Adding a single room AC to your house. Reliable unit/pricing?

Jaime C

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We’ve lived in the same area of Bandung for over 10 years. Since we bought a house 5-6 years ago, we’ve lived upstairs. It does get a bit hot in the afternoon, especially if it’s the dry season.

For the last couple of weeks, it seems hotter than normal. I often am up all night, and then try to sleep in the late morning or afternoon, and it can be pretty uncomfortable. We’ve always gotten by with a rotating fan, but it’s just not sufficient now.

When my wife even complains about the heat, after growing up in Jakarta and Bekasi, you know it must be hot.

An recommendations for cooling a mid sized bedroom? 20 square meters or so? Brand, and price? We have a 2.2k electric hookup, so would need an lower watt model. We’d probably only use it to bring the temperature down, and not run it all the time.
 
Go for a Daikin inverter. Hemat electricity. In the long run it will be cost effective.
 
Go for a Daikin inverter. Hemat electricity. In the long run it will be cost effective.
An inverter will save power over a standard AC, IF it is on all the time. An inverter is designed for long term cooling and not short bursts. If it were me, I would put in slightly oversized 1 PK standard instead of 1/2 PK standard. The prices are very close to each other and you will have that extra capacity for a faster cooldown.

Daikin is a great brand but I have Mitsubishi units and my house and they are fine. Once thing to look for is that even the same brand will have some models made in different countries. Thai made units will sell for more than Chinese made units etc.

5 juta should cover a quality unit and installation. Maybe less but not more.
 
An inverter will save power over a standard AC, IF it is on all the time. An inverter is designed for long term cooling and not short bursts. If it were me, I would put in slightly oversized 1 PK standard instead of 1/2 PK standard. The prices are very close to each other and you will have that extra capacity for a faster cooldown.

Daikin is a great brand but I have Mitsubishi units and my house and they are fine. Once thing to look for is that even the same brand will have some models made in different countries. Thai made units will sell for more than Chinese made units etc.

5 juta should cover a quality unit and installation. Maybe less but not more.
Maybe, I have 2 Daikin inverters for 5 rooms. My electricity bill is 500.000 Rp per month. My neighbours have the standard model AC's. Their bills are 3 mln Rp per month.
 
She went to one store yesterday, and they were pushing the Midea brand. Seemed like almost 7.5 jt for the 1/2 pk version, plus installation. Seemed a bit high to me.
 
Maybe, I have 2 Daikin inverters for 5 rooms. My electricity bill is 500.000 Rp per month. My neighbours have the standard model AC's. Their bills are 3 mln Rp per month.
Depends on how often they stay on and how hard they work. If you have an AC that you almost never turn off or have a mulitroom system, an inverter can be an advantage. Keeping the unit clean will help also.
 
She went to one store yesterday, and they were pushing the Midea brand. Seemed like almost 7.5 jt for the 1/2 pk version, plus installation. Seemed a bit high to me.
Sounds way too expensive. Midea is also a Chinese brand. Take that for what it's worth. I have 2 Thai Mitsubishis and they have been good, so far. One is 7 years old and the other is about 3.
 
I second both either Daikin or Mitsubishi. After going through several dozen ACs of multiple brands and conditions, those two brands stand out. I'd even give Mitsubishi a slight edge.

Also agree that unless you are running AC pretty much all the time, an inverter will not make sense. First of all, the inverter units will be more expensive, and it is unlikely you will recoup the cost in electricity savings unless it is on all the time. Secondly, the inverters themselves cost as much as the whole unit to replace if they die, so the replacement cost is also high.

Rp 7.5jt for a 1/2 pk Chinese AC is insane. Figure ~Rp 5jt for a 1PK Mitsubishi installed, but with 2200W it might be too much depending on what else you have hooked up. A 1/2PK Mitsubishi should be under Rp 4jt installed.
 
I second both either Daikin or Mitsubishi. After going through several dozen ACs of multiple brands and conditions, those two brands stand out. I'd even give Mitsubishi a slight edge.

Also agree that unless you are running AC pretty much all the time, an inverter will not make sense. First of all, the inverter units will be more expensive, and it is unlikely you will recoup the cost in electricity savings unless it is on all the time. Secondly, the inverters themselves cost as much as the whole unit to replace if they die, so the replacement cost is also high.

Rp 7.5jt for a 1/2 pk Chinese AC is insane. Figure ~Rp 5jt for a 1PK Mitsubishi installed, but with 2200W it might be too much depending on what else you have hooked up. A 1/2PK Mitsubishi should be under Rp 4jt use the AC's the whole day and night when I am home.
I don't understand when one has to replace the inverter .. one has to replace the whole unit. Obviously .. the whole unit. That would also be the case with a standard model. Or am I missing something?
 
I don't understand when one has to replace the inverter .. one has to replace the whole unit. Obviously .. the whole unit. That would also be the case with a standard model. Or am I missing something?

Put it this way, if the inverter dies, you need a whole new AC. Normal ACs don't have this point of failure, and local technicians are quite skilled in fixing them.
 
If you live somewhere where the outside temperature cools down sufficiently in the evening and the air quality is good, you can also consider installing an exhaust fan. They cost a few hundred thousand rupiahs and only use 30 to 40 watts.
A certain amount of energy is required to lower the temperature in your bedroom by a few degrees. A 1/2 horsepower air conditioner may be sufficient, but it just takes twice as long as a 1 horsepower one. In the end, you pay the same amount for electricity. So if you can connect 700 watts (for a 1 hp air conditioner), that would be my preference.
 
