Most Common Shortcuts Air Conditioning Companies Take During Installations

An effective commercial or industrial air-conditioner is essential to every Australian business, especially in the peak summer months when the mercury soars. Yet despite how critical these miraculous machines are, plenty of A/C installers take short cuts to bolster their bottom line.

And when the scorching summer sun bears relentlessly down on your business, the last thing you want is for your air-conditioning unit to fail.

Here are 5 common shortcuts an installer may take to save money at your expense.

Neglecting to install a system to install water leaks

Air-conditioning units create a substantial sum of condensation, sometimes as much as 20 litres per day. And if you’ve ever seen those time-worn models from the 70s in action, you’ll have noticed how they drip onto whatever lies beneath.

Modern units, however, have condensation lines in place to drain the excess water. But these are far from foolproof; the unit may flood and cease operating should too much water accumulate within, which often destroys it outright.

To prevent this from happening, a reputable A/C installer will use a safety feature that automatically switches off the unit should the condensation lines become clogged. And although you’ll temporarily be left without AC, it’s an easy and inexpensive fix.

Failing to properly size up the ductwork

A fly-by-night AC installer won’t bother to calculate the appropriate air volume requirements for each room in the house. Instead, they’ll simply replace the existing ductwork with something of the approximate same size.

To be fair, this method may work well enough if air volume requirements haven’t changed. Oftentimes, however, subtle differences to the room since the last installation will inhibit the unit from functioning efficiently, thus you’ll end up with an uncomfortable air temperature even when you’re running it full ball.

A reputable installer will calculate the size, airflow, sunlight, and ceilings of each room to get the ductwork done right, leaving you to enjoy an effective and efficient A/C.

Not properly installing sheet metal transitions to the plenum

Another common ductwork fail is neglecting to install sheet metal transitions in the plenum, which is a box that stores cooled air before it’s pumped through the ductwork.

Upon installing a new plenum to old ductwork, plenty of unskilled installers will do a hodgepodge job off connecting sheet metal to the transition in the plenum. The process is actually quite complicated and takes plenty of practice to perfect, not something best left to an apprentice. An imprecise transition will allow cool air to escape the plenum before entering the ductwork, thus rendering your unit inefficient and causing your electricity bill to soar.

Failing to calculate the air return

Air-conditioning systems are complex—there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. A lazy or ignorant installer will recommend whatever product they have on hand rather than working out precisely what you need.

Having an A/C unit with the ideal air return will optimise the air flow in your home, thus making the entire system significantly more efficient. Inadequate air return, on the other hand, will force your unit to work harder to provide the same level of comfort.

Neglecting to replace the line set

The average bloke isn’t going to know what a line set is, let alone whether it’s been replaced. And dodgy installers use this lack of knowledge to their advantage.

The majority of A/C units run on a split system, in which one component sits inside and the other outdoors. A copper tube line set pumps coolant between the systems, and will eventually fail if not replaced. The problem is the precious piece of copper is quite expensive and often difficult to access, so a haphazard installer will leave the old one in there and hope for the best.

At BOSSY’s, we pride ourselves on providing professional A/C installation services that optimise efficiency and stand the test of time. If you’re on the hunt for industrial or ccommercial air conditioning in Adelaide, get in touch with the all-star team today.