Once I purchased my first home, I realized that I needed to do my part in caring for my home appliances. In addition to reading the user manuals for my kitchen appliances and state-of-the-art plumbing system, I realized that I also needed to do a little research about HVAC. Because I had no experience with HVAC systems, I called out a professional to teach me a thing or two. It was fascinating to talk with him, and I was able to take notes about all kinds of important topics, such as maintenance, troubleshooting, and even shopping for a new system. This blog is all about understanding HVAC guidelines.
Understanding HVAC Guidelines
3 Problems To Avoid When Installing A Window AC Unit
Marilou Girard
If you want to put a window AC unit into service for your home, you may want to have a professional install it to ensure that you don't run into any installation issues. However, if you do decide to install your window AC unit yourself, here are a few common self-installation hiccups that people run into and what you can do to avoid this issues yourself.
#1 Work Capacity
The first thing that you need to pay attention to is the work capacity of the air conditioning unit that you purchase. If you are purchasing a unit to cool off a 200 square foot sized space, you need to make sure that the unit is designed to cool off a space that is that large. You don't want to purchase a window AC unit that is designed to cool off 100 square feet for your 200 square foot space. Your AC unit is going to be running constantly in an effort to cool off the room, and the temperature results are more than likely going to be less than desirable. This is why you'll benefit from talking with an HVAC contractor before AC installation.
#2 Distribution Of Weight
Many people wrongly assume that their window is meant to bear the weight of their window AC unit. However, this is not true. Your window and window frame is not supposed to bear the entire weight of your AC unit, and if you rest the AC unit solely on the window and window frame, there is a good chance that the window and window frame will get damaged due to the weight of the air conditioner.
Instead, you should install a thick strip of wood, that is at least two to four inches thick, on the outside of your house, right against the window. This will provide the air conditioning unit with additional area to rest and will distribute the weight of the AC unit more evenly. Depending on how heavy the AC unit is, you may want to use L-brackets to install a shelf on the outside of your home for the AC unit to rest on.
#3 Insulation
Finally, don't forget about insulation. The point of an AC unit is to fill your house up with cool air, but if your AC unit is letting a lot of cool air leak out around the unit itself, your home is never going to feel as comfortable as you want it to.
If you want your AC unit to work effectively, you need to insulate it well. Put some insulation foam around the top and bottom of your AC unit where it meets with the window frame. If you are using the plastic curtain to fit the AC unit to the size of your window, put insulation on top of the plastic curtain as well. Adding insulation around all sides of the AC unit is a great way to keep things cool in your house and ensure that your AC is working as effectively as possible.
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