This page will teach you all you need to know about air conditioners so you can make the best decision for your future cooling or heating equipment!
Let's start with some basic facts and then go on to learn about the types of air conditioners on the market.
The air conditioning unit is a necessary component of any home and consumes a significant portion of your must-have home appliance budget. Making the appropriate decision is critical since it affects your home's cooling, comfort, and energy usage. There are several sorts of air conditioners, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
Let's take a closer look at the different types of air conditioners on the market so you can make an informed choice about your future air conditioning system.
An air conditioner's core idea is quite straightforward.
You have two sets of metal coils: one that gathers heat from your home and the other that disperses it outdoors. The refrigerant is the most important component in this system; it is a liquid combination that transports heat between the two sets of coils.
As a result, we may divide air conditioners into two categories:
Self-contained AC or single-unit air conditioners (one device). Single-unit air conditioners are all examples of portable air conditioners, window air conditioners, floor-mounted air conditioners, and through-the-wall air conditioners.
Split-system air conditioners (2 devices). Split-system air conditioners come in a variety of configurations.
Self-contained or single-unit air conditioners
Both coils are contained in one device in single-unit AC systems (usually located inside the house).
Advantages and Disadvantages of these types of air conditioners installation.
It is a lot easier to set up and move about (especially portable AC units).
Purchasing is less expensive.
It has the potential to be more noisy (the compressor is located inside the house).
They have a smaller capacity than split-system AC units.
An air vent on the exterior of a window or sliding door is always required. The heated air has to escape in some way.
Above all, the stand-alone units are handy. This is the least expensive and easiest-to-install type of air conditioner.
Types of single-unit AC
The Most Popular Portable Air Conditioners, Especially for Single-Room Cooling
The most common air conditioners are portable air conditioners. It's easy to understand why; when you need cooling, you need it fast, cheaply, and without a lot of trouble; portable AC units are ideal.
You do not need to mount or install them in a specific room. They're incredibly mobile, with wheels on all of them, and can be moved around as simply as a vacuum cleaner.
The disadvantage is that while you may move the AC unit around, you will always have to relocate the air pipe. The heated air needs to escape the home. Every portable air conditioner comes with an air hose (4" to 6" in diameter) that may be up to 10 feet long for this purpose.
Wall-mounted air conditioners installation are a very uncommon type of cooling system.
They're ideal for folks who reside in older structures that get quite hot in the summer.
A strong split-system AC unit would be ideal for this situation, but these older structures are frequently considered historical landmarks. As a result, you are not permitted to install any AC shell on the exterior wall. It's best for older buildings that don't have an external unit permit. You may place the air conditioner on the wall.
Window air conditioners installation or through the wall AC
These are quite popular in India. The entire unit is encased in a single shell, which may be seen through a window or through a wall.
When you think about it, that's a rather clever move: one portion of the AC unit is facing the inside, while the other is facing the outside. The window air conditioner is unusual in that it does not require two devices or a single device with an air vent.
Window air conditioners also come with a few drawbacks. If you wish to construct it into the wall, it must be no more than 9" thick. Because the thick walls frequently hinder airflow, the window air conditioner becomes inefficient when compared to other types of air conditioners.
Coolers for Boats and Ships
Mobile Air Conditioners for Industrial Use (Speciality Use)
Only men who possess a boat, ship, or perhaps an aeroplane will benefit from these large ones. "Spot coolers" often have a capacity of more than 30,000 BTU; with this capacity, you can chill down a mid-sized yacht.
They're mentioned since they're unusual in terms of where they're located. Spot coolers are small, portable coolers that are "parked" outside the boat (on the warm side). The majority of air conditioners are installed inside the room (the cold side). Spot coolers feature two or more pipes that go through the boat, sucking warm air out and pumping cold air in.
Portable air conditioners are making floor-mounted air conditioners obsolete, but they may also be used as heaters.
Air conditioners that are installed on the floor are comparable to those that are put on the wall. The only significant difference between them is that the floor ones are installed on the floor rather than the wall.
Two metal pipes run through the wall to expel the hot air from this sort of air conditioner. However, we are seeing fewer and fewer of them. Given how energy-efficient they are, this may be rare.
