Air Conditioning Options - Central, Ductless, Or Through-the-Wall

Question:

frigidaire slider casement window air conditioner

I would like to setup air conditioning on the 1st floor of my 2 story home. I have casement style windows that swing out so I can't setup a window unit. I could setup central air, but I don't use the 2nd floor of the house. The windows are 10 yr old Anderson. Should I replace 1 window with a double hung window so I can fit in an air conditioner or go for central air?

SLIDER CASEMENT WINDOW AIR CONDITIONER

Answer:

My first option for vigor efficiency, as well extensive comfort, would be to setup a central air conditioning system. These systems can be "zoned" so they will only cool one floor of the home and not both. However, you honestly should plan on both and discuss that with your contractor as it may be less costly to setup some of the ducting to "get ready" for cooling the second floor at some point in the future.

Another option might be to setup a through-the-wall air conditioning unit. Many of the larger units are available with wall mounted sleeves. To install, you'd need to cut a hole in the exterior wall and frame it out the same way you'd frame an opening for a window or door. It is very leading to do this correctly, as you will be impacting the structural integrity of the house. Also, this type of law will very likely cause a heat loss in the winter as it is very difficult to seal it to prevent cold air leaking in.

A good option, which cost-wise will be in in the middle of the cost of a central law and a through-the-wall mounted portable, might be ductless air conditioning. I have Fujitsu ductless air conditioning law like this in my office and the ductless air conditioning law works extremely well as a supplement to my central system, which doesn't fully enlarge into the office space. With ductless air conditioning, you have a wall blower that hangs on the inside wall of your home. This is related via a refrigerant line to a small compressor which sits outside, just like a central system. The compressor supplies chilled refrigerant to the blower inside, which circulates the cooled air.

Given the above, my option would be (1) central; (2) ductless; (3) through-the-wall.

Regardless of what you ultimately decide, you should be inescapable to choose the most vigor efficient air conditioning unit possible. vigor Star has an excellent new program called Cool Your World With vigor Star @ Home that can help you understand cooling efficiency and options.

Air Conditioning Options - Central, Ductless, Or Through-the-Wall

SLIDER CASEMENT WINDOW AIR CONDITIONER

Comparing Air Conditioning Prices

Air conditioners are an additional one large speculation just as other items you would buy for your home. For many homes, there is no Ac unit installed or central Ac, and this means you are going to be responsible for buying your own. Consumers are often times intimidated by the price of some units, and there are a few things that are going to sway the price of air conditioners. Ac units come with operating costs as well as maintaining them over time. Here are some things to keep in mind when you are seeing to buy a unit and what to correlate in distinct units.

frigidaire slider casement window air conditioner

Things to Consider

SLIDER CASEMENT WINDOW AIR CONDITIONER

One leading thing to think is the fact of the unit being vigor efficient. You should look for models that are vigor Star to help conserve vigor and having this rating means that the unit has met requirements by the Environmental security Agency. These units are labeled for being very vigor efficient, and while these types of units are going to have a higher price tag, they are going to be best for your home and cooling needs in the long run. Costs for operating these types of units will also be lower in the long run.

Size

The purpose of an air conditioner is to cool a room or area and take off the hot air covering through a hose or other exit method. The size of the unit you are using is going to help cool the room down more and helps to make the area more comfortable. Smaller units are typically lower priced, but this doesn't all the time mean it's a best option. Research prices and correlate features to see what your best options are. Smaller units also may cost more to run and control as they need to run longer to cool your area or room down and this means total costs are increased.

Features

Traditional conditioning units are simply going to cool down your area or room, and they will also take off the humidity. Some features that are on newer units and are upgrades contain handlers that are designed to cycle off and on with various motors which allow the noise to be lower sounding, and it also allows cold room to blow into the room. There are also some units that feature timers which allow consumers to set a timer when the unit kicks on and off again. While it can add to the price of the unit, it will help save money over time.

Frequency Used

If you live in an area that does not want the continuous use of your air conditioner, price of the unit may not matter as much. For those of you who live in hotter climates, the price of a unit is going to play a role in the unit that is chosen. For those who pick units that are going to be used often, make sure you look into the seasonal vigor efficiency ratio to ensure that it is vigor productive for your needs.

Comparing Air Conditioning Prices

SLIDER CASEMENT WINDOW AIR CONDITIONER