8 TYPES OF AIR CONDITIONERS

 

The ever- increasing summer temperatures make air conditioners a necessary addition to our home and workplace.

In addition to a financial investment, the purchase and installation of an air conditioner is also an investment for our health, since air conditioners, in addition to regulating the internal temperature and humidity of the room, also affect the quality of the air we breathe, mainly thanks to the filters from which the room air is filtered every time it passes through our air conditioner.

There are several types of air conditioners on the market, which we will examine below. Each type presents some advantages and some disadvantages, many of which are related to the quality of the air we breathe, but also to the way energy is transmitted in the space.

Thus, for every space there is the right air conditioner. In order to be able to choose the right air conditioner for our space, it is good to know some basic things about the different types of air conditioners on the market, their uses and characteristics.

 

Single wall or window air conditioners

These are relatively small air conditioning units, which are, as their name suggests, unitary, i.e. they do not consist of an internal and external machine, but the entire air conditioner is inside a single solid shell.

The single units are usually placed in a through opening in the wall, or in the window so that one side of them (the "back") "sees" the outside space and the other side of them (the "inside") looks into the room .

The disadvantage of this type is that its installation requires opening a gap in the wall large enough to accommodate the air conditioner.

The single units have a cooling and heating function and their sizes vary according to their cooling and heating performance.

Window air conditioners were the first air conditioners manufactured for domestic use and were very popular in the past. Today, such type of air conditioners are still circulating in some countries (mainly in the Far East), but they are no longer circulating in Europe and America. So, apart from some old "forgotten" window air conditioner, it is rather unlikely that you will come across this type of air conditioner.

 

Split room units

These are our well-known air conditioners , the most popular air conditioning units that cover the cooling needs of domestic spaces and some relatively small business spaces, such as shops, offices and catering facilities.

They consist of the outdoor unit, which is placed on the outer wall, and the indoor unit, which is placed on the inner wall. They have a modern design, "tie" easily with the rest of the space and have low energy consumption. Because they are placed somewhere high on the wall they have a better cooling performance as the warm air accumulates at the higher levels of the interior.

Wall air conditioners are the most widespread type of air conditioners, their price is the lowest of all types (for the same power), while their energy performance and other characteristics are top notch.

 

Multi-split units

Multi split units are identical to split air conditioners, with the only difference being that in multi split units it is possible to connect more than one indoor unit to a single outdoor unit.

They consist of an outdoor unit to which two to five indoor units can be connected, which can be placed in different rooms.

It is an ideal solution for those who wish to cool and heat multiple rooms without having to buy separate air conditioning units for each room. It is important that all indoor units are set to the same operating mode.

Multi splits are the ideal solution when we want to install several air conditioners in the same space, but we don't have space to install several outdoor units (or we don't want it for architectural / aesthetic reasons).

 

Portable air conditioners

Portable air conditioning units (or portable air conditioners as they are better known) are air conditioners in which the outdoor and indoor units are unified in the same shell - machine.

They have the advantage of being easy to move, offering the ability to cool-heat multiple rooms at different times, they don't need installation and they have a lower purchase cost. They have low power, which makes them economical in terms of energy consumption, but at the same time they also have limited cooling and heating efficiency.

 

Floor units

Floor air conditioning units (floor air conditioners) offer the solution in cases where we want to air condition a room without the wall air conditioners being visible. This option is usually chosen for architectural spaces.

In addition to aesthetics, floor air conditioners have the advantage of drawing air from the floor (where the air is coldest), which makes them an ideal choice for air conditioning large single rooms and high-ceilinged spaces, which wall air conditioners would not heat evenly ( because of the way they recirculate the air), but would warm the higher layers of the air more and the air near the floor less.

They can be placed on the floor without taking up a lot of space and can very easily be placed under a window. They have very good thermal performance, are relatively quiet in operation and easy to maintain. However, compared to wall units, they do not achieve as good cooling as warm air tends to accumulate in the higher levels of the room and have a higher purchase cost.

 

Closet type units

These are large, high-powered air conditioners (48,000 BTU to 72,000 BTU) which are intended for the air conditioning of spaces, usually professional, of more than 60 sq.m.

Closet-type air conditioners are the worst air conditioners in terms of energy efficiency, but also comfort.

As far as performance is concerned, inverter wardrobes and only these belong at best to category A (at the same time as wall-mounted and ducted machines exist in categories up to A+++).

In terms of comfort, closet-type air conditioners do not provide much comfort, because they blow a large amount of air from a single outlet, which results in people sitting near the air conditioner getting hot (when the air conditioner is in heating mode) or cold (when operating in cooling) too much.

Nevertheless, there are not a few times when the closet-type air conditioner relieves our hands and allows us to cool a space without high installation costs.

 

Concealed ceiling units (ducted)

A necessary condition for the installation of this type of air conditioning units is the placement of a false ceiling within the gap of which the indoor unit is located.

 

 

The flexible air inlet and outlet ducts are not visible. All that is visible are the air outlets from the air ducts. Air is distributed in the room from these vents.

Ducted indoor units are ideal for professional spaces (e.g. hotel rooms, shops, etc.) and in general in places where, for aesthetic reasons, we do not want to install visible indoor units.

 

Cassette type units

Air conditioners of this type are quite similar to the hidden type ceiling units since their installation requires the installation of a false ceiling. However, in contrast to the hidden type, the indoor unit of cassette type air conditioners is visible.

Cassette type air conditioners disperse the conditioned air better in the space and allow easier maintenance due to the fact that the mask of the machine through which the technician has access to the inside of the machine is visible.

 

Conclusions

In each space, depending on the needs of the owner and the available money, some type of air conditioner is best suited.

It is the responsibility and obligation of the mechanical engineer to choose the most suitable type of air conditioner and to include it in the air conditioning study of the space.

In this way, we will be sure that Cold Direct installation will work economically and provide us with coolness and comfort for many years.

It can also provide its best services in the field of air conditioner repairs.