Choosing an air conditioner for an apartment: rating of manufacturers

When it comes to purchasing HVAC equipment, it can be difficult to choose a brand that you can completely trust. First of all, a potential buyer is guided by the rating of air conditioner manufacturers, looking for available information on the Internet or among friends. User reviews, advertisements, advice from friends, informative articles - all this constitutes a definite opinion about a particular company, but not always a positive feedback from one person will benefit another buyer.

How to choose the right air conditioner by rating

First of all, you need to decide for yourself what is fundamental in choosing an air conditioner relative to the rating of manufacturers, namely:

• user reviews (the highest buyability of any brand);
• device price (cheapest or more expensive);
• quality and reliability.

The fact is that with such a division, manufacturers can change places in any sequence. For example, at the price of a brand like Gree or Lgwill certainly occupy a leading position, and DAIKIN or FUJITSUon the contrary, they will occupy the last positions in the list, since their cost is 2-3 times higher.

Also, you should always consider the place where the climate control device is purchased. If an air conditioner is selected for an apartment, then the rating of manufacturers is built according to one scheme, and when buying a cooling device in a semi-industrial or industrial premises - according to another.

Although factories such as DAIKIN, MITSUBISHI, FUJITSU GENERAL and SHARP, equipment for any purpose is always distinguished by a high level of assembly and high-class technical characteristics.

Quality and reliability rating

So, for a start, it is worth dwelling on the most important point - the rating of manufacturers in terms of quality and reliability, because even with a limited budget, any buyer wants to purchase a more or less functional device that will cause a minimum of problems.

In the table below, brands are sorted taking into account the following points:

• the frequency of failure of the entire device or its individual parts;
• assembly country - air conditioning systems of Japanese, Malaysian, Belgian and Thai assemblies are considered the most reliable, Chinese equipment has proved to be worse;
• quality of performance of all basic and additional functions;
• noise level.

A rating of manufacturers was compiled in terms of quality and reliability, taking into account the listed requirements. It is based on the experience of experts in the field of installation and maintenance of air conditioning systems with more than 15 years of experience.

Air conditioner rating - summary table

All air conditioners with a low reliability rating are most often manufactured in China, are incorrectly transported (boxes with outdoor units can even be transported horizontally) and often have a manufacturing defect of any part or structure as a whole.

Devices that hit the first lines of the manufacturer's rating in terms of build quality and reliability of operation are not sold in the departments of household appliances. They can be purchased only in specialized stores that sell only HVAC equipment. They are equipped with the best compressors, electronics and other components of the main working unit.

In addition, non-competitive Japanese manufacturers of air conditioners for apartments have earned a high rating and are regularly chosen by buyers due to:

• the presence and appearance of minimal defects in the first years of operation;
• convenient and varied functionality based on the latest technologies;
• completeness with a multistage protection system;
• power and efficiency;
• low noise;
• interesting design.

It is the top-rated manufacturers that provide high-quality and reliable cost savings by creating "smart" inverter air conditioners operating in a mode of smoothly varying speed and constant temperature maintenance. No jumps or changes in start and stop cycles like splits with linear compressor control.

Industrial refrigeration units were not considered in this table, so this rating of manufacturers has more to do with the selection of a system for an apartment, small office or semi-industrial facility.

Rating by price and reviews

If we rely on the price per unit of goods, then, of course, all data will be placed exactly the opposite, since HVAC equipment with low positions costs much less than its competitors from the first lines. Each buyer decides for himself which equipment to purchase, and the above information is only advisory in nature.

Assuming that the quality rating is not a fundamental factor for the purchase, what kind of air conditioner should you choose for the apartment then? In order not to risk the money invested in the purchase and at the same time not to overpay for the brand and bells and whistles of the cooling device, you should pay attention to the category with an average level of reliability rating.

Such split-systems and mobile units are distinguished by good functionality, decent factory-assembled quality - all this for a reasonable price. Here you can focus on user reviews, which usually reveal the main points:

• noise level;
• cooling / heating capacity;
• the ability to keep a given temperature;
• dimensions;
• case design.

In this version, air conditioners for an apartment from the following manufacturers keep a high rating:

• HITACHI;
• PANASONIC;
• HYUNDAI;
• CARRIER.

Buyers give good reviews of GREE, MIDEA, DANTEX, GENERAL CLIMATE and BALLU devices.

With splits and mobile devices from BORK, DELONGI, MCQUAY and CARRIER you should be careful before choosing them. The fact is that the BORK company initially has an opaque history of creating a brand. The company is registered as a German mark, but assembly is in progress in Russia, China and other countries. The rest of the companies mentioned, although they are in middle positions in the rating of air conditioners in terms of reliability, still the quality may suffer if the place of assembly is China. A few years ago, these brands were considered one of the best, now such expectations are not always justified.

What else should be considered when choosing an air conditioner for an apartment according to the rating of manufacturers, which is the best device to buy with a minimum budget?

In the conditions of severe limitation of funds, it is advisable to give preference to such popular brands as ELECTROLUX, SAMSUNG, DANTEX, BALLU, KENTATSU. In most cases, consumers leave good reviews about them. The only drawback of such devices is a higher noise and vibration level.

Many cheap air conditioners have an unpleasant plastic smell, which can emit a crackling sound when the temperature changes during operation.

As a rule, inexpensive air conditioners are not equipped with such bells and whistles as infrared motion sensors, a multi-stage filtration system with catechin and plasma filters, a weekly on / off timer, dehumidification of the heat exchanger, and the like.

Although the rating of air conditioners for an apartment (or other small room) in terms of manufacturer's reliability and build quality is conditional, the likelihood of breakage in expensive devices is extremely small in comparison with cheap Chinese climate control models.

Among all the HVAC equipment, DAIKIN and MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC are recognized as the best brands.