Air conditioning
Discussion
Alucidnation said:
Something like this, providing you are reasonably handy on the tools.
https://www.aircondirect.co.uk/p/879042/9000-btu-p...
Working out in Afghanistan these are in every office/room. I live in a ISO container type single room and I have one attached. Really good as the temp here at present is around 41c. Only issues you will have is they are small space suitable only and the unit that sits outside is noisy. Your neighbours wont like it if its on at night etc.https://www.aircondirect.co.uk/p/879042/9000-btu-p...
Don't want to sound awful but my neighbours are the least of my concerns, I've contacted our local air con company to see what they come up with I might let them design it and price it all up then look at doing the main install myself I don't see that it can be that hard especially ducted for the bedrooms even easier with a multi split system if I can use 5 units off 1 chiller as I could run the lines in trunking outside upto the loft then feed each unit in each bedroom,
Downstairs would be a little harder and would no doubt have to take floorboards up in the bedrooms,might be best with a few ceiling fans downstairs as it's never rly a problem down there it's just a more attractive position long term if the whole house had it
Downstairs would be a little harder and would no doubt have to take floorboards up in the bedrooms,might be best with a few ceiling fans downstairs as it's never rly a problem down there it's just a more attractive position long term if the whole house had it
David A said:
What uni this that ?!? Mine only goes down to 18 on the remote - Mitsubishi split unit.
It's a more expensive Panasonic one I got through one of our suppliers at work - would normally be about £800.There are plenty of other brands around that use Panasonic or Mistsubishi compressors though, which is the important part.
The cheap ones AO sell go down to 16 degrees I think - but as you are always mounting them up at the top of the inner wall, the hot air rises.
So your Mitsi would think it was 19 degrees and kick on, whereas it might already be 16 at "bed" level. Any of them will do the job really!
Simpo Two said:
Is it possible to fit a built-in AC unit oneself, or is there a step which must be done by an installer either because (a) it's too specialist for DIY, or (b) 'regulations'?
You can fit a Quick Connect system yourself - it doesn't need the vacuum pump or anything, and is pre-charged - so once you put on the connecting line between indoor and outdoor units, the gas will flow either way and equalise pressures, with no loss or ingress of air. Like this one - http://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/eiq-12wminvqc/...
A "normal" split needs an F-gas qualified engineer to fit it, vacuum it down, and add any extra gas - you can't buy the stuff over the counter without being qualified, and a half decent vacuum pump is about £200 - and you have to "recover" any gas into another cylinder (think Calor gas bottle).
That then goes for recycling once full, and is why you can normally buy 2 grades of gas - the cheaper "recycled" gas, which has a bit of air in it, and "virgin" pure gas, which gives you slightly better performance.
Alucidnation said:
The only thing is, you will need to connect the condensate pipe that has to go outside via gravity, unless you install a condensate pump.
Aye, not normally a big problem with splits - put a flower pot with some soil in under where it drips down to so it doesn't eventually erode whatever it's dripping on. Cassette units (ceiling mounted, normally in a ceiling tile grid and seen in offices everywhere) are a lot more awkward - particularly when you are putting them in a 16 storey office with 6 or 7 cassettes spread over different floors!
Simpo Two said:
Is it possible to fit a built-in AC unit oneself, or is there a step which must be done by an installer either because (a) it's too specialist for DIY, or (b) 'regulations'?
Thinking back to my "Big Book of Air Conditioning and Dehumidification" 
, I think technically any f-gas system is legally meant to be fitted by a qualified tech - as there is always a slight risk that you might manage to dump gas into the atmosphere. But with places like AO selling the Quick Connect ones straight to the public, it just isn't an issue.guindilias said:
Simpo Two said:
Is it possible to fit a built-in AC unit oneself, or is there a step which must be done by an installer either because (a) it's too specialist for DIY, or (b) 'regulations'?
Thinking back to my "Big Book of Air Conditioning and Dehumidification" , I think technically any f-gas system is legally meant to be fitted by a qualified tech - as there is always a slight risk that you might manage to dump gas into the atmosphere. But with places like AO selling the Quick Connect ones straight to the public, it just isn't an issue.Simpo Two said:
Many thanks. I'm not overly concerned with 'technically' as heck, we've all done 31 in a 30, but wouldn't the air in the connecting pipes dilute the gas and so the effectiveness?
