[Aroy]

In my experience, once an AC starts giving trouble, there is no use repairing it. Tried on two AC and one fridge, and then gave up. Since then if any problem creeps up, I promptly get a new one and sell the old one off.

Regarding stabilisers, if the voltage is steady low or steady high, you are better off with the old style manual stabilisers where you switch and check the voltage on a meter. I tried stabilisers but they created more problems than they solved. I have dropped stabilisers from refrigerators twenty five years ago, and from AC fifteen years ago. Since then barring Samsung AC, nothing has blown. The voltage used to vary between 160V and 270V, but the appliances plodded on and on and on.

The Samsung gave problems from day one, and kept blowing components (fan, relay running capacitor etc), and that was only time I had a stabiliser on an AC. Gave up and sold it after three years for 5K to a repair man. All my Hitachi run without stabilises.

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by T Y A G I

Congrats Sir. Kindly tell us the performance of this unit as this season temperature is already touching the records. Also let me know whether you bought the stabilizer as well?

Also I would like to share with you that the BTU of the HITACHI 5 star unit is 17060 and the 4 star unit are 17300.This was the main reason why I chose the Hitachi Summer Qc over the 5 star Quadracool one.
Kindly advice.

Regards,
Lalit Tyagi

I just ordered 5 White Westinghouse Window units...they are supposed to be bullet proof & I have seen that first hand since decades. What are you paying for the HITACHI 4 star units ? I found WW to be more reliable.

It may be relevant that I install a mainline servo stabilizer of around 35 - 40 Kva on the mains, so all my electric equipment gets near perfect operation voltage at all times.





Cheers

[T Y A G I]

Hello Ricky_63 Sir,

FYI, I paid 26800 for the AC,2900 for stabilizer,300 for installation.

Also considering the reliability its purely a matter of personal choice and faith.Electrical & Electronics goods basically are trouble free till the time a mini component malfunctions leading to major faults and ultimately the repairs,hence its best to keep the faith in the things which have served the mankind since ages but they are really hard to find in this competitive and price sensitive consumer world.

After so many questions arising in the mind before buying the AC the near perfect choice also depend on numerous factors.Every company have a R & D department which is being paid to server end users in the efficient manner and with reliable products.

I have seen LG Ac which we purchased in May 2006, out of those two one is working fine and other gave trouble two times, even after being purchased from the same batch and in the same year and from the same dealer.

After that I did my investigations regarding the drawing room AC and bought Hitachi even after the instant that O General was loaded in the Wagon R and returned back on account of reciprocating compressor.

So, congrats on your purchase and hope the units will serve you and your family in the manner you have experienced before.Kindly dont take this post as any offence and this is my personal view.

Regards,
Lalit Tyagi

[gendarmee]

Can someone help me trouble shoot a problem AC?

The manufacturer's support is not helping at all. In fact, 8 different technicians have checked it but seem to blame the gas pressure/input voltage/ installed location/room size ect. if not they try to convince us saying that the AC is performing its best...which at best, is worse than an air cooler.

[sgiitk]

@gendarmee; What is the problem? I could not find your post. If it is there then al least give its number?

[akj53]

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

This is because of a local naala that runs about 300 yards flying distance from my house. It is a known fact in our society that all window ACs whose rear are facing the naala develop leaks in the gas circulation system or in the compressor. It is said that this effect exists within a 1km radius of the naala.

However i have had no problems with White westinghouse and my friend has not had a problem with daikin.

I have had problems with general and the others as mentioned in my earlier post.

In Noida we face the same problem. The open ganda nala runs about 500 meters from my house. There are multiple small / big open drains running all across Noida feeding that drain and extending the problem to all over Noida. The very hard water supplied by Noida Authority compounds the problem.

My one 1.5 T Videocon with National kit is finished, another 1.5 T imported Samsung will last only this year. Most of the new AC's leak their gas after 1st or at most 2nd year and after that gas filling becomes an annual affair. The mechanics are jokers and most of them dont have Vaccum pumps for gas refilling. Result is refilled AC are as effective as coolers. The problem is compounded by the flimsy cooling coils and materials ushered in by LG and Samsung and later adopted by others due to price war. Better machines like OG or good imported machines last better as they use better and thicker material.

