Air conditioning
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Phipplebert
Air conditioning
We have a house which has no air conditioning and as a general rule of thumb we can live with the heat during the day but at night in the summer I find it quite stifling. So far we have made it through2 summers minus air con but this year we have a new baby and combined with him and our 5 year old who both sleep on the first floor in the hottest part of the house I'm wondering if we should consider it.
So far we have occasionally used 2 portable aircon units but I'm wondering about getting 2 x reversible air con units. I have seen people selling them on leboncoin new and second hand from anything between €500 and €1000...but I also hear of figures being banded around at units a lot more than that. But I also hear some older ones can be refuled?
So my question is; what would be good for us with the below criteria...
We want to start with 2 units.
Reversible would be best for us but I'm not adverse to just aircon.
We don't want anything too noisy.
We don't need a freezing cold room but we would like the edge taken off.
On a final note:
My husband is very practical with anything that doesn't involve technology I.e. Computers! So would the suggested units be possible for him to install or does it have to be done professionally.
Thanks in advance
So far we have occasionally used 2 portable aircon units but I'm wondering about getting 2 x reversible air con units. I have seen people selling them on leboncoin new and second hand from anything between €500 and €1000...but I also hear of figures being banded around at units a lot more than that. But I also hear some older ones can be refuled?
So my question is; what would be good for us with the below criteria...
We want to start with 2 units.
Reversible would be best for us but I'm not adverse to just aircon.
We don't want anything too noisy.
We don't need a freezing cold room but we would like the edge taken off.
On a final note:
My husband is very practical with anything that doesn't involve technology I.e. Computers! So would the suggested units be possible for him to install or does it have to be done professionally.
Thanks in advance
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malcolmcooper
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You could consider Vial in Perpignan. I know that the units are very good as I had 2 running in 100 sq mtrs of shop space 24 hours a day in high summer. (Chocolate melted otherwise).
Fitting is not for the faint hearted DIY'er but can be done and the units come with a DVD instruction movie.
Follow this link http://www.vial-menuiseries.com/climati ... nol-7.html
As high Summer approaches the guys can run out of stock.
Fitting is not for the faint hearted DIY'er but can be done and the units come with a DVD instruction movie.
Follow this link http://www.vial-menuiseries.com/climati ... nol-7.html
As high Summer approaches the guys can run out of stock.
Malcolm Cooper
I may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
I may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
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Phipplebert
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interiors66
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malcolmcooper
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It was a commercial environment and it also balanced the power usage of the big freezers somewhat so it's very hard to put any meaningful figures on it compared to domestic use. It sounds like you'll be running yours for maybe an hour a day, for a couple of months of the year and in relatively small spaces.
What I would say is buy units that are more than powerful enough for the job otherwise they'll be over worked and have a shorter life span. I'm sure you can Google a recommended space to power ratio.
What I would say is buy units that are more than powerful enough for the job otherwise they'll be over worked and have a shorter life span. I'm sure you can Google a recommended space to power ratio.
Malcolm Cooper
I may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
I may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
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Allan
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First of all I would avoid second hand units, you have to ask yourself why would anyone take out a perfectly good air conditioning unit and sell it?
You only have to look around the DIY stores and you will see lots of air-con units for self installation, all those that I have seen however are for single room installation so you have an outside unit for each inside unit. This is probably not a problem for 2 rooms but if decide to do the whole house then you end up with a lot of boxes on the outside wall.
You can get 'multi-split' systems with one outside unit that will handle up to 4 inside ones but as I said, I haven't seen these for DIY installation.
Look for units that use 'inverter' technology, these are quieter and use less electricity.
The magic number to look for when determining running costs is the SEER or ESEER rating - the higher the better, portable units generally have very low ratings. It would be foolish to consider units that are not reversible, the facility makes little difference to the cost and it is effective low cost heating in winter.
Make sure you buy ones that are up to the task, most are sold simply by the size of the room but that is over-simplistic, if the rooms are in a hot part of the house then you need a more powerful unit. The running cost of an over-sized unit would generally be less than an under-sized one.
To keep the noise down, site the outside units where you are less likely to hear them and check their noise ratings (normally expressed in Db).
When we first moved here we used to run the air-con all night but now we put it on the timer for a few hours and cool the room before we go to bed.
You only have to look around the DIY stores and you will see lots of air-con units for self installation, all those that I have seen however are for single room installation so you have an outside unit for each inside unit. This is probably not a problem for 2 rooms but if decide to do the whole house then you end up with a lot of boxes on the outside wall.
You can get 'multi-split' systems with one outside unit that will handle up to 4 inside ones but as I said, I haven't seen these for DIY installation.
Look for units that use 'inverter' technology, these are quieter and use less electricity.
The magic number to look for when determining running costs is the SEER or ESEER rating - the higher the better, portable units generally have very low ratings. It would be foolish to consider units that are not reversible, the facility makes little difference to the cost and it is effective low cost heating in winter.
Make sure you buy ones that are up to the task, most are sold simply by the size of the room but that is over-simplistic, if the rooms are in a hot part of the house then you need a more powerful unit. The running cost of an over-sized unit would generally be less than an under-sized one.
To keep the noise down, site the outside units where you are less likely to hear them and check their noise ratings (normally expressed in Db).
When we first moved here we used to run the air-con all night but now we put it on the timer for a few hours and cool the room before we go to bed.
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russell
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Good advice above. I bought a pre-charged DIY reversible unit from Brico Depot about ten years ago for €275. The installation DVD was pathetic but a bit of common sense was all that was required to interpret it, perhaps it was that my French was very poor at that time. The installation was easy and the unit payed for itself in the first two years with the reduced heating costs.
One piece of advice: Make sure the joints on the pipes are well sealed using a bit of hydraulic sealant. I had a slight leak in mine and had to have it refilled after a couple of years. That cost nearly as much as the unit itself. I've had no trouble since but might change to an inverter unit soon for the higher efficiency.
Bon chance!
Russell.
One piece of advice: Make sure the joints on the pipes are well sealed using a bit of hydraulic sealant. I had a slight leak in mine and had to have it refilled after a couple of years. That cost nearly as much as the unit itself. I've had no trouble since but might change to an inverter unit soon for the higher efficiency.
Bon chance!
Russell.
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montgolfiere
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Phipplebert