1 tonne split airconditioner - need suggestions

[jeevabobby26]

Iam using samsung 1.5 ton and voltas 2 ton a/c in my showroom. Both are good in cooling, i would suggest samsung than voltas, for price, after sales service, noise levels and remote options. I did some serious demo for a/c for my demo room regarding the noise level, i dont want to spend high on a/c due to budget constraints. Voltas very noisy than samsung and worst customer care support, they even wont attend the free service itself, you have to react hard for service issuse. samsung has the very low noise compared to other budget brands. Htachi are the best for very low noise level.

I installed the samsung 1.5 ton a/c back in 2006, that was the last time i saw the outdoor unit, when the technicians installed it and untill now i never went to see it or what happen to it. Only the technicians seen it in the 5 free service period of 1 year, and Still its working fine. I use it atleast an 3 hours per day and some time around 10 to 12 hours at night. Not much issues has been seen from samsung.

 

[avidyarthy]

BTW, all A/C's do take air out of the room, if the air keeps getting only pumped into your room, it will burst like a closed pressure cooker
]

:sos:

 

[iaudio]

from my very limited knowledge avoid brands like Godrej, Onida, Videocon, TCL and so on, their build quality and QC are not up to scratch and even if they do have 5-stars and long warranties on the compressor, you'll find all sorts of niggling things going wrong with them.

From what I understand LG and Samsung are the cheapest of the reliable lot. Other good options are Voltas, Whirlpool, Carrier....and if you have a more generous budget Hitachi and Daikin.

But reliably for your parents, i think LG and Samsung would be good options. Head down to kerala and see which of them offers the best deal on a 3-star AC (power in kerala is cheap) and pick up a couple of them.

Not too sure of that, after reading todays malayalam daily.


Manorama Online | Power tariff rate to go up in state

"The cosumers who use more than 300 units per month will be charged Rs 7.25 per unit for the excess power they consume."

 

[gvenu]

Hi S_W,

Close friend of mine (expert tool and dye designer) was working as a VP in one of the companies who supply components to Automobile sector & Companies like LG, Samsung, Videocon, etc. was consulted when I wanted to buy an AC nearly 5 yeras back and he adviced Hitachi or General on the high end Samsung in the mid end. Strict NO to LG.

I have no problem till niow with my AC, TV (14" and 14 yeras old now and still working) and fridge (all Samsung) but had problems with my microwave which is LG (may be an isolated case). Based on this experience I can sincerely reco. Samsung.

rgds,
Venu

 

[square_wave]

Ok..Now I am even more confused.

There is this veteran AC contractor I know in Bangalore who is using LG in his bedroom and is quite happy with it. He was saying at mid-price levels, LG and Samsung are quite okay.

Is there so much difference in power consumption between the 3 star and 5 star models ?

The bedrooms are 12x11 ft.

LG and Samsung seems to attract very mixed opinions.

Is there any particular model numbers that any of you suggest in the 1 tonne category (any make) which you are very happy with.

 

[cmsajith]

I believe, the splits will not take out or bring in any air, it will always use the same air and "condition" it, where as in a window a/c, it can bring in the air from outside like our car a/c. Here, the filters are important.

The star rating, IMHO, is of no use if you are not using the AC extensively, even the companies' calculations are based on 8hours daily and with that kind of usage, you will get x amount of profit or in other words we need to spend more to get more profit. If we calculate with our normal usage, the profit we will make will be very less and on comparing the extra money spend for the extra stars will be far more than the 1 or 2 star rated ACs.

 

[cmsajith]

Not too sure of that, after reading todays malayalam daily.


Manorama Online | Power tariff rate to go up in state

"The cosumers who use more than 300 units per month will be charged Rs 7.25 per unit for the excess power they consume."

I think its only for April and May. Anyways the cost of the equipment and the running cost is also increased when its most required.

 

[sud98]

:sos:

If no air goes out in a split ac from the room, and still you have cool air get sent from the ac into the room, so wont the pressure of the room keep increasing. So the point being whether its split or window, hot air from the room is sucked out and cold air is pumped in.

 

[avidyarthy]

Either you have'nt gone thru my earlier mail or you aren't much interested to go into the tech stuff ..... my guess.

My first mail, in this thread explains a bit .... you might be able to do just fine with a 0.75 TR split ... if, there is some construction (another room) on top of your room, and if it is not an open terrace. More so, if the windows do not invite direct sunlight, that is yet another factor .....

No diff as such between 3 and 5 stars ...just incidental. On-off compressor cycle eats into the power due to heavy draw of current during the initial motor torque requirements + degrades the contactors of the circuit which are electromagnetic. This degradation causes loss of compressor efficiency over time = more power consumption.

SO .... let your compressor run the full time the A/C is being used. If you are in humid environs, the continuous running compressor would also ensure proper de-humidification, since water would continuously get ejected from the evaporator section (which sits inside the room). Even cooling would happen thus. Agreed, it would take more time for the room to get cooled bcoz of slightly lower cap A/C, but, it would be 'evenly' cooled with no hot spots that is usually encountered with on-off operation.

I have brought myself down to 'near' layman's territory .... not reached yet, but still pretty close. I can't explain the psychometric chart here, can I ?

Ok..Now I am even more confused.

Is there so much difference in power consumption between the 3 star and 5 star models ?

The bedrooms are 12x11 ft.

 

[sachin_k5]

If no air goes out in a split ac from the room, and still you have cool air get sent from the ac into the room, so wont the pressure of the room keep increasing. So the point being whether its split or window, hot air from the room is sucked out and cold air is pumped in.

