When the summer approaches all more close and more close, it means, that soon many of us will muse how to get rid of heavy, stuffy air in the dwelling. The windows opened wide open do not solve all problem, and sometimes and aggravate, if you live near to a motorway or industrial enterprises. Therefore the devices creating the climatic environment become the most effective weapon for struggle against closeness (and not only with it).
There is an opinion, that the conditioner is a device whichcools a premise in hot weather, dumping surpluses of heat on street. But it only one of its possible functions. Others are not less important also: clearing of air of a dust and a smell, heating, maintenance of level of humidity. Supplying indoors set temperature and humidity, the conditioner works by the same principle, as a refrigerator: freon at transition from a liquid condition in the gaseous absorbs heat.
The first, on what it is necessary to pay attention at a conditioner choice, - to capacity of cooling. For household models it makes from 1,5 - 2 to 6,5 - 8,5 kw. Roughly capacity steals up from account of 1 watt on 10 square metres of the area at height of ceilings 2,8 - 3 metres. If indoors the big area ostekleniya or windows leave on the south it is better to purchase the model which capacity will be on 15-20 % more settlement. Also it is better to have small surplus of capacity if in a room where the conditioner is established, many electrodevices work or there is a considerable quantity of people. But it is better to entrust these accounts to experts who are in the majority of the large repair-building companies of a complete cycle of works.
Conditioner correctly picked up for capacity is capable to establish and constantly to maintain comfortable temperature of air indoors. Thus air temperature in the street can fluctuate from–7 to +43 degrees on Celsius.
Other basic moment at a conditioner choice is the awareness in their types. We will tell about what are used for household needs.
Split-systems.
Split – means "divided". So it also is, the split-system consists of two blocks: internal, possessed indoors, and outside, born on street. Thanks to such division, the conditioner is not adhered to a window aperture and its internal block takes places practically in any convenient place. It filters air from a room through filters, cools or heats up it, and also filters it from a dust, pollen of plants, a tobacco smoke.
Other part - external, with the compressor, is fixed outside of a premise so it is not audible noise produced by it. All modern split-systems are supplied by a remote control. With its help it is possible to set temperature to within 1-2 degrees, to establish the timer for automatic inclusion or conditioner deenergizing, to regulate a direction of an air stream. And, at last, one more advantage of split-system is the wide range of types of internal blocks. They happen wall, napolno-ceiling, columned and built in a ceiling – cassette and channel.
For apartments, small shops and offices split-system of wall type, it the most widespread usually use and accessible under the price.
The range of capacity of various models, ot1,5 to 8,5 kw, suffices on serving the areas from 12 to 75 sq. m.
The napolno-ceiling conditioner is outwardly similar on wall, but has a smaller thickness – 15-20 centimetres.
Its capacity reaches – 12,5 kw. It is established below, at a wall or on a ceiling, in the first case air stream will be directed upwards, in the second – along a ceiling.
Columned floor conditioners are intended for installation in the big premises: halls, halls, restaurants also have big holodoproizvoditelnost.
The cassette conditioner is used for installation in a false ceiling. Its basic dignity – nezametnost, outside leaves only the bottom part closed by a decorative lattice.
But for apartments with low ceilings it does not approach, as the internal block which has been built in in a false ceiling, the minimum reduces room height by 20-30 sm.
Therefore in apartments it is better to establish the channel conditioner which also hides the internal block for pendant or podshivnyim a ceiling, but, unlike cassette, he can be established in an auxiliary premise, a bathroom or to hide in falseness-mezzanine.
Its "highlight" is an ability to distribute cooled air on system of air lines at once on some premises. The air lines dispersing on rooms, remind of themselves only small graceful lattices. Besides, they can be supplied by filters and zaslonkami which will not allow to smoked air to extend on premises. Capacity of such spleen reaches 20-25 kw that is enough for cooling of small office or 4-5 room apartments. One more plus of this system – possibility of giving of fresh air. Such function is only at the channel conditioner (the truth, some models of cassette and columned split-systems assume partial (1:5) inflow of fresh air from street). In our opinion, the channel conditioner now is the best for urban apartments. Its unique defect – necessity of installation in the course of overhaul or building. However split-system installation at this stage costs in 1,5 times more cheaply, than indoors with the executed furnish.
If on one external block works at once a little internal such conditioner is called – as multisplit-system. It is divided into three groups.
The first concern one - two - three - four-and five-block systems in which to each external block there corresponds strictly certain combination of the internal.