I have to buy one 1.5 T window unit and another 2.0 T split for our DD room. Which brands are advisable for above conditions. I have been told that locally assembled OG's quality is inconsistent and service is nonexistence. People say it is better to buy OG imported from middle east. I have noted your experience with White Westinghouse. Where can I buy it from? For window unit I am considering OG and White Westinghouse. I am also open to any other good and reliable local brand with good service backup. How about Hitachi, Panasonic and Whirlpool etc.?

For 2.0 T Split, how is Daikin. Any other recommendations by the experts. I had read earlier an excellent rating of all the brands by Khoj, I will search that post.

I think that all such nalas emit sulphurous furmes, which coupled with atmospheric moisture forms drops of acid which eats up the copper tubing. So the ACs with thicker tubes will obviously last more. It will be advisable to take out AC and get it throughly washed, every quarter to wash the accumulated acid formation. This is a minor expense but should prolong the life of coils. For my new AC's, I will use this method.

Eagerly looking forward to advice by experts.

[T Y A G I]

Hello akj53,

I have recently bought 4 * Hitachi Summer Qc. 1.5 ton Window AC.Its super quiet and costs 26800 here in Sahibabad, stabilizer and installation extra.Also in case the electricity bill is not a constraint then you may try O General as well but its a bit noisy.

You can also go to Gaffar market for the imported, but it wont be a billed one I guess, but I have seen there almost 99% shop owners there have O General Ac split as well as window so it says the trust as well.

Regards,
Lalit Tyagi

[WanderNomad]

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

I just ordered 5 White Westinghouse Window units...they are supposed to be bullet proof & I have seen that first hand since decades. What are you paying for the HITACHI 4 star units ? I found WW to be more reliable.

Today morning I was contemplating a WW and I ruled it out because AFAIK its not officially present in India. Their website does list two dealers in India but these dealers seem to be unofficial importers. I perceive a serious after sales support issue with WW.

[akj53]

Well Thank you TYAGI, I was also inclined towards imported unit route but they don't have any warranty.

Any other suggestions please? How about the reliability, ruggedness and A S S of Indian made OG, Daikin, Hitachi and Panasonic or any other premium brand ?

[akj53]

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

I just ordered 5 White Westinghouse Window units...they are supposed to be bullet proof & I have seen that first hand since decades. What are you paying for the HITACHI 4 star units ? I found WW to be more reliable.

It may be relevant that I install a mainline servo stabilizer of around 35 - 40 Kva on the mains, so all my electric equipment gets near perfect operation voltage at all times.
Cheers

Hello Ricky:

I am also considering White Westinghouse Window unit. Where did you buy it from and for how much? Do you Hope to get any warranty or after sales service.

I have been told that the imported OGeneral window units are better than the Indian OG's. Any idea from where they are available?

[akj53]

Originally Posted by khoj

Hi amitsingh08,

Yes window units are easier to service for the very reasons that you have posted above. The complete unit can be taken up from within the room. Having said that the outdoor units of the splits are usually well guarded from dust and other flying debris by their covers. For that reason the ODUs generally need not be cleaned that often. I usually have my machines cleaned once every couple of years and that suffices. Coming to safety yes that is a major concern and now a days I have started seeing technicians using safety harnesses however our architects are yet to catch up as there are absolutely no latch points built into the structure. It is upon us to select a suitable location as also the position to ensure accessibility to the ODUs. This lends to a better install to begin with and of course ease of service as and when required.

You can tell your friends to be thankful for servicemen not cleaning the coils. As for them cleaning means washing with detergent which is the most harmful thing one can do to the coils. It is best to just blow out the dust using a blower or spray the coils with a cleaning foam which is specially formulated for cleaning out condensor and evaporator coils. I would recommend this for the window units too.

As for the inner filters and the coils in the indoor units these are the ones to be cleaned regularly. The filters I clean every month and the IDU coils are cleaned twice every season once in the middle and once towards the fag end. For this I use a dry toothbrush with hard bristles and it is worth buying a new brush as used ones are well used and yucky. Just run the brush from bottom to top with outward strokes so that the dirt does not embed deeper but sticks to the bristles and use a clean cloth to wipe the bristles clean, it is important to use a clean cloth and change the position of the cloth for every swipe otherwise one would end up putting muck back. The filters themselves can be washed under running water and then left in the shade to dry. Never ever run the unit with wet filters as then you will have a clogged filter within 10 minutes of running.

