[sgiitk]

@diyguy; Are Hitachi compressors unique? This is just a lame excuse. Yes, running occasionally may be better, but is really a non issue.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by diyguy

I've heard that the condenser oil could have some issue if not run occasionally. I had ice formations on the condenser of my hitachi window and was told that this was because of long periods of non-use.

That is again nonsense. Ice forms if there is water vapour in the gas and that has nothing to do with long disuse. The water vapour may have been there when it came from factory, if the AC is new or from a small leak in the plumbing if it is old.

[sudev]

Ice formation is also indicator of lower gas content as observed in car systems. Typically happens when gas is leaking but not yet fully leaked. The the cooling is essentially difference of pressures across expansion valve. Guru's may elucidate.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by Aroy

That is again nonsense. Ice forms if there is water vapour in the gas and that has nothing to do with long disuse. The water vapour may have been there when it came from factory, if the AC is new or from a small leak in the plumbing if it is old.

I think he means ice forming externally, and, of course, not on the condenser but the evaporator.

And, a small leak in the plumbing will not allow atmospheric air to enter the machine; it is the refrigerant gas/liquid that will leak out. The refrigerant pressure in the machine is always considerably higher than atmospheric pressure.
The only way that moisture can get into the system is during charging with (poor quality) refrigerant that contains moisture that it shouldn't.

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by anupmathur

I think he means ice forming externally, and, of course, not on the condenser but the evaporator.

Yes I meant evaporator but typed condenser, my bad!

[diyguy]

Got our 4 split acs serviced yesterday. Have a great guy who does a brilliant job but is very hard to reach. Have been trying to get him to come for about 8 months now and interim had called Daikin because this person was not able to make it. He does a great job of cleaning, washing the plastics etc. arrived around 11 and left at 6. This is one click I took of my BR AC when he had cleaned half of the rotating drum.
Previously I had called one chap from just dial who charged me 750 per AC and cleaned the IDU in 20 mins and left a lot of grime still visible. In contrast this guy is like the God of AC mechanics!

[Dieseldrifter]

10 days ago my LG 5 star window ac (LWA5CP5A) stopped cooling which i purchased just 2 months ago. Its compressor was making some noise from the day of installation and i registered the complained on the same day but service people said its normal for a five star ac. Than gradually with two months of use, the noise increased to such levels that my neighborhood also starting getting uncomfortable with its noise and finally the compressor (manufactured by Highly) was dead one night.
The service people arrived next day and said that its compressor has gone and they will replace it, as the product was in warranty. After 4 days they changed the compressor but the cooling was still not up to the mark as earlier. They arrived again and checked cooling and told it is working fine, but somehow i was not convinced. Finally sold that ac as it was becoming a headache for me everyday.
So i am again in the market to buy a new window ac. I have shortlisted the Hitachi 1.5 ton 5 star (Kaze Plus RAW518KUDZ1). Is it good to purchase or kindly suggest another good brand 1.5 ton window ac.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Buying Second-Hand

We currently have a 3-yr-old 2-ton LG on the wall where old Samsung was. Cost, including part-exchange for the old machine, 15,500. Source: our local-street, trusted engineer.

The cooling is excellent, but there are one or two minor faults the supplier is happy to deal with. However, it's functionality does not suit. The flap mechanism seems to be great at throwing the air across the room (which is good for where I sit, and it had me actually shivering yesterday!) but its movement does not direct far down. This is not good for my wife, who sits at that end of the room, and is never happy with general cooling, but wants direct draught.

Our engineer is following up a used Daikin: he will get it to his shop in a day or two. It will cost a few thousand more, but we will only have to pay the difference.

It's frustrating, but just cannot buy new at the moment.

No change on the Sharp spare-parts front. Do not buy Sharp!

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

[b]... The flap mechanism seems to be great at throwing the air across the room (which is good for where I sit, and it had me actually shivering yesterday!) but its movement does not direct far down.
...

I have the same 2 ton unit (working for the last eleven years with no problems, not even a gas top-up) and yes this flap behaviour is a problem with LG ACs. The flaps do not allow the flow to be directed vertically downward. I have a recently purchased 1 ton split and find the same behaviour with this one too. On start-up the flaps do come to a position where they direct the flow vertically down but there seems to be no way to hold them in that position. They always come to steady state at an angle of about 30º from the vertical. And in this current application it is not making me happy because I sit almost directly under the AC, and I do like a direct draught!

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thanks for the confirmation. it is good to know about the longevity of your LG, but I don't think we can keep it. My wife will be always turning on the fan, which means she will get all the cold air, and seems to me to be a waste of electricity when the AC is already consuming so much.

[Aroy]

We generally desist from directing the air flow down, we point it up so that the whole room cools faster. For air flow we use the ceiling fan.

The reasons for this are
. Direct flow from non-inverter AC is chilling, so that if you are not careful you will get a frozen shoulder fast - most AC throw air at 12-15 degrees when on and the set temperature (22-25 degrees) when off, that is pretty uncomfortable.
. Blower pointed up, cools the whole room and the fan helps in distributing the air uniformly, so that when the AC cuts off you do not get a large difference in the temperature of air directed at you.
. If the whole room is cooled, then in case of a power cut for short time, the rooms remains cold for at least half an hour and the ceiling fan on inverter does the job.

Louvre

In all our AC, the directional Louvre give up within a year or two be it Samsung or Hitachi or Daikin. I guess that during service, the mechanics are not careful and splash the water on the motors. The only solution that I can see is to ensure that the motors are fully wrapped with plastic sheets during washing.

[inder]

I have a 1.5 T Daikin installed at my Village house. The foam insulation on the Outdoor copper pipe is a taken out by some curious monkeys. I want to replace it. Where can I find the foam insulation. Also any suggestions , so that the problem does not reoccur. Anything I can put over the foam?

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by inder

Also any suggestions , so that the problem does not reoccur. Anything I can put over the foam?

The Daikin installers for me covered the foam completely with brown packing tape, probably to protect the foam. this should prevent the clawing to some extent.

[Guite]

Originally Posted by inder

I have a 1.5 T Daikin installed at my Village house. The foam insulation on the Outdoor copper pipe is a taken out by some curious monkeys. I want to replace it. Where can I find the foam insulation. Also any suggestions , so that the problem does not reoccur. Anything I can put over the foam?

Insulation will be available with your installer. If monkeys can pull out the insulation they may also damage other parts of the ODU later, so consider enclosing the entire unit and pipes inside a steel cage made up of rigid wire mesh and MS angle frame.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Aroy

We generally desist from directing the air flow down, we point it up so that the whole room cools faster. For air flow we use the ceiling fan.

The reasons for this are ...

OK, so I grew up in a cold country where sitting in draft (did I say draught before? [Blush] ) inevitably led to a stiff neck, and my wife, err... didn't. However, she has plenty of muscular aches and pains, and my assertions that sitting under a full-blast fan even on cool days is likely to be one of the causes fall on absolutely deaf ears. It's what she's done for a lifetime, and she is not about to change now, even if the result does hurt.

So we need an AC that suits.

Originally Posted by diyguy

The Daikin installers for me covered the foam completely with brown packing tape, probably to protect the foam. this should prevent the clawing to some extent.

And, I bet they wrapped it tight. Amazing, how guys applying insulation don't understand how it works: it is the air in the foam that does the actual insulating, so, if you do cover it with tape do not make the same mistake and compress the foam.