[thanixravindran]

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

Does LG have fixed speed AC(non inverter) in their product portfolio? I could not find any

No, LG and Samsung does not have fixed speed AC in the portfolio as told by one showroom.

[alpha1]

Originally Posted by Gansan

My son came home for a visit from Hyderabad last week and remarked even though the day time temperature there is currently higher than Chennai, it feels more comfortable because the humidity is much less there. Right now the weather report shows Chennai temperature as 31 with a humidity of 76% and Hyderabad as 36 with humidity of 30%.

In Chennai people will sweat like pigs during summer, but sun stroke will be rare. But in cities with less humidity the risk is much more. Such as cities in the north Indian plains.

Incidentally I traveled from Mumbai to Pune last weekend. While sitting one afternoon during the power cut, I checked the weather app, and remarked to my friend, "it is 39 deg C right now in Pune and we are comfortably sitting in shade without fan. In Mumbai it is 31 deg C, and even with full speed fan it feels hot!"

The weather folks and apps display dry bulb temperature which is of lesser utility to human comfort compared to the wet bulb temperature (which is usually withheld from being displayed). Our skin feels the wet-bulb temperature. [because the wet-bulb temperature is measured by draping the temperature probe with wet cloth - this is exactly what our skin does during sweating]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Also, as previously mentioned, most people especially hate humid heat, increasing the humidity, even with a slightly lowered temperature, makes matters worse.

Wet-bulb temperature to the rescue again (it takes the air temperature as well as the humidity into account). I wonder why meteorologist, news and people don't mention this temperature more often.

Originally Posted by anupmathur

I beg to differ. I have been using desert coolers for over 50 years (in Delhi, during the dry heat days) and the temperature difference that can be achieved is extraordinary - as much as 15° to 20° degrees Celsius below ambient when R.H. is 20% or lower. Delhi summers have many such days. An Air conditioner never achieves this.

Here, let me support your anecdote with scientific fact:


At low humidity, the wet bulb temperatures are indeed ~20 deg C lesser than dry-bulb temperatures. Desert cooler works by evaporating cooling of water, increasing the humidity but reducing the dry bulb temperature. One can imagine desert cooler to be a device that supplements the natural sweating-based cooling.

The black dotted lines are dry bulb temperatures (the one that is often reported everywhere and measured by temperature probes)
The red oblique lines are wet bulb temperature (that is measured by wrapping the probe in wet cloth - and somehow always pushed to back seat while reporting)
The blue curved lines are the relative humidity which is inferred using this chart by using dry bulb and wet bulb temperatures.

Now there are a few points here that are applicable to most normal humans and all air conditions (outside, inside, air conditioned, water cooled, summer, winter, rain, etc):
1) Most humans prefer a narrow range of temperatures: around 27 deg C with summer wear (and mild breeze/fan) and around 22 deg C with winter wear (and almost no breeze/fan).
2) Most humans can find make themselves comfortable with slightly lower and higher temperatures than above with the variation in humidity. Lower the humidity, the more temperature you can be comfortable with.
3) Wet bulb temperature is the one that skin feels when the sweat evaporates: and the comfort zone for this has been determined to be between 15 deg C and 20 deg C. This means that one can be quite comfortable at 39 deg C / 20% humidity (Pune example) because the wet bulb temp is 21 deg C. While at the same time the conditions at Mumbai was 31 deg C / 55% humidity = wet bulb temp of 25 deg C

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by alpha1

1) Most humans prefer a narrow range of temperatures: around 27 deg C with summer wear (and mild breeze/fan) and around 22 deg C with winter wear (and almost no breeze/fan).

I might have done the same thing, but, "Most humans?" It is very hard to generalise, because our comfort zones are dictated by the range of temperatures to which we are acclimatised. 27C is really rather hot to a lot of the world's humans, and they'd find 22 to be very warm for a winter day.

I've acclimatised to something like that range of temperature. It means that when I visit my mother country, I'm putting on warm clothes and begging for heat when others are celebrating a nice spring day

It's one thing to compare India and Northern Europe, but, even within this country, there is such a range of climates in which each will have their own comfort zone.

(My wife, indoors, is already too hot at 27. She was born and bred in tropical Southern India!)

[self_driven]

Hi guys,

Can someone who has recently purchased a General AC confirm whether the brand sends an acknowledgement message during/after installation or not?

