Air Conditioner - Types and Maintenance

Increasing global warming and changing climate has made it essential to invest in artificial thermal comfort by means of air conditioning. By the process of air conditioning it is possible not only to cool or heat a room, as per convenience, but also ventilation, disinfection and humidity control of a room can be maintained.

There are several types of air conditioning depending on the area that is needed to be cooled or heated. The major types in use today are:

• Window air conditioners: Most suited to use for single rooms, these machines are composed of compressor, condenser, expansion valve or coil, evaporator and cooling coil enclosed in a single box.


• Split air conditioners: Comprises of two parts, i.e. the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. The outdoor unit houses the compressor, condenser and expansion valve while the indoor unit comprises the evaporator and fan. These are also used for single rooms and because of the sleek look add beauty to the room.


• Packaged air conditioner: These air conditioners are used if more than two rooms or larger spaces at home or office has to be cooled or heated.


• Central AC system: This is used if an entire building has to be air conditioned like houses, offices, entire hotels, gyms, movie theaters, factories etc.

Apart from conditioning of homes there are other broader uses of ACs also. For example, commercial AC refers to one of the social comforts that are of utmost priority in most parts of the world. It is the type of air conditioning done at public places like malls, theater, shops, hotels, hospitals, stores etc, mainly with the help of central air conditioning system.

Again, industrial AC is another important concept. It is used to maintain temperature at places housing electronic equipments where heat can be the worst enemy of the gadgets.

Air conditioners require a strict maintenance regime to increase their longevity and service quality. The tips for ensuring air conditioning maintenance are listed below:

• Time to time replacement of the air filter as per the recommendations given by the manufacturer. The details are usually available in the product manual.


• Checking the cooling coils and air vents at least once a year to ensure they are clean.


• Keeping the compressor component free from dust and dirt


• Checking of the air conditioner panels to ensure that they are screwed tightly


• Taking help from professionals for clean ups and check ups at least once a year.

Overheating of electronic equipments such as computers, electronic testing instruments and precision electronic manufacturing equipments can be harmed by environmental and system generated heat where ACs serve as a mechanical replacement of heat with cold air.