The article will not focus on all monoblock air conditioners, which, by their definition, do not have outdoor units, that is, they are air conditioners without an external unit. This is a wide segment of climatic equipment (windows, rooftops, mobile and stationary monoblocks) like all air conditioners, which serves to maintain the indoor climate.
Advantages of stationary monoblock air conditioner
And he has advantages:
- The absence of an external unit on the wall of the building.
- For their installation, you do not need to obtain permission to install an external unit. Sometimes this is not possible.
- Lack of freon lines and the need for rolling compounds. With poor-quality rolling, freon leakage is possible. Dependence of the quality of installation on the qualifications of installers is excluded.
- Simple installation, which is almost impossible to spoil.
- Modern design. Large selection of block colors.
- There are models with an influx of outdoor air. The stationary monoblock inflow is equipped with filtration, recuperation and heating of outdoor air systems. But the volume of air supplied is small (up to 30 m 3 / h).
Pros and cons of mounting
Installation of a wall-mounted air conditioner without an external unit is really simple and does not require highly qualified installers. It is necessary to make holes in the wall for the mounting of the air conditioner plate along the pattern and cut out two holes with a diameter of 160 mm. Insert two air channels into them. Install exterior grilles.
Channels, patterns and gratings are included in the package of a stationary monoblock - an air conditioner without an outdoor unit. Wonderful installation system of gratings does not require high-altitude work. Lattices are simply made flexible. They gently push outward, and then unbend, closing the hole. A special cable is attached to the body of the air conditioner and fixes the open grille
Easy installation is touted as a competitive advantage that saves money on installation work. Simplicity - yes, but saving money - no!
In the repaired premises, in order not to spoil the interior, the outer holes are cut using dry diamond drilling technology (the drill is not cooled by water). Water is not allowed. She will definitely ruin the finish. The cost of two such holes (depending on the thickness and material of the wall) is slightly less in relation to the cost of installing a split system. And to complete the work completely purely will not work. Dust will still get into the room no matter how powerful the vacuum cleaner that removes it.
About tightness of a wall monoblock
The freon circuit of the air conditioner without an external unit is evacuated and refilled at the factory. The circuit is sealed and tight, no freon leakage is possible. The system is maintenance free. This is declared one of the advantages.
In fact, a freon leak will still occur. Freon is very volatile. It goes into any microcracks. And, if there was no factory defect, these cracks form after several years of service.
Then the air conditioner needs to be refueled. But valves for refueling is not provided. In this case, the copper tubes are cut and freon is added to the circuit. The quality of this work depends on the qualifications of the specialist.
Maintenance cost savings
The assertion that stationary monoblocks do not require maintenance is incorrect. Maintenance is not just about controlling the amount of freon. It is required to clean and check the health of heat exchangers and fans. Clean the drainage system. Check temperature conditions, electrical connections.
Condensate drainage system (drainage system)
Condensation must drain out through the air conditioner pipe without an external unit. Part of the condensate evaporates. The one that does not evaporate spills out through the grate and can spoil the finish of the wall. So the drainage drainage process cannot be considered resolved.
Here (as in the split), you need to think over the method of drainage drainage and not disturb the wall finish on the outside. That is why in the air conditioner kit without an external unit there are drainage tubes, and a hole for draining the drainage is provided in its design.
Silent work?
Noise characteristics of wall-mounted monoblocks - from 32 dB to 42 dB. For a unit installed indoors, it is noisy. Modern outdoor units of split systems of similar power work with such acoustic parameters. But at splits this part is taken out to the street. Therefore, for air conditioners without an external unit, the model range is limited by a cooling power of 3.5 kW.
Noise from a model with a higher cooling capacity would not allow their use in domestic premises. However, the manufacturer claims that the design of the air conditioner is changing, quiet models appear.
The price of stationary monoblocks
How much is air conditioning without an external unit. The price of equipment is still high.
Here are examples of inverter model prices:
ON / OFF models:
For this money you can buy some very good split systems.
It turns out that a stationary monoblock, often inferior to split systems and other types of air conditioners in technical specifications, is a good compromise in the case when there is no permission to install an outdoor unit, it is impossible to mount it or it is not possible to forward the piping to install other equipment.