GENERAL AIRSTAGE J-7S Mini-VRF R32 | 36000 BTU - 7 Heads

• Energy Star®: Oui
• WiFi: En Option
• Efficiency: 21.7 SEER
• Warranty (Compressor - Parts - Labor): 12-12-6
• Additional Warranty (10-10-10): Possible
• Voltage: 220V
• Sound Pressure Level (Outdoor): 57.0 dB(A)
• Gas (Freon): R-32

GENERAL AIRSTAGE J-7S Mini-VRF Heat Pump, 36,000 BTU, 7 indoor units: slim ducted in the basement, wall units upstairs

If you come across this system elsewhere under the Fujitsu AIRSTAGE name, don't look for a difference: the GENERAL AIRSTAGE J-7S on this page and its Fujitsu AIRSTAGE twin share the same AOUK036SSAN7 outdoor unit, here with seven indoor units. The manufacturer's name, for its part, changed on January 1, 2026: Fujitsu General Limited is now called GENERAL Inc. Same manufacturer's brochure, same warranty.

This page is aimed at the large home with a finished basement: home theatre, exercise room, guest room, office. In the basement, nobody wants a unit hanging on the wall next to the screen or the bike stand. The solution sits in the ceiling: slim ducted units hidden in bulkheads or the suspended ceiling, blowing through grilles. Upstairs, where bedrooms have free walls and simpler needs, wall-mounted units do the job. Seven indoor units, so seven zones, each with its own setting.

GENERAL or Fujitsu AIRSTAGE: the same machine

The name changed because the owner changed. Paloma Rheem Holdings, which has held Rheem since 1988, bought Fujitsu General Limited in August 2025, and the company has been called GENERAL Inc. since the start of 2026. Kawasaki remains the head office and research centre, the factories have not changed, and neither have the AIRSTAGE products, their model numbers or the warranty program. The Fujitsu name will disappear from the units as the transition goes on; in the meantime, two labels designate a single machine.

Rather than leave any doubt hanging, AirGreen publishes both pages and lets you compare. We are an AIRSTAGE Elite Plus installer, we still buy from Groupe Master, and Rheem Canada has been selling the range in Canada since February 2026.

The full comparison is made with the Fujitsu AIRSTAGE J-7S page with seven indoor units.

A variable refrigerant flow system like the J-7S consists of one outdoor unit and several indoor units chosen one by one, room by room. The AOUK036SSAN7 can feed up to nine. All of them must belong to the J-7S range: its indoor units and accessories only pair with its own outdoor units.

In the basement, the ARUL***KSA1 slim ducted unit has the right qualities:

• only 198 mm (7-13/16 in.) high, which lets it fit in a bulkhead without crushing the ceiling;
• 4,000 to 18,000 BTU/h, enough to handle a small guest room as well as a home theatre;
• a static pressure of 0.36 in. WC to push air through short ducts to one or more grilles;
• 6 fan speeds and a built-in refrigerant leak detection sensor.

Each ducted unit needs an access hatch for maintenance and the filter, and a drain for condensate; depending on the height of the floor drain, a pump may be added. We plan these details before the ceilings are closed.

Upstairs, the ASUA***KSA1 wall unit covers 4,000 to 14,000 BTU/h, with 6 fan speeds and auto swing louvers. In quiet mode, it drops to 22 dB(A), the kind of discretion you appreciate in a primary bedroom. The ground floor, for its part, is decided at the visit: a wall unit, a ducted unit in a bulkhead, or a compact cassette if there is a suspended ceiling.

A point of honesty: 36,000 BTU is 3 tons to share among seven rooms. For a very large house, we calculate the needs before recommending anything, and if the result exceeds what the 3-ton unit can deliver, we will talk to you about the 48,000 BTU VRF version, which accepts up to twelve indoor units. The total capacity is set at the visit; no combination is promised on this page.

What the outdoor unit delivers: a SEER2 of 21.7, an HSPF2 of 10.8 and an EER2 of 13.6, listed for this system. The brochure also quotes the series' best results, a SEER2 up to 22.2 and an HSPF2 up to 11.3, with an EER2 up to 15.7 and a COP2 up to 4.64: those are peaks of the range, not values from this page. The heating figures, for their part, line up two separate test points: 26,200 BTU at −8 °C, then 36,400 BTU and a COP of 2.14 at −15 °C.

North Shore winters call for heating that holds. The manufacturer sets the J-7S heating limit at −26 °C, with no lockout at low temperature, and this system is among those certified ENERGY STAR cold climate. The built-in base pan heater keeps ice from forming under the unit. In summer, cooling stays reliable up to 50 °C outdoors: the exercise room and the bedrooms under the roof benefit.

The refrigerant is R-32, with low global warming potential, a maximum charge of 6 kg (13.2 lb) for the system and 12% less refrigerant than the previous generation. The basement ducted units have their leak sensor built in; the wall units can take an optional sensor kit. If the basement guest room concerns you, add a gas sensor kit, which warns with an audible and visual alarm; the refrigerant shut-off valve kit, with backup power, completes the setup.

On a large Rosemère lot, the land leaves a choice of location for the outdoor unit. We keep it away from the deck and the bedroom windows, on a pad or bracket above the snow; its outdoor sound level is 57 dB(A). With seven units spread over three levels, the piping works hard: the J-7S allows up to 120 m (393 ft) of total piping, and the main piping is 3/8 and 5/8 in. The route runs through the basement ceilings and the interior walls, and is set at the visit. At the panel, plan for 208/230 V, an MCA of 29 A and an MOP of 30 A.

For controls, each room can have a wired controller, a wired touch controller or a wireless remote; a touch panel controller in the kitchen can group all seven zones. These controls are bought as options, and so is Wi-Fi, for adjusting the house remotely.

Maintenance includes cleaning the filters of the wall and ducted units through their hatches, checking the drains and inspecting the outdoor unit. On the warranty, the numbers are simple: 12 years for the compressor, 12 years for parts, 6 years for labour. The outdoor unit is on the Hydro-Québec list under AHRI certificate 216372781 and carries ENERGY STAR ID 3813050; the LogisVert list of October 27, 2026 assigns it a $3,144 grant, under Hydro-Québec's rules.

This system is made for the family living on three levels who wants a basement as comfortable as the rest of the house, with no visible unit where people watch a movie. The manufacturer's spec sheet, in French and English, comes with it, including the dimensioned drawings.

Official brochures

The manufacturer's brochures are available as PDF files:

• Brochure in French (PDF)
• Brochure in English (PDF)

A large home in Rosemère: let's look at the basement ceilings together

Before you finish or redo a basement, call us: it is easier to plan the bulkheads and hatches before the drywall goes up. We visit the house, calculate the needs room by room and hand you a free quote. AirGreen, HVAC contractor, 514 316-2973: Rosemère and the whole North Shore, Montreal, Laval, Longueuil and the South Shore.