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Published on March 31, 2008

Determine your cooling capacity requirements and the types of A/C you want based on your budget.

To get an idea of the A/C capacity required for a room, multiply its area by 65 = 6,500 BTU/hr.

Coolserve, an A/C subcontractor offering installation and maintenance services, suggests that although many brands are in the market right now, they have similar functions. Every manufacturer has a few models that stand out. No particular brand can be recommended as better than the rest.

One very important point to note is that the installation of the A/C plays an important role when it comes to problems like water and gas leaks. With good installation, these problems can be kept at a minimum.

Apichart Assavapokee, chief merchandising officer of The Mall Group, said A/C shoppers should focus on energy-saving features.

"The minimum criteria for those air-conditioning products is that they should be certified with a Number 5 energy-saving label to ensure buyers enjoy a certain level of energy-saving benefits," he said.

If you can afford more, look at value-added features such as the inverter function offered by major brands like Panasonic in their medium to top-end models.

These units use an inverter circuit to regulate the rotational speed of their compressor to match the output of the compressor to the cooling pump load. This reduces the number of times the compressor stops and starts as the load varies, which saves on electric bills and reduces noise levels compared to non-inverter models.

"Consumers should also consider the air-purifying function provided by many air-conditioners, as they will create more health benefits for users. Many air-conditioners have also been designed with an 'easy clean' capability, making it easy for users to do maintenance by themselves," Apichart said.

Sa-angtip Amornchat, vice president for marketing at Power Buy, said shoppers need to know the design and architecture of their house so they can choose a model that fits in, such as a wall, portable, floor-standing or ceiling type.

The y should also look at certification labels such as Number 5 for energy saving, the Thai Industrial Standard rating and an excise-tax label, to ensure that the products come legally from suppliers' plants.

Kwanchai Rungfapaisarn

The Nation