Need suggestions for purchasing a new AirCon.

Kaleen Bhaiya

Kaleen Bhaiya

Skilled
So my Hitachi 1.2 ton is giving me lots of trouble. It has been roughly 11 years, gas leaks out within a month thanks to heavy corrosion. I live in a area closer to the coast so corrosion is a big issue. This time i am focusing on ac which has anti-corrosive properties and I have short-listed LG for the simple reason that they have Ocean black coating(OBC) to protect from corrosion and their service post purchase. I need some feedback from fellow members especially if they live in corrosive environment and general review about LG ac's here.

1. I have shortlisted 4 models, all 1 ton. (i)MS-Q12SWZD, (ii)MS-Q12UVZA, (iii)MS-Q12ANZA, (iv)MS-Q12YNZA. I am more inclined towards model (i) and (ii) as they have good air filtration. Do ac filters really work in killing germs and preventing allergy?
2. Model (ii) claims to have UV-filtration to kills bacteria and germs. Is it just a gimmick or are they really effective? I have Sinusitis and dust can create problems for me, hence my inclination towards air purification.
3. There are so many models from LG enough to confuse anyone. The only difference I found is availability of wifi and filters. For me, wifi is a not a must but only model (i) gives HD filter and anti-allergy.
4. My ac repair engineer, refrigerator repair guy told me to go for Fixed motor rather than inverter ones as they have tendency to fail and cost a bomb to replace PCB. Now LG gives 5 year PCB warranty. So should I go with inverter or stick to old school. My usage is not that great, except in summers it might run twice a day for April, May. I fear that corrosion may damage it, especially after 5 years.
5. Are there any other brands which have good service in Mumbai as well as give corrosion protection like blue/gold fins for IDU,ODU.
6. Does LG give OBC protection for both IDU/ODU? I was looking for models and some did not mention it in product page but mentioned it in the specs page. Got me confused.
I am less inclined towards Japanese brands this time owing to Hitachi experience. My budget is restricted this time so don't want to spend in excess of 40k.

I was thinking of getting this Action Clear Rust Proof to paint my pcb to protect from corrosion. Has anyone tried it? Would it be safe to do so?
 
Consider Panasonic AC also. They have similar corrosion protection and have 5 year warranty on pcb and outer casing.
LG is also very good.
Extra protection paint on pcb is not required.
These days, you should always go for inverter ac.
Whichever you are getting at best price, go for that and post your buying experience here.
 
Thanks for the reply. Can you post any link of Panasonic which shows it supports PCB warranty upto 5 years?
Can you share your experience with Panasonic in case you have.. I never really gave a thought about Panasonic. How's their after sales service?
 
Tejas01 said:
Thanks for the reply. Can you post any link of Panasonic which shows it supports PCB warranty upto 5 years?
Can you share your experience with Panasonic in case you have.. I never really gave a thought about Panasonic. How's their after sales service?
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Available at Panasonic India Website.
Catalogue: https://www.panasonic.com/content/dam/Panasonic/in/en/pdf/Air conditioners_Leaflet-1.pdf
Warranty Information: https://www.panasonic.com/in/support/panasonic-extended-warranty/ac1.html

After sale service for Panasonic in Mumbai is good and so is LG.
 
Not sure why the AC mechanics are averse to inverter AC's. My AC mechanic also suggested the same. He said the inverter AC's are prone to fail in couple of years time and even though some companies provide 5 years warranty on the PCB board, the replacement boards are always out of stock most of the time and there is a wait period sometimes more than a month to procure them to the customer place. I am also looking out to buy an inverter AC but confused if I should go with non-inverter or inverter now. The main advantage I am looking at the inverter AC is the low electricity charges.
 
Not only the wait time but the cost after warranty expires. It does cost a lot as there are two PCB associated, unlike in non-inverter where there is just one pcb in oDU.
 
Let me share some insight from my personal experience.

1. I've been using multiple inverter ACs from 4 different brands (Sharp, Samsung, Bluestar & LG) since 2012 and I think that most of the local repair persons suggest not to go for inverter AC because they themselves cannot offer repair services especially for PCB failures. These are required to be procured from the company and not easily available in open market. Also, the circuits are more complex and requires knowledge of the product for any repair/replacement.