There is no air in the pipes, the units and pipes are "pre-charged" with pure gas - all you do is mount the inside unit and the outside one, and use the "quick connect" to connect them together. Simple as simple can be.I got one of those cheap wheely bin wraps in red brick , and wrapped it round the outside unit before I stuck it up - it doesn't make it invisible or anything, just stops it sticking out like a sore thumb!
guindilias said:
There is no air in the pipes, the units and pipes are "pre-charged" with pure gas - all you do is mount the inside unit and the outside one, and use the "quick connect" to connect them together. Simple as simple can be.
Is that a fairly recent thing then?I seem to remember seeing them before but god knows where!
The last ones I did, the pipes weren't charged and the air had to be bled out at the outdoor unit.
Alucidnation said:
Is that a fairly recent thing then?
I seem to remember seeing them before but god knows where!
The last ones I did, the pipes weren't charged and the air had to be bled out at the outdoor unit.
The split system my dad has was pre charged and that was 12-15yr ago that we fit hisI seem to remember seeing them before but god knows where!
The last ones I did, the pipes weren't charged and the air had to be bled out at the outdoor unit.
guindilias said:
David A said:
What uni this that ?!? Mine only goes down to 18 on the remote - Mitsubishi split unit.
It's a more expensive Panasonic one I got through one of our suppliers at work - would normally be about £800.There are plenty of other brands around that use Panasonic or Mistsubishi compressors though, which is the important part.
The cheap ones AO sell go down to 16 degrees I think - but as you are always mounting them up at the top of the inner wall, the hot air rises.
So your Mitsi would think it was 19 degrees and kick on, whereas it might already be 16 at "bed" level. Any of them will do the job really!
Alucidnation said:
Is that a fairly recent thing then?
I seem to remember seeing them before but god knows where!
The last ones I did, the pipes weren't charged and the air had to be bled out at the outdoor unit.
Fairly recent, yep - you used to have a man with a vacuum pump take out the air (contaminated with fgases). Now everything in a quick connect version is pre charged, so no need for it.I seem to remember seeing them before but god knows where!
The last ones I did, the pipes weren't charged and the air had to be bled out at the outdoor unit.
Is there a reason to want one integrated system?
I refreshed my house last year and put an LG artcool system http://www.lg.com/uk/business/air-conditioning-sys... in the master bedroom.
Cost me £1200 fitted. I paid extra in the fitting to have the pipes run down from the first floor to the ground and have the condenser bit sited in the most discreet place I could use. Has a remote control with a timer function which is useful. As a tight Yorkshireman I only had the one bedroom done but if you wanted to do four then I'd guesstimate £5k would get it done. And in your case if you only needed two cold rooms you would only be paying half what you would to cool the four.
I refreshed my house last year and put an LG artcool system http://www.lg.com/uk/business/air-conditioning-sys... in the master bedroom.
Cost me £1200 fitted. I paid extra in the fitting to have the pipes run down from the first floor to the ground and have the condenser bit sited in the most discreet place I could use. Has a remote control with a timer function which is useful. As a tight Yorkshireman I only had the one bedroom done but if you wanted to do four then I'd guesstimate £5k would get it done. And in your case if you only needed two cold rooms you would only be paying half what you would to cool the four.
The LG systems are cracking stuff, and the Artcool systems look brilliant. Except I don't have any art.
The company we get a lot of stuff done by only do Panasonic and Mitsi systems though, and we put a LOT of work their way so I got mine at a very good price.
It's a proper life-changer come hot days - I cannot sleep at all if it is warm in the bedroom, I want it at a maximum of 16 degrees. Otherwise I just lie in a puddle of sweat.
I specced a VRF system (Variable refrigerant flow - of no interest to anyone who doesn't spec or install air conditioning systems!) recently, think it was around 50kW of cooling.
The "outdoor units" aren't run by electricity, they use a petrol engine adapted to run on mains gas. In this case, they are a bit bigger than an old red phone box, and oddly enough use a Nissan Micra engine!
The company we get a lot of stuff done by only do Panasonic and Mitsi systems though, and we put a LOT of work their way so I got mine at a very good price.
It's a proper life-changer come hot days - I cannot sleep at all if it is warm in the bedroom, I want it at a maximum of 16 degrees. Otherwise I just lie in a puddle of sweat.
I specced a VRF system (Variable refrigerant flow - of no interest to anyone who doesn't spec or install air conditioning systems!) recently, think it was around 50kW of cooling.
The "outdoor units" aren't run by electricity, they use a petrol engine adapted to run on mains gas. In this case, they are a bit bigger than an old red phone box, and oddly enough use a Nissan Micra engine!
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