The installation of air conditioning should ideally be done by an experienced professional.
But can you install an air conditioning unit yourself? Even if you are comfortable working with air conditioning and electricity equipment, it isn’t really feasible to do it yourself. In fact, in many
Who can install air conditioning?
If you are thinking of putting air conditioning it is important that you know the law: equipment containing fluorinated gases may only be installed by a professional who holds a certificate for the handling of this type of gases and who works in an authorized installation company.
It is essential that an installer is approved because…
In this way, it is intended to avoid, as far as possible, that the user is harmed by the fact of contracting with a company that does not meet these conditions, thus preventing it from having the necessary and mandatory technical documentation to be able to legalize an installation.
Moreover, it is dangerous to work with people without approval because there may be problems when hiring a power supply, overcoming a mandatory technical inspection, eligible for government assistance for the renovation of facilities, or even can be you without the coverage insurance in case of damage.
Keys to take into account when selecting an installer
First of all, and in the first place, that it is an approved installer, certified and qualified, that has experience, that has good references, that complies with the law, that is up-to-date with its tax obligations, that has adequate insurance and that you have assured your staff, that you have a pleasant treatment and, of course, that cause the minimum inconvenience.
What does an installer need to approve?
The most common way is to obtain a Certificate of Professionalism. It is an official accreditation that certifies that the person who owns it has the knowledge and skills to develop a specific work activity, that is, it is qualified. And you can do it through two ways:
- Training, by passing all the training modules associated with the corresponding professional certificate or by carrying out training programs in alternation with employment, with the contents of professional certificates.
- Professional experience and non-formal training, through the procedures of evaluation and accreditation of professional skills acquired through work experience or non-formal training.
Air conditioners: which aspects to consider
To determine the type and power of the air conditioner, it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of the room to be conditioned: dimensions, number of exposed walls, number of windows and French windows, number of people living there.
Another aspect to consider is the technology used: “on-off ” technology or inverter technology. The first type works by alternating periods of activation with periods of deactivation of the machine depending on the temperature inside the room; the second allows you to continuously and automatically adjust the power and operating speed of the air conditioners based on the outdoor temperature and the values set for indoor environments, avoiding continuous shutdowns and ignitions.
Air conditioners can be monosplit or multisplit. Mono-split air conditioners are those systems in which each indoor unit is connected to an outdoor unit. This type of air conditioner is generally used for homes where there are not many rooms to be air-conditioned.
A multisplit conditioner it consists of an air conditioning system equipped with two or more internal devices connected to the same outdoor unit. This system is mostly used in business or industrial environments, such as offices and shops, where all internal units are used at the same time.
Air conditioners can be portable or fixed ; the fixed ones are installed in a stable position (wall, floor, ceiling and false ceiling), the portable ones can be moved according to the needs.
How powerful must the system be?
The power of the air conditioners is measured in BTU schedules (British thermal unit), which expresses the cooling capacity of the unit in one hour.
To estimate how many BTUs must have a machine to cool our environment, a simple rule can be used to multiply the square meters of the room to be air-conditioned for 340 BTU. That is, if we have a room of 33 square meters will need to have a 12,000 BTU / h air conditioning.
It must be considered that it is not a precise rule and that for the ideal power of an air conditioner other factors must also be evaluated. For example, for a living area, where you are in the hottest hours of the day, it may be advisable to have a more powerful air conditioner than one provided for the bedroom, where we usually spend the night hours which are cooler. If we need to refresh a room with large windows on the third floor we will still need a more powerful air conditioner than for a glassless cellar.
An aspect not to be underestimated is how many environments I have to refresh. For a room we can evaluate whether to buy a fixed or portable model, but it changes a lot if we have more rooms to cool.
In that case, the fixed system becomes the solution that offers the best performance. In that case you can opt for a “split” system that is equipped with several indoor units to be installed.
How much does a conditioning system cost?
In summary, the models of air conditioners are therefore:
- Portable monobloc. They suck the warm air from the room and send it out through a pipe that passes through a window, which must have a special hole or must remain open. For these models prices are approximately between 200 and 1100 dollars.
- Split fixed. They have a motor (compressor) that is installed externally to which corresponds an internal element mounted fixed to the wall in the room to be refreshed. There are models that serve only for cooling and others, which instead are also equipped with heat pump (air conditioning), which allows you to heat the room in winter. In addition to the traditional models there are air conditioners that are also equipped with an inverter system, which keeps the temperature stable with lower energy costs.
- Multi-split. These are ideal models in case we have more rooms to refresh. As for the models with fixed split they are equipped with a compressor unit positioned on the outside with two or more internal elements. For these models, the installation is more complicated than the models with only one element inside, but has various advantages such as the possibility of establishing different temperatures for the various rooms of the house. Obviously, having more units inside it requires a more powerful engine; consequently also the consumption is affected.
It is always good to remember that the air conditioner must always be kept efficient, so it is advisable to clean the filter regularly and have the coolant level checked every year by the technicians. This is because any change in pressure, leaks or other problems can decrease the efficiency of the appliance. For all these operations it is advisable to make use of the help of a specialized technician, especially if a fixed conditioner is chosen.
If you are interested in buying or installing an air conditioner or if you simply wish to have a free and without obligation, you can contact us indicating your data and the type of system you want, by filling out the form below.
Air conditioning systems: facilities
When replacing the old (less efficient) plant with a more efficient one, you can take advantage of the 65% ecobonus, valid until 31 December 2017. In this case the intervention, aimed at energy saving, can be implemented on buildings of any cadastral category (houses, offices, shops), provided they already exist and have a heating system.
In the case of heat pump systems, the requirement for access to deductions is that they are highly efficient systems and that their installation involves the complete replacement of the existing heating system.
Your options for an air conditioning in the home
Fixed air conditioners are basically more effective than mobile ones. Although they are more expensive than mobile devices, but provide a significantly better cooling performance and work more efficient and energy-efficient.
Full air conditioning / central air conditioning
In addition to the temperature, the so-called RLT (room ventilation) full air conditioning system also regulates all other air quality parameters, such as humidity and fresh air change. With a full air conditioning system, you have the perfect indoor climate for every season.
For this purpose, the system requires a central room (eg the utility room). Due to the somewhat higher space requirement and the channels drawn through the walls, full air conditioners are mostly used exclusively in new buildings. This is the advantage if an air conditioning system is planned directly for the new building.
With a full air conditioning system, you choose the most comfortable way of air conditioning and, depending on the installation, you can cool your entire building with a single system. In the alternative, the split devices would already be required for several internal parts, which also need to be interconnected.
Room Air Conditioners
Room air conditioners consist of an outer and an inner part (split device) or several inner parts (multi-split device). The interior parts can be installed as a wall or ceiling unit.
- Room air conditioners are:
- economical
- easier, because also retrospective, to install
- available in different performance classes
Professional installers usually have extensive industry knowledge. They know the current product offer of producers and are kept up to date with all company news. They should also be oriented at the prices of individual interior design elements, such as furniture, ceramics and paints.
With this knowledge, a professional professional installer will propose an optimal solution for the budget we set for arranging the interior. Thanks to this, the customer saves time needed to search for products and has the guarantee that he purchased it at favorable price conditions.
It should also be remembered that every professional installer has a team of trusted, reliable subcontractors in the field of carpentry or stone masonry. Long-term cooperation with partners results in a very good communication between them, and the result is a perfect investment.
By using these companies, we can expect that all finishing works will be carried out on time and with due diligence, which in the case of selecting a random company from the Internet carries a high risk.