2. The PCBs on the ODU are most susceptible to damage, however are also pretty well insulated. With proper care, they should run at least 5-6 years trouble free and the replacement cost is not too exorbitant. I replaced my Samsung unit's PCB for around 6k INR after 7 years of service. The damage was also purely physical (caused by workers during building repair).

3. Regarding selection of inverter model over non- inverter one, it completely depends on your usage. If you're using your AC for at least 8 hours per day for at least 6 months per year, you'll definitely save money in the long run even after factoring in repairs. However if your usage is say only for 2-3 months and/or less than 6 hours per day, it's better to invest less in a non inverter 5star rated model.

4. Lastly, few things I personally look for when selecting an AC is the highest possible ISEER (or EER for non-inverter) within my budget, 100% copper based design with anti corrosion coating, 4 way auto swing and easily reachable after sales support. Filters and ionizers and all those fancy stuff are mostly gimmicks imho and are more of a value add rather than a necessity.

P.S. - I'm from Kolkata and my typical usage is around 8 - 12 hours per day for 8 - 9 months.
 
Thanks for your input. While my usage is low given the past trends however, with summers hitting in March itself and more importantly, humidity plays havoc with my internal systems, I foresee the possibility of extensive AC usage in coming years. While I may not run ac during monsoons and winter is only for a month I suppose that leaves 7 odd months. Still it can vary as no one can predict how bad the weather would be in coming years. Keeping this in mind, I am thinking to go for an extended use and hours.
The main reason for changing AC is to prevent gas leaks due to corrosion. That leaves only LG and Panasonic as they offer the max protection and have similar specs. Also, I have learnt the hard way that EER/Iseer ain't everything atleast when it comes to my area where corrosion is rampant and acs don't last long. My Hitachi was 5 star back in 2010 and it would still be going good had it not been poor after sales support and gas leaks. I think from what I researched, both Pana and LG have inverter series only. Also LG kinda has good aftersales support so kind off inclined towards it. Can you please share some more insights on your LG inverter? Anything bad experience with them.

Also, corrosion can also impact the PCB so I was thinking of using of spraying it with hydrophobic aerosol which will keep salt at bay. But accessing it is another task..

And yeah, going for inverter based pcb directly hits them. While both LG and Panasonic claim to give 5y warranty over pcb so that should be covered. Is 6k kind off standard rate for pcb or it varies from product to product?
Thanks for your input again..
 
Tejas01 said:
Is 6k kind off standard rate for pcb or it varies from product to product?
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It may vary from company to company, but probably not by much. Samsung techie says it cannot be repaired so the whole set (1 main + 1 daughter board) was replaced (although they packed up the bad unit and carried it with them as per "company policy" ). It is basically the inverter circuit and control unit which converts the 220V AC to 310V DC before feeding it to the DC compressor. Has a few more sensors to monitor outside temps and system condition.
Tejas01 said:
LG inverter? Anything bad experience with them.
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That is actually my latest purchase (2019). Installation was done pretty quickly. Charged me 3.5k for everything. It's a little costly but considering I got a good discount for my purchase, didn't bother much. They are easily reachable at least for maintenance services. Model is KS-Q18AWZD. Purchased from Amazon for 42k.
 
Pcb will already will have conformal coatings. I had a 4k pcb replacement cost for a non inverter general in 2018 back in my village, where its sits exposed to direct sunlight.
 
So I finally went with LG MS-Q18KNYA1 1.5 ton. Total cost was 34k under exchange programme, original cost of 37k. Let's see how it performs.
Do you guys feel it is necessary to go for extended warranty?
Thanks for all the valuable feedback given by you guys.. appreciate it.
 
Continuing from AC maintenance thread https://techenclave.com/threads/air-conditioner-maintenance-tips.61902/page-4 as I didn't want to hijack the thread

@adder is there any other way something can be done about the issue mentioned here. I am really not a DIY type person especially when products are new. I do recall that the humidity on that day was around 55-58% as shown in the meter.
I was thinking of escalating this issue but then what should I tell them? Because no one really saw what he did when he connected the vacuum to the machine.
Do I mention incomplete or faulty installation compromising the safety of the product?
How should I counter the often repeated statement that "Vacuuming is not needed in new machines." This was told to me by that fool but I insisted to get the pump.
 
