Tips for installing an air conditioning unit

Introduction

In the first place, it is not advisable to install an air conditioning unit during the seasons of the year with extreme temperatures (summer and winter). On the other hand, during the months with milder temperatures, promotions and discounts abound. In addition, the installation companies, having less demand for work on those dates, give a shorter installation period.

Before choosing an equipment some points must be taken into account:

– The arrangement inside the home or business premises is important, since they should be placed in the places where people spend the most time (living room, bedrooms, halls, etc.).
– The size of the room will limit the power. Experts recommend 100 frigories per m². Applying this calculation, for a room of 30 m², an equipment of 3,000 frigories (3.5 kW) would be recommended.
– Energy efficiency: equipment with lower consumption has the EER (Energy Efficiency Ratio) A+++ or A++ label.
– The recommended temperature is around 27° in summer and 22° in winter.
– Direct the flow of cold air towards the ceiling, avoiding pointing it directly at people.
– It should be an inverter equipment, since they save a lot of energy.

Types:

• Split 1×1: The most popular one for household use. It consists of an indoor unit (wall split) and an outdoor unit (which houses the compressor, condenser, fan, etc). It works with refrigerant gas and allows to air-condition a single room. It is of the air-air type. 
• MultiSplit: is the one where a single outdoor unit air-conditions several rooms. Split 2×1 (two indoor units for two rooms), Split 3×1, Split 4×1, etc.
• Ducted air conditioning (centralized air conditioning): it is characterized by having a network of hidden ducts on a false ceiling that communicates with several rooms.
• Fan coils: they are of the water-air type. It is characterized by having a network of pipes.
• Portable: the least demanded ones because their energy consumption is higher, they are not very aesthetic and they occupy walkable space.

Installation:

Air conditioning equipment must be installed by authorized installers who have a certificate for handling equipment containing fluorinated gases.

Acoustic isolation:

The air conditioning equipment (indoor unit and outdoor unit, as well as the ducts that connect them) produce usually noise and vibrations, which can disturb the neighbours or even the homeowners. There are municipal ordinances and regional regulations that regulate these circumstances.

The best option, ideally is to talk and reach a friendly agreement between neighbors. If this is not possible, the local police or the technicians of the town hall must be notified so that they can carry out an evaluation of the installation and subsequent measurement of noise and vibrations and initiate a claim through administrative channels.

The Spanish company SENOR has been working for more than 25 years manufacturing mounts and acoustic systems that dampen and attenuate the noise and vibrations of equipment in operation.

SENOR’s Technical Department has an internal acoustic laboratory and advanced calculation systems to guide its clients when choosing the most suitable soundproofing system. Each air conditioning unit is different in terms of weight, load distribution, dimensions, revolutions per minute (r.p.m.), etc. And in the same way, each damper or anti-vibration system is designed to work within a range of load, operating frequency, etc.

Choosing the right mount for each unit depends on two factors:

– Point of support for the equipment (on the ground, on wall brackets, suspended, etc.).
-Weight distribution: In most cases, the load inside the equipment is not evenly distributed, since the area where the fan is located is considerably lighter than the rest. In this way, an outdoor unit of a Split should not be installed with generic mounts, since these, due to their hardness, are generally designed to work with a high load and do not take into account the weight distribution of the equipment, as the four mounts are identicals.

SENOR offers a completely free technical advice service that you can contact writing to the email address international@senor.es. 

Effective thermal insulation

Having a room with good thermal insulation has a considerable impact on energy savings and the comfort of its inhabitants. On the other hand, air conditioning a space without an effective insulation increases the demand for energy.

Cooling or heating a thermally insulated household effectively allows an air conditioning unit to maintain the desired temperature for many hours with the minimum required cost.

SENOR has a wide range of mounts to thermally and acoustically insulate ceilings, linings, partitions and floors, also providing Thermal Bridge Break to construction solutions.