Air Conditioner vs. Air Cooler (Evaporative Cooling)

[cup1981]

We are looking for a cooling solution for our rental house and are debating between an A/C or an evaporative cooler (AKA air cooler).

Reading online, many people say humid areas like Indo are not great for air coolers, so I was thinking A/C may be better. I wanted to check on here first to see if anyone has experience with an air cooler in some of the more humid areas of Indo? Does it work fine? Has it caused any mold issues? Etc.

If an air cooler would work, we would love to save the wattage and not have to bayar to have someone install the A/C and uninstall it just 2 years later after our house is built. But, I also have serious mold allergies and do not want to have to deal with that just to save some watts and Rupiah.

Thanks!

 

[jstar]

Air coolers are more suitable for dry hot climates, they use water to cool. Really less effective here. And they're quite big too (see the ones in terminal 2 in CGK or those in meeting and ball rooms in hotels etc). The ones my M-I-L used years ago were not a big success and were removed fast.

The latest aircon models have some nice power save modes. For a 1,5 PK you can do with less than 650 Watt. (On a Sharp we own two years, for the later models they advertize with an Eco Mode of 350 Watt.)

 

[jstar]

Nowadays I have such a bad experience with all these faulty and leaking units and ongoing maintenance, I would only go for the best (Daikin) or Chinese el cheapo crap. The latter work rather well btw, we had some installed in guest rooms.

 

[cup1981]

Nowadays I have such a bad experience with all these faulty and leaking units and ongoing maintenance, I would only go for the best (Daikin) or Chinese el cheapo crap. The latter work rather well btw, we had some installed in guest rooms.

Thanks for the great info Jstar. That is what my gut was telling me and my research, but thought it was best to confirm with someone in Indo. We decided to do a 1 or 1.5 ok on our second floor and see if enough cool air flows downstairs. If not, we will toss a 0.5 or 1 ok downstairs. We only had 2200 watts to play with and would rather not upgrade the electric someone else's house .

 

[R Cameron]

Air coolers are more suitable for dry hot climates, they use water to cool. Really less effective here.

Absolutely true. They are almost useless in humid climates, they increase the humidity around them, which will typically lead to (more) mold problems.

 

[dafluff]

Pretty much agree on everything said so far. Evaporative cooling is a no go. Too humid.

As for AC, if you are planning on staying a while, make sure to get a good brand. Daikin or Mitsubishi are probably the best. I tried Samsung once (the ones with inverter technology), and every last one of them (out of 7) died within 2 years.

Unless someone else is paying your electric bill, just set the thermostat 1-3 degrees cooler than the outside temperature. Combined with the dehumidifying effect, it already creates a much more pleasant atmosphere in your room. And you acclimate much better when you are outside.

 

[R Cameron]

just set the thermostat 1-3 degrees cooler than the outside temperature.

If anyone knows of an AC with this as a feature, where a temperature sensor is placed outside and you can set a differential, please let us know, I have wished for that feature.

A decent alternative is that most (all?) of the 'inverter' models allow you to set a constant power output. For instance the LG units allow you to select 40%, 60%, 80% or 100% of the full power output. If you select 40% it will constantly be cooling at low power, so your temperature will fluctuate from day to night, but always be a few degrees cooler than outside.

 

[jstar]

We decided to do a 1 or 1.5 ok on our second floor and see if enough cool air flows downstairs. If not, we will toss a 0.5 or 1 ok downstairs.

This could make sense: http://www.daikin.co.id/multi-s2-connection

So only one outside unit is needed for up to three inside units. And with the S2, it seems you can go as low as 380 watt.

Will not be cheap though... but the resale value of AC’s is rather high and you can take it with you to a new location also.

Obviously some Haier/Changwhatever will be much cheaper.

 

[nosox]

As for AC, if you are planning on staying a while, make sure to get a good brand. Daikin or Mitsubishi are probably the best. I tried Samsung once (the ones with inverter technology), and every last one of them (out of 7) died within 2 years.

ours just died............. and good luck getting a Samsung tech to come. Only Samsung techs can access any spare parts you may need. Everything inside is modules and sensors...... phrrrrrrt

 

[jstar]

Same with our double door Samsung kulkas. Three repairs in a couple of years time, have to go via their Service Center.

I think nowadays all AC manufacturers use the inverter technology. Not sure if that has anything to do with the malfunctionings.

We've had to replace all LG and Toshiba units btw. Which only lasted three years after the National/Panasonic units. I think if you use the aircon (semi) permanently, you'd have much less problems than when not using it for a couple of months.

 

[R Cameron]

I think nowadays all AC manufacturers use the inverter technology. Not sure if that has anything to do with the malfunctionings.

Most or all have inverter AC as an option, but most or all also still have both kinds. For instance, Sharp and Daikin have both inverter series and non-inverter.