. In-floor tubing is meant to go in with the concrete, so a shop that is already standing on a finished slab is a much bigger piece of work than a shop that has not been poured yet. If a building is still at the planning stage it is well worth raising then; if it is already up, a ductless system is usually the more practical route to a comfortable space.
How many indoor units does a shop or garage need?: It depends on how the space is divided rather than on how big it is. A ductless head conditions the space it is mounted in and does very little for a room around a corner, so one open bay may be served by a single head while the same floor area split into a shop, an office and a storage room may not be. Where the heads go, and how many, is worth settling before any equipment is ordered.

How we do it

Tell Us What the Space Is For

Arrow has spent more than twenty years putting heating and cooling into homes, shops and commercial buildings across Wichita and South Central Kansas, on all makes and models. Garages, additions and outbuildings are a steady part of that, and the work goes well for a dull reason: somebody asked the right questions about the building before anything was ordered.

So that is where we start. What the space is, what you do in it, what you want from it, and what each way of getting there involves — in plain language, before any work moves forward.

The building decides what the space needs. Not the catalogue, and not the size of the room next door.

Where this goes next

What We Do About It

5.0 Stars on Google

Our customers talk about the same things: we show up fast, we find what’s actually wrong, and we finish when we said we would.

5.025 Google reviews — read them all

Reagan Faulkner
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse and his crew are amazing to work with! He was able to get my job finished quickly and efficiently! I could not recommend him enough to help you out!
Dale England
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse was great. Helped get everything all fixed up. Very professional. Highly recommend.
Michael Funke
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse came out short notice and got us back up and running and identified a few issues our previous HVAC company missed. No doubt, Arrow Heating and Air will be our "go-to" from now on.
Sarah Davis
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is amazing! He is honest, fair and extremely reliable. He has been my hvac guy for 10+ and I highly recommend him!.
jason payne
Rated 5 out of 5
Very happy with Arrow are air conditioning quit on the Friday night before this 2026 Memorial weekend. I asked a buddy who to call he gave me Jesse’s number he can out an hour later got us going for a day or so. Then came out Tuesday and replaced the A coil inspected everything and got us up and running and for a fair price. I highly recommended Arrow!
Heather
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse has taken care of my HVAC needs for many years! He is hardworking, reliable, and very knowledgeable about all things HVAC. He will treat you fairly and give you an honest opinion of what you need. I would highly recommend him for any job or repair that you may need.
Timmy Colborn
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow did a fantastic job, i was in need of new unit for our home and they took care of it right away. Not long after that they help with heatin my shop, they did an amazing job withthat as well.
Lance Bryson
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is great. He is quick to respond and he has always been fair on pricing for repairs.
Rachel Westmoreland
Rated 5 out of 5
I started using Jesse for my heat air for our investment properties. It has been nothing but positive reviews from my tenants! He has already corrected issues that would have caused problems in the summer heat AND set blower settings on some units that were never done correctly when the unit was installed! His communication has been great, always telling me what the issue is and cost to repair.
Chris Gallardo
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow does amazing work!! Installed a mini split for our attic space in Conway Springs.Small living quarters in the attic. Window AC could never keep up and was loud.The mini split made it so nice, quiet and cool. Cool enough to need blankets in the summer time!!Highly recommend!!
Brent Cleeton
Rated 5 out of 5
Great turn around time and great price, and the work was phenomenal and Jesse is a super nice guy
Jessica Hall
Rated 5 out of 5
Very fast and professional and very reasonable pricing, I will use them again in the future.
vecente6903
Rated 5 out of 5
Quick, honest, knowledgeable, jesse is great and does great work!
Jeremy Edwards
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is our one stop shop for our collision center regarding our paint booth and compressor. Thank you from Norris Collision Center!
elery shively
Rated 5 out of 5
Great service!
Gina DeCoudres Dunlap
Rated 5 out of 5
"I can't recommend Jesse highly enough! Our AC was not working properly, and he was able to come out the same day to get it back up and running. Fast, professional, and very knowledgeable. We will definitely recommend him to everyone.
Sheri
Rated 5 out of 5
Very responsive, professional, knowledgeable and honest. Thanks!!!!
DOUG FAULKNER
Rated 5 out of 5
Great company! Called when my a/c went down and Jesse was there within 2 hrs. Honest with very fair pricing. Didn’t try to sell me anything I didn’t need. Cleaned the outside unit and replaced the filter and it’s been working great.
Keith Simpson
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is the best around bar none. Weather your residential or commercial he’s got you covered. Strait shooter no bs. Like is slogan says “ he’ll shoot you straight” honest and dependable. Would definitely recommend Arrow Heating and Air for all your HVAC needs
Staci DeGeer
Rated 5 out of 5
I had a great experience with Arrow Heating & Air! Jesse arrived right on time, quickly diagnosed the issue, and had everything fixed efficiently. The problem turned out to be a bad capacitor, and fortunately, he had the replacement part stocked on his truck, so I was back up and running in no time.What really stood out was that Jesse went above and beyond by taking the time to clean off my outdoor air conditioning unit to help it continue running efficiently. He was knowledgeable, capable, professional, and clearly takes pride in his work.I highly recommend Arrow Heating & Air for anyone needing fast, reliable, and high-quality HVAC service!
Clancy Leibham
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrived early and found the problem within 5 min. Very knowledgeable! Will use again!
Kimba
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow heating and air is the only HVAC company our family in Derby will ever use. From troubleshooting to complete system replacement, Jesse does what he promises, right on time at a fair price. Thank you!
Austin Blake
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow Heating and Air Conditioning is my first and last call for any issue I run into with our HVAC system. Knowledge and skill is unparalleled. You save money when you work with someone that knows what they are doing and eliminate the guesswork. Thank you!
Rob Brown
Rated 5 out of 5
Top notch work, very fair price and fast service.