I recently got a 1.2 ton window AC (offline) for my home in Delhi. Installation was done promptly by AC technicians who claimed to be hired by General. I was charged Rs. 500 for installation but no bill was provided, stating that bill is provided only for accessories such as wall mount stand, copper, drain pipe, etc. Their senior assured me on call that the brand will send me an SMS to confirm product registration for warranty purposes. It is the 3rd day today and I haven't received any communication from General. Upon questioning, the installer keeps beating around the bush citing weekend off, technical glitch and so on. The shopkeeper says that the installer is General's authorised installation partner and any warranty claims will still be honoured even without the SMS.

Now everyone in my known has received some form of confirmation during installation of large appliances from brands like LG, Samsung, IFB, etc. I don't understand why it would be any different in this case? If someone could confirm how the installation process with General goes, I'd be able to take this up with the installer more sternly.

Thanks.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

I might have done the same thing, but, "Most humans?"

I wonder how the people of Siberia and Sahara will react to our temperatures! The former might suffer a heat stroke during Bangalore winters when day time temperatures will be in lower twenties and at night time it will usually be around 12-14 degrees. The latter may find Chennai summer rather pleasant!

[raptor_diwan]

Hello everyone,

I'm in need of a suggestion.

I'm currently in the market for a new AC. We have been using a Reconnect 1.5 Ton 3-star Inverter AC in two rooms. Unfortunately, one of the ACs isn't functioning properly, with very poor cooling despite attempts to service it, refill gas, and engage multiple technicians from UrbanClap and Reliance directly. As there hasn't been any improvement, I'm considering replacing it with a new one.

I'm considering purchasing a Panasonic 5-star 1.5 ton inverter AC, mainly because it offers Wi-Fi connectivity and App control features. However, I'm still undecided between the 5-star and 3-star options. Some have mentioned that the power-saving difference isn't significant if the AC isn't running for extended periods. Since this is for home use, it will typically run for about 5 hours a day.

Please advise if I should opt for a 3-star or 5-star AC, and if Panasonic is a reliable choice.

[GTO]

Guys,

Please help with the ideal AC settings for a hot summer.

- I have a Mitsubishi 1.5 Ton AC in the bedroom (bought based on BHPian recommendations)

- All through the monsoons & winters, I set it on 24-degrees cooling, blower speed 1 and I put the ceiling fan on (speed 1) to circulate the air around the room. It works perfectly and keeps us super comfortable!

- Now however, with summer starting, I'm struggling to get the right settings on the Mitsubishi.

Do keep in mind that Bombay is HOT right now

If I put it on temp 21 to 24, with fan speed on 1 and ceiling fan on 1, it's not enough. The room stays hot.

If I put it on temp 21 to 24, with fan speed on 2 and ceiling fan on 1, it just about manages to keep the room cool. But not enough.

If I put it on temp 23 to 24, with fan speed on 3, the room cools up instantly (no need for ceiling fan) and stays nice. Trouble is, by 4 or 5 AM, the room becomes too darn cold and both of us wake up due to the chill. We then lower the fan speed and / or raise the temperature and go back to sleep.

If I put it on temp 23 or 24, with fan speed on "Auto", it starts perfect (no need for ceiling fan) and stays perfect till about 5 - 6 AM. Then, the room becomes too damn cold!

What the heck is the right setting for this? It's disturbing my sleep in the middle of the night.

Thanks in advance.

[self_driven]

Originally Posted by raptor_diwan

Hello everyone,

I'm in need of a suggestion.

I'm considering purchasing a Panasonic 5-star 1.5 ton inverter AC, mainly because it offers Wi-Fi connectivity and App control features. However, I'm still undecided between the 5-star and 3-star options. Some have mentioned that the power-saving difference isn't significant if the AC isn't running for extended periods. Since this is for home use, it will typically run for about 5 hours a day.

Please advise if I should opt for a 3-star or 5-star AC, and if Panasonic is a reliable choice.

Hi, you can compare the annual power unit consumption for the two models. It is mentioned on the energy rating label, but keep in mind that this figure is based on ~1600 hours of use per year. If the difference between the two is insignificant, it's better to opt for the more efficient model.

I have a 5 year old non-inverter Panasonic AC at home that's been absolutely trouble-free. In fact I've recently purchased another Panasonic for the living area. It's a 2 ton 4 star inverter model but the cost difference between 4 and 3 star model in my case was around 2k rupees, so it was a no-brainer. The installation is scheduled for this Friday so I will post an update later on its performance.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by GTO

Please help with the ideal AC settings for a hot summer.

If it has a "sleep" mode - almost all ACs do - engage that for tonight and see. It initially starts with a cool setting to make us comfortable, then after a specified time will increase the temperature by1 degree every hour or so to enable us to wake up comfortably. It can be used with the ceiling fan running at a mild speed as well.

