Air Conditioner Buying Advice
I have put together some useful tips for you. Tip #1 Buying an air conditioner should be based on the size of the room (not rooms) you are wanting to cool off. Do NOT buy an air conditioner solely based on your budget. Air conditioners have a residual expense which is called… electricity. The money…
I have put together some useful tips for you.
Tip #1
Buying an air conditioner should be based on the size of the room (not rooms) you are wanting to cool off. Do NOT buy an air conditioner solely based on your budget. Air conditioners have a residual expense which is called… electricity. The money you save up front will cost you a lot more per month in electricity bills. The objective of the air conditioner is to cool off your room as efficiently as possible. This way you minimize the electric usage. The harder and longer the air con needs to work to satisfy the thermostat, the more you will pay in bills. I call it “penny-wise, pound foolish
Tip #2
Wall sleeve air conditioners are usually twice the price of window air conditioners. Do not attempt to put a window air conditioner in a wall sleeve. Wall sleeve units ONLY vent from the rear of the air conditioner. Window air conditioners vent from the sides, top, and back of the air conditioner. Putting a window unit in a wall sleeve will simply damage the air conditioner. Don’t do it.
Tip #3
To find out how many btu’s your room requires use the following basic formula. L x W x 35 or sq ft x 35.
However there are factors that can effect this formula such as:
-High ceilings
-Being on the top floor of a building.
-Having a kitchen connected to the room you are trying to cool off
-A lot of sun exposure
In such cases listed above you want to do the same formula x 45. The manufacturers do not take NYC apartments and lofts into consideration when they calculate btu’s. Manufacturers base their “cooling off area” on a standard room with 9 ft ceilings and average sunlight.
Tip #4
A room air conditioner is not central air. They are not designed to cool off 3 rooms. Cold air drops and has a difficult time moving through door ways. There is a reason why they are called “room air conditioners”. They are meant for a single room. Attempting to cool off several rooms with one unit will simply result in uber expensive electric bills. When I own ConEd I will advise otherwise.
Tip #5
Air conditioners are similiar to fans. Think of a small table top fan in a small room vs a large room. Larger rooms need larger fans and vice versa. Air conditioners work along the same lines. A small unit in large room wont do any justice.
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Good advice. I’d like to add:
1-Never buy a bigger a/c than you need. It will not run long enough to dehumidify the air, which is as important to comfort as is cooling.
2-Capacity is also dependent on what you keep the temp at. I set mine to 76 (sometimes 78) so can use somewhat less than the formula above suggests. I also save money that way.
3-You can actually cool multiple rooms if you arrange a fan strategically to move air around, which works is some of our brownstone configurations. In an apartment where I could not use a window a/c in a small office, I once made a duct thru the wall and put in a muffin fan; was quiet and moved enough air to cool the office.
4-Some wall sleeves are shallow enough that a regular a/c will have its side vents exposed outside. In that case, using it will save you upfront money as well as running costs as they are more efficient than the sleeve a/cs.