The user manual will most certainly state that vacuum is a must. If you didn't see a vacuum pump wire being connected to any outlet or even the outdoor unit electrical terminals, then he didn't vacuum.
 
Yes, the manual mentions it clearly. So let's say I explain them the situation, what do you think LG would do?
Discharge the gas from the system, vacuum it, and then recharge it?
 
Tejas01 said:
Yes, the manual mentions it clearly. So let's say I explain them the situation, what do you think LG would do?
Discharge the gas from the system, vacuum it, and then recharge it?
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If he had used the gas to purge the system, then the clamp meter or escom meter will show a lower amp draw, it could be just 0.1 to 0.5 amp less then what is written in the AC specs sticker on the OD. So in this case they would add gas to the system until its shows the correct amp reading.
In western countries they use , perhaps some in India use a refrigerant recovery machine which sucks the refrigerant back, into a container. In india, they may just release it to the atmosphere.
You can then add the correct quantity of the refrigerant(after vacuuming) by using a weighing scale. All OD unit will have a sticker which shows the power consumption and the amount of refrigerant filled inside the machine in grams or kilograms. So you just weigh a refrigerant container/tank, note it down or zero the reading, then as you add the liquid refrigerant back into the OD, the container/tank will become lighter which will reflect in the weighing machine. So you can precisely put the required gas into the AC.
 
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Had a very bitter argument with the guy who setup my ac. He tried all the ways to fool me that he vacuumed the machine but could not succeed. So have setup another visit from same LG centre(different technicians). @adder please Help me with one thing. When you said
"Instead he uses the outdoor compressor to vacuum, i.e opening only one valve in the outdoor unit.",
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does it means that the vacuum machine needs to be powered from electrical socket to do this particular operation? Or it can be done without need for electricity. Because I am technically challenged in these things and I am solely relying on this fact.. "The proper correct procedure to vacuum the ac is that the vacuum pump must be connected to an electrical point, and any pump running on electricity will make some noise, be it little or more." And as far as I know, this is correct vacuuming as all the youtube videos I can hear the vacuum making noise when running on electricity (which I did not hear in my case). Even if he is using power from the Air Conditioner supply wire(he claims he used indoor-outdoor supply line to run the vacuum as vacuum wire was small), the air conditioner's power line was not connected to any electrical socket. So his argument falls flat.
Please guide me as to what should be my next approach tomorrow and how to defend whatever crap they throw at me. I have already ordered a clamp-meter to check for ampere readings.

Also,
Typically people who dont vacuum would have used the gas to purge the air and moisture out at the expense of the gas. Not sure what he did in your case.
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So does this method still vacuum the AC but at the cost of the gas? Or are there chances of potential issues in the long run except for less cooling? If this also causes issues then I am ready to remove the gas from system, vacuum it, then refill the gas. But if the above mentioned procedure has no issues, I might just top-up the required gas and get the job done.
Sorry for the long post, I wanted to be as clear as possible regarding the situation. One wrong statement from me tomorrow and I could be in trouble.

Any other thing I should also be aware of?
 
It doesn't matter from where he takes the power from whether from a seperate electrical socket or from the AC unit itself. You should hear the vacuum pump running and it should run for 20min.

When they use the gas to purge the system, basically at the expense of the gas, since it is under pressure it cycles through the copper pipe and into the indoor unit coil and comes out the other end pushing out the air and moisture out.
If he has done this, then you only need to fill the gas. Since you do not know whether he did this, you will have to remove the gas and put exactly the amount mentioned in the OD unit sticker. He will need a accurate weighing scale, as said in my previous post. He will also need to vacuum it and when filling the refrigerant he needs to keep the refrigerant tank upside down, so that the liquid goes into(not the gas).
 
But won't the clamp meter give me an idea as to what he has done.
If he has used gas to purge the system, then the ampere would be less than the stated value and if he has left air in the system, the ampere rating would be higher.
What would be the ampere value if there was no vacuuming at all, I mean opening the L-key directly without purging the air?
 
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