The second group by the possibilities reminds the children’s designer in whom of several details it is possible to collect everything, that it is necessary for soul. That is 10-12 internal are connected to one external block.
The third type of multisplit-systems – multizone, or VRF-systems. Such equipment has several unique possibilities. One multizone system can include from 6 to 30 internal blocks of various type, total capacity from 14 to 100 watt. It suffices to condition a cottage, the big apartment or many-storeyed (5-6 floors) the house.
One more important feature of VRF-system – distance between external and internal blocks can reach 100 metres that allows to hide without difficulty the external block on an attic, in a court yard or on a roof.
The window conditioner.
The window conditioner is a monoblock conditioner which is established in a window aperture. It is less convenient, than split-systems: has a high level of noise and does not keep a choice for an installation site, worsens light exposure of a premise. It is possible to carry simplicity of installation and low cost to pluses. The qualitative Korean model, capacity of 2-2,2 kw, will manage to you in 300-400$. LG and Samsung just also are in the lead in the market on their sales. The Japanese firms offer production more expensive, on 450-550$.
Mobile conditioners.
So name the mobile monoblocks connected with street by a flexible goffered pipe through which in a window leaf or in time apertures in a window frame or a wall remove hot air more often. This type of conditioners will approach the people often moving from a place into place. But also there are also the mobile split-systems which external block looks as the school satchel which has been hung out for a window. Their internal and external blocks are connected among themselves by a flexible hose in which are freonovyie pipelines and electric communications. Work of such conditioner practically does not differ from usual split-system, except for two features: he does not require special installation, and thanks to a compressor arrangement in the internal block hardly rustles. Apparent defect of this type, except noise, the heavy price, comparable with cost of good spleen-system – from 1000$. The unconditional leader of the market of mobile conditioners is – King Post.
Except conditioner type, at purchase it is necessary to pay attention and to its some functions. So, the majority of the conditioners presented in the market only cool air (function "cold"). But, having paid on 100-200$ more, it is possible to find model and with possibility of heating of air, (models with functions "heat-cold", or “the thermal pump”, or “the reversal conditioner”), that is especially necessary for inhabitants of an average strip as this function will allow to warm up air indoors in inter-season period. Here it is necessary to tell, that practically all models presented in the Russian market, it is impossible to use at temperature–10 degrees on Celsius, it leads to various malfunctions of the equipment, and as consequence - to compressor breakage. But there are also exceptions, for example, Italian DeLonghi manufactures the only thing the equipment adapted under the Russian climate, capable to work at–25.
One more, the conditioner differing from all, carries the name invertornogo. It differs from usual that has variable capacity of cooling/heating. The event in it transformation of an alternating voltage to the constant allows to change smoothly frequency of turn-overs of the compressor and to regulate capacity of the conditioner. Invertornyie models consume the electric power on 35 % less usual and more precisely maintain the set temperature. These dignities in superfluous 100-300$ to the price of usual model are evaluated.
Now in our market production more than 20 foreign firms is presented, and at times in an abundance of these names it is possible to be confused. Therefore we will dare to name some firms, the best on quality and on a price and quality parity.
Undoubtedly, leaders in the market of conditioners now are the Japanese manufacturers, such as Daikin and Fujitsu General, they are followed by their compatriots Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Sanyo, Sharp, Toshiba, CHOFU, and also European competitors AirWell (France) and DeLonghi (Italy). Production of these firms is distinguished by high reliability, all it, as a rule, is supplied by systems of protection which disconnect the conditioner at transhipment or in other dangerous situations.
Other item group conditioners of such firms, as Hitachi (Japan), York make (USA), White-Westinghouse (USA), LG (Korea), Samsung (Korea), Tadiran (Israel), Carrier (USA), Electra (Israel). Their production not such "wound", has smaller degree of protection, bolshiy the noise level, less interesting design, but not much more lags behind on quality, and on a parity price/quality LG in general the leader. Each of nazvanyih firms does an emphasis in advertising of production on one-two distinctive functions. But actually this function or is a little used in work, or not such the unique.
If you have started repair, the conditioner is better for establishing before realisation of painting and decorating. In this case all communications connecting blocks, it is possible to hide in a wall. It is necessary to decide in advance where the external block will take places, is better to find to it a place under a roof, on a balcony or in other maloprimetnom a place.
Very important as well the one who will carry out installation works. Keep in mind, that 80 % of malfunctions in conditioner work arise at the expense of poor-quality installation. Is better to entrust its firm-expert.