Reagan Faulkner
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse and his crew are amazing to work with! He was able to get my job finished quickly and efficiently! I could not recommend him enough to help you out!
Dale England
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse was great. Helped get everything all fixed up. Very professional. Highly recommend.
Michael Funke
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse came out short notice and got us back up and running and identified a few issues our previous HVAC company missed. No doubt, Arrow Heating and Air will be our "go-to" from now on.
Sarah Davis
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is amazing! He is honest, fair and extremely reliable. He has been my hvac guy for 10+ and I highly recommend him!.
jason payne
Rated 5 out of 5
Very happy with Arrow are air conditioning quit on the Friday night before this 2026 Memorial weekend. I asked a buddy who to call he gave me Jesse’s number he can out an hour later got us going for a day or so. Then came out Tuesday and replaced the A coil inspected everything and got us up and running and for a fair price. I highly recommended Arrow!
Heather
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse has taken care of my HVAC needs for many years! He is hardworking, reliable, and very knowledgeable about all things HVAC. He will treat you fairly and give you an honest opinion of what you need. I would highly recommend him for any job or repair that you may need.
Timmy Colborn
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow did a fantastic job, i was in need of new unit for our home and they took care of it right away. Not long after that they help with heatin my shop, they did an amazing job withthat as well.
Lance Bryson
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is great. He is quick to respond and he has always been fair on pricing for repairs.
Rachel Westmoreland
Rated 5 out of 5
I started using Jesse for my heat air for our investment properties. It has been nothing but positive reviews from my tenants! He has already corrected issues that would have caused problems in the summer heat AND set blower settings on some units that were never done correctly when the unit was installed! His communication has been great, always telling me what the issue is and cost to repair.
Chris Gallardo
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow does amazing work!! Installed a mini split for our attic space in Conway Springs.Small living quarters in the attic. Window AC could never keep up and was loud.The mini split made it so nice, quiet and cool. Cool enough to need blankets in the summer time!!Highly recommend!!
Brent Cleeton
Rated 5 out of 5
Great turn around time and great price, and the work was phenomenal and Jesse is a super nice guy
Jessica Hall
Rated 5 out of 5
Very fast and professional and very reasonable pricing, I will use them again in the future.
vecente6903
Rated 5 out of 5
Quick, honest, knowledgeable, jesse is great and does great work!
Jeremy Edwards
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is our one stop shop for our collision center regarding our paint booth and compressor. Thank you from Norris Collision Center!
elery shively
Rated 5 out of 5
Great service!
Gina DeCoudres Dunlap
Rated 5 out of 5
"I can't recommend Jesse highly enough! Our AC was not working properly, and he was able to come out the same day to get it back up and running. Fast, professional, and very knowledgeable. We will definitely recommend him to everyone.
Sheri
Rated 5 out of 5
Very responsive, professional, knowledgeable and honest. Thanks!!!!
DOUG FAULKNER
Rated 5 out of 5
Great company! Called when my a/c went down and Jesse was there within 2 hrs. Honest with very fair pricing. Didn’t try to sell me anything I didn’t need. Cleaned the outside unit and replaced the filter and it’s been working great.
Keith Simpson
Rated 5 out of 5
Jesse is the best around bar none. Weather your residential or commercial he’s got you covered. Strait shooter no bs. Like is slogan says “ he’ll shoot you straight” honest and dependable. Would definitely recommend Arrow Heating and Air for all your HVAC needs
Staci DeGeer
Rated 5 out of 5
I had a great experience with Arrow Heating & Air! Jesse arrived right on time, quickly diagnosed the issue, and had everything fixed efficiently. The problem turned out to be a bad capacitor, and fortunately, he had the replacement part stocked on his truck, so I was back up and running in no time.What really stood out was that Jesse went above and beyond by taking the time to clean off my outdoor air conditioning unit to help it continue running efficiently. He was knowledgeable, capable, professional, and clearly takes pride in his work.I highly recommend Arrow Heating & Air for anyone needing fast, reliable, and high-quality HVAC service!
Clancy Leibham
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrived early and found the problem within 5 min. Very knowledgeable! Will use again!
Kimba
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow heating and air is the only HVAC company our family in Derby will ever use. From troubleshooting to complete system replacement, Jesse does what he promises, right on time at a fair price. Thank you!
Austin Blake
Rated 5 out of 5
Arrow Heating and Air Conditioning is my first and last call for any issue I run into with our HVAC system. Knowledge and skill is unparalleled. You save money when you work with someone that knows what they are doing and eliminate the guesswork. Thank you!
Rob Brown
Rated 5 out of 5
Top notch work, very fair price and fast service.

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