Although air conditioners have been around from the early years of the last century, the industry has been witnessing a tremendous growth in the past few years. This sudden interest among customers have led to new products being developed and marketed by all the brands big or small. This flood of new models has made it difficult for many customers to choose the right unit for their needs.

The problem is further complicated by different sales persons promoting their products in different ways. There are those who claim that air conditioners can replace your need for dehumidifiers. It is a fact that air conditioners do control the humidity of the air. But it is equally true that air conditioners can in no way be compared to dehumidifiers. The primary task of an air conditioner is to regulate the temperature of an enclosed space, be it a room or an entire building. That it dehumidifies is an additional benefit. But it is not a replacement for a dehumidifier.

First of all, the freestanding air conditioner is the easiest to install. In fact there is hardly anything to install. You only have to plug it in and it is ready to start working. But with window air conditioners, and more so with central air conditioners, you need to go through a lot of installation work. This does not only mean that you have to put up with a considerable amount of hassle, but you also got to spend a significant sum of money to get the units installed. There are no such costs with a freestanding air conditioner.

Then there are those who claim that air conditioner can be a good replacement for an air purifier. Again such claims are highly exaggerated. Of course most air conditioners do come with a filter but the kind of filtration an air conditioner provides is in no way comparable to the filtration provided by an air purifier with a HEPA filter. So if someone has severe allergic or asthma problems, installing an air condition would not be good enough.

What however is important about air conditioners is hardly stressed on by the average sales person. They would seldom talk about the energy efficiency of the air conditioner though that is an important deciding factor. The energy efficiency of your air conditioner would decide how much your running costs you will need to bear. And since by choosing the proper air conditioner you can save up to 40% of your electricity bills, the efficiency of your air conditioner is very important.

The other thing that is important is the capacity of air conditioner you need. The capacity you will need in your unit would depend on the room you want to install it in. all you got to know is the floor area of the room and quoting that figure would help the air conditioner contractor to guide you on what capacity of air conditioner you need.

Aside from providing us with comfort during hot weather, some air conditioners are also beneficial when it comes to health conditions like respiratory problems since it gives us worry-free air by dehumidifying and eliminating harmful bacteria.

Air conditioners come in different kinds, sizes, cooling capacities and prices. Most consumers get confused when it comes to choosing the right kind of unit to buy. It must be remembered that air conditioners are designed to decrease the humidity of a certain place. The first thing to consider is the size of that chosen place and of the wanted unit. By calculating the volume of the room (length x width x height) and by determining the most exposed wall of the room (east, west, south), you will be able to figure out the size of the AC unit that you need. To make it clearer, assign values to the mentioned directions, 17 for east, 20 for west, 16 for north and 18 for south. Multiply the volume of the room and the corresponding value of the direction and divide the product by the level of your home insulation. The result would be the size of the unit.

Be it at home or an office room, the most commonly used is the window air conditioner which gives a complete air cooling in a closed and small area. Large spaces like an entire floor building are efficiently cooled down using central air conditioner. It uses pipes and ducts to distribute cooled air which guarantees a lower level of noise indoors.

The next thing to consider is how to prolong the life of our AC units. How exactly can we take care of it? Most AC contractors advice to change the filter every three to six months depending on its usage. Filters easily get dirty for it is exposed to dust accumulation between the slats of the front cover. The easiest way to clean it by yourself is by using dust mop or a specially design brush. Remember not to use spray cleaner! The liquid may leak into the inside system of the unit. Owners should take responsibility in checking and monitoring their unit to avoid certain malfunctions. Other possible problems that may occur in the evaporator coil, condenser, drive motors, among others, should be directly checked by authorized repair clinics.

Another concern to be discussed is about the energy saving tips for the unit owners. Because of the heat the summer brings, there must be an effort to lessen the electric bill without decreasing the quality of proper ventilation that you deserve. Simple tips like using thermostat timers which will allow you to set your preferred temperature without wasting energy are helpful. Turning your microwave, computer, refrigerator, television, oven and lights will also minimize amount of work done by the air conditioner. You may also want to apply weather-stripping and caulking around the tiny openings in your house where heat can escape .By following these things, expect a stress-free experience with your new cooling machine.

With the onset of warm weather, we start looking up for various ways to keep ourselves and our surroundings cool. One of the most common and efficient methods is air conditioning. There are various kinds of air conditioners available like room air conditioner, central conditioner and portable air conditioners having their own purposes. But if you looking for an air conditioner to place it in your room and other small places then it has to be window air conditioners. They are a kind of room air conditioners which are designed to fit in a window without taking much space. Their working is same as that of any other room conditioners. Window air conditioners are designed for people who can’t afford central air conditioning or have room specific air conditioning needs. And other reason for choosing window air conditioners over central air conditioners is that the later ones are very expensive and require a lot of maintenance.

Window air conditioners have two coils, hot coil and chilled coil fitted with two fans. These fans blow air over the coils which suck the humidity and heat present in the room and throw it out in the outside area. This process keeps the air in the room cool, clear and free of humidity. The cooling power of an air conditioner is calculated in BTUs that stands for British Thermal Units. The BTUs of an air conditioner depends on its size which is an important factor in deciding an air conditioner for a room. A normal window air conditioner won’t do any good to a large room so choose an air conditioner according to the room size.

Another feature of an air conditioner which depends on the room size is its tonnage and there are various denominations available like 0.60, 0.75, 1, 1.5 and 2 tons. As the tonnage increases, the price and power of the air conditioners increases. So, these two attributes should be kept in mind while buying a window air conditioner. Another major concern while purchasing a window air conditioner is the electricity bill which adds up to huge amount. While buying a window unit always look for models having higher energy efficiency. Models having higher EER are more efficient as they will decrease you electricity bill. It is measured in terms of Energy Efficiency Rating which needs to be displayed on all models sold in US market. A model having an EER of 10 would use around 20% less energy then the model having EER of 8.

It is also advisable to tell your dealer some other details like your budget, room size, and thickness of the wall, size and number of windows and any other electrical appliances in the room which will help him to give you a good deal at affordable price. Window air conditioners nowadays come with additional features like quiet operation function, timers, dehumidification, air filters, remote control and thermostat sensitivity. Be wise enough and do proper market research before buying a window air conditioner as there are many brands available each promising to give you the best at the most competitive price.