LOL :lol: visit www.howstuffworks.com and understand how airconditioning works. The same air is circulated in the room and it is cooled by expansion and contraction of freon gas.

Well the pressure might reduce due to decrease in air temperature but there are enough hairline gaps through which air can enter.

 

[square_wave]

let me know:
1. the room dimensions
2. where is the room located .... ground floor or top floors
3. whats on top of the room .... another built up room or plain terrace
4. how many windows .... doors ...
5. where is the sun facing area ....

Most split units are made in China, no matter which brand you buy. Not that the Chinese quality is bad, it is near excellent provided the kit is manufactured
by Midea /Haier/ another co. whose name I am missing out.

You could look at Electrolux, LG, Samsung, Kelvinator for the mid level and Toshiba, Hitachi, O General, Skoda .... for the high end.

The trick in air conditioning fundamental is that you MUST select the A/C capacity 'slightly' less than what is required. It is a complex set of calculations. The idea is that the compressor (most likely rotary type in 1 and 1.5 TR) should operate continuously and NOT on-off. Some high end machines are equipped with DC inverter drive which controls the speed of the compressor depending on the room load. That caters to close to 50% of the power savings even if a higher capacity machine is selected for a specific room. So, in case, you do not want to pay double for this feature, you must select a slightly lower capacity A/C for a given room. The on-off operation consumes hell lot of power to operate. This is something the retailers do not know as manufacturers find it very difficult to make them understand technically.

This is a complex thing to explain here. My rooms are 15' x 11' x 10' and both are equipped with 1 TR split machines without inverter drives. The retailer was hell bent to supply at least 1.5 TR machines which would have been a mess. The compressors run continuously during afternoons in peak summers and on-off (say, after every 60 minutes) during nights.

the room dimensions
11 x 12

where is the room located .... ground floor or top floors
ground floor

whats on top of the room .... another built up room or plain terrace
there is another floor on top

how many windows .... doors ...
one door, five windows

where is the sun facing area ....
room receives sunlight only half of the day (first half)

 

[psychotropic]

hey sud, the Ac does not pump in air, it just recycles the air, in a split it sucks in air from the top or the front and blows it out the vents, so there will be no pressure differential. don't let the fan in the outdoor unit confuse you, that is there only for cooling the compressor and other parts AFAIK.

poor square wave has been inundated with advice here , the only thing i can stress on is avoid onida, godrej, videocon, TCL....

and also that you can't go wrong with Hitachi......everything else in between seems to have some measure of controversy.

 

[square_wave]

Is it okay to stay with LG or Samsung or does it make sense to look at hitachi, carrier etc.. which charge a slight premium?

Any specific models anyone can suggest ?

 

[madbullram]

After lot of research I went with onida bcos of the owner comments and also there comp being imported from Japan and not China.

The performance has been awesome to say the least. I am vary about their customer service though.

 

[sud98]

I own Samsung, it works fine. For the price I think its a safe buy. The service is auite good and prompt. The Hitachi noise is lower, but the cost is significantly higher.

Regd. 4 star and 5 star rating it does make a diff on how much usage is there. You can calculate based on the bee site what your savings will be and check if the premium is justified.

 

[corElement]

Why do you say that? Have the prices gone up or is it something about the 2010 model?

I have a 5 start rated 2009 Hitachi 1.2 Ton in my Home Theater and am happy with its performance - noise, cooling, low power consumption et all.

the 2009 model was superb, the 2010 models have shitty gas and constantly stinks and dosnt cool nearly as much at the same temp the 2009 model does. We deeply regret getting it. We thought the 2010 upgrade would better than the 2009 model we have but we were badly mistaken. It would pass for any lg or samsung, definitely not hitachi grade!

 

[avidyarthy]

the room dimensions 11 x 12

where is the room located .... ground floor or top floors
ground floor

whats on top of the room .... another built up room or plain terrace
there is another floor on top

how many windows .... doors ...
one door, five windows

where is the sun facing area ....
room receives sunlight only half of the day (first half)

Gr8, you can easily go for a 0.75 TR split A/C.
Your home is East or North East facing, I think.
Now, the last question, where are you based .... which city ... that would allow me to compare the temperature / humidity patterns .... to convince me if 0.75 TR is best suited or not ..... after that it would be your decision about capacity availability ... etc etc....

 

[sud98]

Is it because the old Hitachi used to be imported and is now manufactured in India? I remember that o General had similar problems some years back.

 

[brejeshvarma]

Though I'm not an expert on the subject..Let me share my experience.In my listening room I had LG 1.5T split for the last 1 year.Mostly called into action during summer/day time sessions.No issues so far..Slight sound from he blower.

Later when i decided to go for second a/c for my bedroom,I took my LG to my bedroom .It cools faster.In my listening room I have 1T Split from General.It takes more time but very quiet.(I dont like too much of cold).General is costlier also.I got an imported one through one of my friends.No issues so far

regards
Brejesh

 

[dinyaar]

Hi SW,
I recently bought 2 splits and my old faithful dealer(friend) advised me as follows
Best option - Mitsubishi Electric STARMEC 34,000/-
second Option -Mitsubishi HEAVY industries 1 Ton - 31,000/-
Third Option - Mitsubishi Electric MR SLIM 1 ton - 30, 000/-

He advised against anything else though HE STOCKS ALL ACs. He had given me O General(window) 10 years ago and they worked superbly so I decided to go with his suggestions and bought the first two.

I believe Carrier and Voltas are not as good as what they were a few years ago and O general loses out to the Mitsubishi when its a split that is required.

Hope this helps
Rgds