Of course you can opt for a Mercedes (read: Daikin) but if a Cherry (read: Chinese brand) will bring you there, should you? For two hours per night? Even if it breaks down after 5 years it still will be cheaper in the end (buying two) as the device which is more than twice as expensive and which will last 10 years. TCO.

I’ve never been dissatisfied with any split aircon unit we bought. Even not of brands I had never heard of before. Of course I do consider the level of decibels and power consumption before the purchase. And maintenance & cleaning is important, don’t try to save money there.
 
Just calculate TCO for all AC-brands in a spreadsheet. Also, how long per day one keeps on the AC. Personally I think when one switch off the AC after cooling down the room, it will be hot again quite soon, because 80% of the cold air will go out through the windows, walls and roof. That's why in The Netherlands the houses are build with double walls and windows with double glass, just to keep the warmth inside. Here in Indonesia I notice it is necessary to keep on the AC, for the reason above, 80 procent of the cold air will go out the windows and walls fast.
 
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In discussing the pricing with my wife, I learned that I misunderstood the pricing. It was 750k for installation, not 7.5 juta for the unit.

I’m not sure how long we’d use the unit each day. I think, most likely, we’d turn it on in the early afternoon, and cool down to 23-24c, and then turn it off. Still using the fan for airflow. We do have the large window in out bedroom that is doublepaned. Usually I keep the blackout drapes closed during the afternoon, to not heat up as much.
 
In discussing the pricing with my wife, I learned that I misunderstood the pricing. It was 750k for installation, not 7.5 juta for the unit.

I’m not sure how long we’d use the unit each day. I think, most likely, we’d turn it on in the early afternoon, and cool down to 23-24c, and then turn it off. Still using the fan for airflow. We do have the large window in out bedroom that is doublepaned. Usually I keep the blackout drapes closed during the afternoon, to not heat up as much.
Mind your 2200 VA hookup, as you call it, might be too low. Upgrading and you lose your 'subsidie' on your electricity bill.
 
Mind your 2200 VA hookup, as you call it, might be too low. Upgrading and you lose your 'subsidie' on your electricity bill.
What do you mean? When we picked service size the cost per Kwh was the same up to 5500 watts? My wife's family had the same belief, that lower total services had lower Kwh rates but that isn't the case at least in my area. Is there something else I am missing?
 
In discussing the pricing with my wife, I learned that I misunderstood the pricing. It was 750k for installation, not 7.5 juta for the unit.

I’m not sure how long we’d use the unit each day. I think, most likely, we’d turn it on in the early afternoon, and cool down to 23-24c, and then turn it off. Still using the fan for airflow. We do have the large window in out bedroom that is doublepaned. Usually I keep the blackout drapes closed during the afternoon, to not heat up as much.
With a standard AC you can set the thermostat to the temperature you want and the compressor (the main use of power) will cycle on and off to keep the temperature constant. The compressor doesn't run all the time so the power use is pretty low when it's not running. You might it find it cheaper to run it for longer time than on and off at full power while it brings the temperature down.
 
What do you mean? When we picked service size the cost per Kwh was the same up to 5500 watts? My wife's family had the same belief, that lower total services had lower Kwh rates but that isn't the case at least in my area. Is there something else I am missing?

There are 37 different categories of electricity users. A portion of those follows a tariff adjustment mechanism.

The household group is called R, this contains 5 price categories, these were the 2022 electricity rates per kWh:
Class R-1/TR with 900 VA power, IDR 1,352 per kWh.
Class R-1/ TR with 1,300 VA power, IDR 1,444.70 per kWh.
Class R-1/ TR with 2,200 VA power, IDR 1,444.70 per kWh.
Class R-2/ TR with 3,500-5,500 VA power, IDR 1,699.53 per kWh.
Class R-3/TR with power of 6,600 VA and above, IDR 1,699.53 per kWh.

So if you go from 4.400 to 5.500 for instance, you pay the same per kWh. It’s a strong conviction in the Indonesian society that every upgrade results in a higher kWh price.

These were the 2022 non-subsidized electricity tariff groups. With the tariff adjustment, household customers of that group R normally have their rates adjusted yearly.

Subsidized is something very different of course, some very limited usage and low income households pay much less.
 
Mind your 2200 VA hookup, as you call it, might be too low. Upgrading and you lose your 'subsidie' on your electricity bill.
Subsidy is not available on 2200+ connections, only 450, 900, and there was talk 1300 could/should be added, I don't know the current status of that.

A 1/2 PK will draw about 300-400 watts at full power, so likely no problems with a 2200 watt supply unless they have other large appliances that are drawing a large load at the same time like electric water heater, kettle, stove, etc. Running a 1/2 PK with normal household lights, fans, chargers, and refrigerator will be no problem. Even a 1 PK would likely be okay, especially if it's an inverter version.

Traditional air conditioners have a very high power spike when the motor first starts, so while it may draw 400 watts at full power, the first half or one second it starts it may draw 2x or 3x that amount. An inverter AC has a negligible "inrush current" at startup so much more convenient for cases where you are approaching the limits of your power supply.
 
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