[PearlJam]

Originally Posted by GTO

If I put it on temp 23 to 24, with fan speed on 3, the room cools up instantly (no need for ceiling fan) and stays nice. Trouble is, by 4 or 5 AM, the room becomes too darn cold

A basic question - Whether it's summer or winter, isn't 24 degrees, 24 degrees? A properly working AC would/should just maintain that, plus/minus a small degree of error. So I guess, it's not the room getting cold, but some of us probably wanting a slightly higher temperature as dawn approaches. I've also observed that these subjective comfort levels vary depending on what we've eaten (or drunk) - something an AC wouldn't know

Ofcourse, the AC functioning does goes haywire if there's dirt inside the evaporator and condenser coils (indoor and outdoor units), even though the removable filters are cleaned. A lower refrigerant pressure also messes up the steady temperature, and makes the room go through a wide band of temperatures. A good servicing job should fix that.

[navin]

Originally Posted by GTO

If I put it on temp 23 to 24, with fan speed on 3, the room cools up instantly (no need for ceiling fan) and stays nice. Trouble is, by 4 or 5 AM, the room becomes too darn cold and both of us wake up due to the chill. We then lower the fan speed and / or raise the temperature and go back to sleep.

If I put it on temp 23 or 24, with fan speed on "Auto", it starts perfect (no need for ceiling fan) and stays perfect till about 5 - 6 AM. Then, the room becomes too damn cold!

Originally Posted by PearlJam

A basic question - Whether it's summer or winter, isn't 24 degrees, 24 degrees? A properly working AC would/should just maintain that, plus/minus a small degree of error. So I guess, it's not the room getting cold, but some of us probably wanting a slightly higher temperature as dawn approaches.

Setting your air conditioner at 24 degrees should instruct it to maintain that temperature (+/—1 degree) throughout the night. The challenge is that humans suffer from vasodilation, which means we feel hotter before we sleep and cooler towards the end of our rest period. Similar to the graph below.


https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/me...e-feeling-cold
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/slee...lood%20vessels.

GTO, try cooling the room by setting the air conditioner at 23 deg before you sleep and then changing the temperature to 25 with a fan speed of "Auto" before you sleep. This will mean one change of temperature setting, but at least you are not being woken up to make that change.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by GTO

- All through the monsoons & winters, I set it on 24-degrees cooling, blower speed 1 and I put the ceiling fan on (speed 1) to circulate the air around the room. It works perfectly and keeps us super comfortable!

Rooms differ, people differ, so what works for you and your family... works! However, I find that ceiling fans do not so much spread the cooling, as redirect it straight down!

EG, in our long narrow hall, AC is at one end, I am at the other. If my wife sits in the middle, and turns the fan on, I get no cooling!

It would be a really good idea if AC machines had remote sensors, so that they could be operated according to the desired location, rather than just their own.

Originally Posted by navin

GTO, try cooling the room by setting the air conditioner at 23 deg before you sleep and then changing the temperature to 25 with a fan speed of "Auto" before you sleep. This will mean one change of temperature setting, but at least you are not being woken up to make that change.

This is exactly what we do in our bedroom, given a slight difference of degree. If it is needed to cool the room quickly, I turn on the ceiling fan, which blows down onto the bed.

[saket77]

What I do is set the temperature to 25 or 26, direct the airflow to the bed directly and then switch to auto. No swinging flaps, no fan. Has been working well for me.

[Satkaj]

@GTO Have been facing similar issue with OG ac’s. Solution we found is. Not to use fan at all. Set temperature @ 23 . Jaipur Dohar kind of soft light but 2 layer blanket( not sure which one you are use to) during summers or any weather. AC’s do make room cooler by mornings , right kind of blanket will help you manage body temperature throughout.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by GTO

If I put it on temp 23 or 24, with fan speed on "Auto", it starts perfect (no need for ceiling fan) and stays perfect till about 5 - 6 AM. Then, the room becomes too damn cold!

Set it to 21 and set the fan speed to auto. Set the sleep mode also which would quietly increase the temperature settings by one degree every hour(most ac will allow you to set the temp/hour as per your convenience). If you sleep for 8 hours, it will end up at 29 degrees by the time you wake up.

Panasonic AC has a schedule provision where you can set the temperature by the hour and save that on a seasonal basis. You can have a summer mode , rainy day mode or winter mode. The Japs tend to have similar engineering when it comes to electrical equipment. So dig out your manual and look for sleep mode options.

Remote controls have paucity of space and keys. So it may need multiple key presses simultaneously to enter special mode. Start with manual if you want to adjust the sleep settings.