Split air conditioners are changing over to Inverter technology. What does this mean? Think of the conventional aircon as fixed speed device. Like water taps 50 years ago that were either open or closed. In this case, heat, rather than water is flowing at full speed or not at all. In a regular aircon the compressor is on or off. When the thermostat reaches the set temperature, the compressor stops but the fans continue to work. When the thermostat senses that the temperature has risen, the compressor kicks in again.
An inverter aircon is similar to a modern screw type water tap: you can slow down the flow of water (or heat) or increase it at will. The compressor is always on but draws less or more power depending on the incoming air temperature and the temperature set in the thermostat. Think of it also like the accelerator in a car. Today only split aircons come with inverters. The word inverter refers to the DC inverter circuit which controls the motor speed.
With inverters becoming popular, India's Bureau of Energy Efficiency has come up with a new rating system to replace the old 1 star to 5 star aircon ratings. It is called Indian Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio or ISEER. It is now voluntary for inverter aircons -- but mandatory from January 2018. It takes account of the band of Indian ambient temperatures from 24 degrees Celsius to 43 degrees Celsius. ISEER is a ratio of the total heat that the system removed to the total energy consumed. So higher the number better the performance (4.5 for 5 star to 3.1 for 1 star). To learn more about airconditioners before buying, check out a useful site called BijliBachao.com.
Coldplay
Mirror ,mirror, on the wall, who's the coolest of them all? Indian consumers this summer have many choices to suit different purses when it comes to air conditioners and each claims some unique feature:
Videocon has launched 2 hybrid models powered by solar cells. They charge by day and discharge at night leading to power saving.
Micromax has entered the aircon business with a range of split and window models. They come with ECCO Blu technology that protects the condenser coil from humidity and moisture, extending its life by three times.
Panasonic switches on an air purifier called Nano-G when it senses dust getting into the aircon.
Intex which launched in Hyderabad and Ahmedabad, this month has a wide range of 18 models to suit all purses.
Godrej has launched a premium air conditioner range NXW, with the top ISEER rating
