Split system air conditioners

This type of system is called a split air conditioning system because it has an inside and an outside component. This air conditioner works by providing air from a cooling unit usually mounted on a wall. The reason for the split is to make sure that it keeps the hot outside and the cool inside. The common sizes range from 2kw to 9kw units in a variety of brands including Daikin.

Components:

The components of a split air conditioner are the compressor, condenser coil, expansion joint, fan, the evaporator coils, filter, blower and unit box. There is also a thermostat to control the entire unit. The compressor and the condensing coils are kept on the outside of the house while the evaporator coils and blower are kept inside the house.

How it works:

Liquid refrigerant flows through a series of coil pipes in the system mounted inside your home. This cold liquid refrigerant is blown by a fan releasing cold air in the room. This refrigerant liquid then turns into a gas as it warms up due to its low boiling point and carries heat outside your home.

Now the split system air conditioner needs to do two things so it can continue to cool the room. It needs to convert the hot refrigerant gas to liquid so it can be used to cool more air inside your home and dump the hot air outside. It does this by the use of a compressor.

The compressor is used to increase pressure in the hot refrigerant gas so it turns it back in to liquid making it cool again to be reused. As the refrigerant cools down, a fan in the outside unit blows this heat that is in the refrigerant outside releasing hot air.

This new cold refrigerant liquid passed through a valve allowing it to go back to normal room pressure, cool the air inside and remove hot air. These steps are repeated many times allowing you to keep cool in summer.

The compressor is controlled by the thermostat. When the thermostat detects warm air, it activates the compressor. A refrigerant gas is fed into the compressor and gets pressurized, causing the heat in the gas to rise.

Split system advantages are:

• They are easy to maintain, as they have washable filters that can easily be taken out and put back in.
• The interior modules of the split systems are unobtrusive, as they are usually located high up on a wall and their sleek, modern designs easily blend in with the decor.
• Split systems are quiet, as only the air-blowing unit is located indoors.
• Air is recirculated making it more efficient in that sense
• Easy to control the exact temperature and instantaneous cold feel.
• It’s possible to have more than one indoor unit – you can have one in each room of your home and run them independently with just one outdoor compressor. This combines the efficiency with the convenience of central air.
• Some models can cool and heat your home

Some of its disadvantages are:

• Are not cost effective compared to window air conditioners
• A professional air conditioner installer needs to be hired to set up the system.
• The interior and exterior units need to be positioned close to each other. Thus, split systems may be unsuitable if you live in a tall building or an apartment.
• The compressor unit located outside generates quite a lot of noise.