Air conditioners are of two types. There are the window air conditioners and the split air conditioners. Functionally speaking, there is no major difference between a window air conditioner and a split air conditioner. Both are used to cool rooms. However, there are some differences technically.
A window air conditioner is a single unit. All the parts of the air conditioner reside within that one unit, including the compressor. In a split air conditioner, as the name suggests, the parts of the air conditioner are split.
The condenser is usually fitted outside the house or the room in which the indoor unit is installed. The condenser also contains the compressor. Refrigerator coils and PVC lines run from the condenser to the indoor unit.
A window air conditioner is fitted on a window or a space made by cutting the wall. Once the window air conditioner has been installed, the surrounding areas are sealed off properly so that there is no leakage of cold air. The indoor unit of a split air conditioner is fitted on the wall, at a height specified by the manufacturers.
There is no need to cut any window or any part of the wall, although some holes are made for the refrigerator coils and the PVC line. Apart from these differences, the way these air conditioners work is similar. Both have refrigerator coils that absorb heated and humid air from the room and replace it with cooled and dehumidified air.
Among all electrical appliances, air conditioners consume the maximum amount of power. With the general increase in global temperature, more and more consumers are now buying air conditioners. Air conditioners have now moved from luxury items to essential items. However, most users get a chock when they receive their first electricity bill after using the air conditioner.
An air conditioner is rated by the number of British Thermal Unites (BTU). BTU is used to gauge the energy efficiency ratio of an air conditioner. The energy efficiency ratio lists the number of BTU the air conditioner removes for each unit of power it draws to function. For split air conditioners, the energy efficiency ratio is called seasonal energy efficiency ratio.
It is common knowledge that more the energy efficiency ration more is the amount of power saved. Windows air conditioners consume less power than split air conditioners with the same BTU. However, it all depends on the positioning of the unit. A windows air conditioner that is not positioned to work at its best may end up consuming more power than a properly positioned split air conditioner with the same BTU.
It is a common misperception that a bigger air conditioner cools more.
Effective cooling
Contrary to this myth, effective cooling depends upon the positioning of the unit. However, the fact is that windows air conditioners work better in smaller rooms and split air conditioners are better for larger rooms. If someone buys a big house, the best option is to go for a ductless central air conditioning system.
People, who don’t want to invest so much, usually go for a normal split air conditioner or a windows air conditioner. If the rooms in the house are very large, then for effective cooling, a split air conditioner is a better option. But they are more expensive then windows air conditioners.
So, people may want to go for a mix and match solution and install split air conditioners in the drawing rooms and windows air conditioners in the bedrooms. However, another aspect of split air conditioners is that they are very quiet and may be installed in bedrooms if someone has trouble sleeping with noise around.