Besides this once every season one can simply check the electric plug for loose connections and tighten them up. This simple check will help avoid heated connections thereby avoiding extra consumption and more importantly avoid that dirty stench when plug/socket plastic burns due to that extra heat from what else but loose connections. Need to know something other than above, let me know.

Regards

@ khoj: Excellent suggestions I would like to buy the cleaning foam which is specially formulated for cleaning out condensor and evaporator coils. Perhaps quarterly cleaning of the coils may clean the acidic deposits which may be eating into the coils leading to frequent gas leakage.

Do you have any other suggestions to prevent frequent gas leakage. Which brands do you think have thicker coils?

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by akj53

Hello Ricky:

I am also considering White Westinghouse Window unit. Where did you buy it from and for how much? Do you Hope to get any warranty or after sales service.

I have been told that the imported OGeneral window units are better than the Indian OG's. Any idea from where they are available?

Hi

This is from Gaffar Market Karol Bagh. Getting them thru some friend, after seeing the performance of his AC's Costing around 25k & yes it will have no warranty, they can be serviced by any AC guy. O'General from Dubai would be better as it would have been designed for temperatures of 52 degrees & more

Hope that helps

[Mustang.101]

Originally Posted by akj53

In Noida we face the same problem. The open ganda nala runs about 500 meters from my house. There are multiple small / big open drains running all across Noida feeding that drain and extending the problem to all over Noida. The very hard water supplied by Noida Authority compounds the problem.

I have to buy one 1.5 T window unit and another 2.0 T split for our DD room. Which brands are advisable for above conditions. I have been told that locally assembled OG's quality is inconsistent and service is nonexistence. People say it is better to buy OG imported from middle east. I have noted your experience with White Westinghouse. Where can I buy it from? For window unit I am considering OG and White Westinghouse. I am also open to any other good and reliable local brand with good service backup. How about Hitachi, Panasonic and Whirlpool etc.?

Originally Posted by akj53

Hello Ricky:

I am also considering White Westinghouse Window unit. Where did you buy it from and for how much? Do you Hope to get any warranty or after sales service.

I have been told that the imported OGeneral window units are better than the Indian OG's. Any idea from where they are available?

Hi guys,

First of all do not buy white westinghouse from Ghaffar Market, Some of them are locally made and fit inside an original westinghouse units.

Source : Ghaffar market grey market AC guy who is a close friend.

White westinghouse is selling their ACs as CBUs from a distributor in Delhi and Mumbai.

Here is the address :

Galaxy Refrigeration Private Limited
Mr. Naresh Kapoor / Mr. Chander ( Manager )
No. D-8, Shanti Kunj, Near Church, Vasant Kunj
New Delhi, Delhi - 110 070, India
Email : chanderkumar@hotmail.com , naresh@galaxyintl.net , chander@galaxyintl.net
Telephone : +(91)-(11)-26130435/ 26130436
Mobile : +(91)-9810008066/ 9811082202
Fax : +(91)-(11)-26130436


Warranty is also being offered, One of my white westinghouse (the older one) is Made in the USA, while i am not too sure of the other. Everything will be sold with a legitimate bill and warranty.

[Ricky_63]

The source from whom the A/c is coming supplies around a 100 units in a year. He will not want to loose that quantum of business by passing off some shoddy stuff.

I have been offered Sanyo at 16-17k per unit (window type) without remote. They are supposed to be VERY good, but I have still opted for WW as my splits (12 nos) are Daikin
So need to keep the primium product factor in mind.


Cheers

[Mustang.101]

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

The source from whom the A/c is coming supplies around a 100 units in a year. He will not want to loose that quantum of business by passing off some shoddy stuff.

I have been offered Sanyo at 16-17k per unit (window type) without remote. They are supposed to be VERY good, but I have still opted for WW as my splits (12 nos) are Daikin
So need to keep the primium product factor in mind.


Cheers

Ricky, I agree with you but he told me that the thing that is going is that a few pieces (maybe 1 in 10 pieces) are being done up the way that i mentioned, Sometimes, even they(dealers) can not recognize it.

Anyways why buy a WW AC from Ghaffar Market when you can get one from retail.

Advantages of legal retail :
1. You get warranty which you do not get in Ghaffar
2. You get the latest models which you also do not get in ghaffar

Advantages of Ghaffar :
1. You get the AC for around 2K less.


How much is that WW AC in Ghaffar? (also mention model no. or capacity and type). I guess they are selling the Made in China ones in ghaffar.