They do, however, take up a lot of room and, unlike portable air conditioners, can not be stowed away during the hot months. They may be built-in to older structures, but no professional architect would include them.
Split-system air conditioners and their types
Split-system air conditioners are made up of two separate shells. A smaller, quieter shell is located within the home, while the larger, noisier shell is located outside.
That means the cooling coil is located inside your home while the heating coil and compressor are located outside. There are a number of advantages to using these sorts of air conditioners:
They are really silent (remember, the compressor is outside?).
They have a large capacity and can swiftly and efficiently chill your home.
The interior shell is often smaller and more attractive.
As with mono-block AC units, air vents are not required.
Obviously, the two disadvantages are the greater price, the fact that split system AC installation is not simple, and the fact that the outside unit must be attached to something on or near the house. Now let's talk about
Types of split-system air conditioners
Air Conditioners (wall-mounted and floor-mounted)
Similar to stand-alone air conditioners, but with a more quiet and powerful split-system installation. A stand-alone system or a split-system installation can be used for the AC units positioned on the wall or the floor.
This type of air conditioner has the benefit of being able to link two or three of them to a single exterior AC shell (generator with ventilator and compressor).
In practice, this system has a BTU capacity of 38,000, which is hard to attain with a stand-alone air conditioner. This means you may have three units inside the house, say 9,000 BTU, 12,000 BTU, and 15,000 BTU. You'd have a larger, louder generator outside the home.
2. Central Air Conditioners
More than 50% of homes and offices prefer to have "central air." It's a ducted air pipe system that may extend to every room in your house or apartment, as you surely already know. It's reasonable to assume that central air conditioning is the most difficult to set up, but the most straightforward to use.
This type of duct-mounted air conditioner is normally pre-installed in your home. The central air conditioner would be ideal as a replacement for your present AC unit, but the installation process alone is inconvenient. Due to all the ceilings that must be broken and all the walls that must be pierced, it might be a one-time expense.
Installing Central air conditioners (also known as "channel air conditioners") combine interior and outdoor air to chill it down and make things appear simple. The central AC unit shell, which is normally connected to the home or in the yard, serves as the powerhouse for the entire unit.
You'll obviously need an experienced engineer to install the ducking air conditioner pipework in your home. If you already have a central air conditioner, you can hire our air conditioner replacement specialist.
3. A/C mounted on the ceiling
This sort of cassette-style air conditioner is best suited for use in offices. The air conditioner is mounted on the ceiling or perhaps hanging from it. It is effectively connected to the building's unseen air pipes.
In a nutshell, they generally have a contemporary design, don't stick out from the wall or the floor, and appear to be costly. The four outlet louvres are the only items that stick out from the ceiling.
The other factor is sheer strength. One of these cassette air conditioners may replace up to five window air conditioners and up to seven portable air conditioners, since the airflow is connected to central airflow.
The direction of cooling air is vertical rather than horizontal due to its location. The majority of the air conditioners are wall-mounted and provide a sideway breeze. When standing under the AC unit, you will feel a "downward wind" because the cassette air conditioners are positioned on the ceiling.
4. Mini-Split Ductless Air Conditioners
The HVAC sector is being dominated by mini-split air conditioners. Portable split-system air conditioners:
Installing a heat pump is less expensive than installing a central air conditioning system (and you can even find DIY mini-split units like Mr.COOL). There's no need for ductwork.
In terms of energy efficiency (in the list of the best mini-split AC units, you can see that the SEER rating of the best units surpasses 20). A large capacity range is available, ranging from 12,000 to 60,000 BTU.
The mini-split method is quite simple to comprehend. You have one coil inside the house/apartment that collects heat and the second coil outside the house/apartment that dissipates the heat from within.
Most of the time, we have to gaze at (and hear) the inner shell of the wall-mounted or floor-mounted air conditioner most of the time. Split-system shells are often smaller, more attractive, and, most importantly, silent.
That's because the compressor—the component of an air conditioner that makes the greatest noise—is housed in the shell on the exterior.
If you need a larger capacity and want to install it in multiple rooms, you can choose systems with 1 outdoor and 2 indoor units or dual-zone mini-splits.Average capacity: 27,000 BTU.