Air conditioning
Sizing it right the first time costs less than fixing it later
Design, installation, cleaning, repair and relocation for homes, condominiums, offices and commercial buildings — quoted from a cooling load calculation rather than a guess at the room size.
What we take on
New installations
Site survey, load calculation, pipework, installation, commissioning
Cleaning and maintenance
Coils, drain trays and filters cleaned, refrigerant pressure checked
Repair and diagnosis
Poor cooling, water leaks, unusual noise, compressor faults
Relocation
Removal, new pipework, recharge and testing
How many BTU does the room need
BTU measures cooling capacity. Undersize it and the unit runs constantly without cooling the room, driving the bill up and shortening the life of the compressor. Oversize it and the unit cycles off before it has pulled the moisture out, leaving the room cold but damp — and costing more to buy than it needed to. The table below is a starting point for an ordinary bedroom or living room in a house.
Add capacity when
- The room takes afternoon sun or has large glazing
- It sits on the top floor under the roof
- Several people use it at once, regularly
- There is a cooker, oven or other heat-producing equipment
- The ceiling is higher than 2.6 metres
| Room size | Capacity | Typically |
|---|---|---|
| 12–15 sqm | 9,000 BTU | Small bedroom, studio condominium |
| 16–20 sqm | 12,000 BTU | Standard bedroom, home office |
| 21–28 sqm | 18,000 BTU | Large bedroom, medium living room |
| 29–35 sqm | 24,000 BTU | Living room, open plan onto a kitchen |
| 36–44 sqm | 30,000 BTU | Large hall, small retail unit |
| 45–55 sqm | 36,000 BTU | Retail, open plan office |
Use this to budget. The actual selection comes from orientation, glazed area, ceiling height and occupancy — not from a fixed figure per square metre.
Choosing the type of system
The type of unit affects the budget, the look of the ceiling and the running cost far more than the choice of manufacturer.
Wall type
Lowest starting cost, quick to install, parts easy to find — but the unit is visible on the wall
Ceiling cassette
Even air distribution across the room, unit hidden in the ceiling, needs enough ceiling void
Ducted
Only the grilles are visible and it is the quietest option, but it has to be planned with the ceiling from the start
VRV / VRF
Independent control in every room from one outdoor unit, efficient at part load, higher initial investment
Is an inverter worth it
A conventional unit works by switching the compressor on and off, so the temperature swings and each restart draws a surge of current. An inverter slows the compressor instead once the room has reached temperature, holding it steadier and drawing less over a long run.
The trade-off is a higher purchase price and a more expensive repair when the board fails. It pays back best in rooms run for hours at a time — a bedroom or an office. For a room used briefly and rarely, a conventional unit can still be the better buy.
Brands we install and supply
Chosen to suit how the building is used and the budget it is built to, with parts and service centres available in Thailand.
How often should it be cleaned
Dust on the coil reduces how much heat the unit can exchange, so it works harder for the same cooling. The bill rises before anyone notices the room feels warmer.
Ordinary household
A few hours of use a day, normal dust
Rooms run most of the day
Bedrooms left on overnight, homes with pets
Offices and shops
Frequent traffic, doors opening and closing
Restaurants and dusty sites
Cooking vapour, smoke, or construction dust nearby
Beyond cleaning, have the refrigerant pressure and compressor current checked once a year. A slow loss of refrigerant usually shows no symptom until the compressor begins to suffer for it.
Signs worth calling about early
- It cools more slowly than it used to at the same setting
- Water drips from the unit, or a stain appears on the ceiling
- Unusual noise from the outdoor unit
- A musty smell every time it starts
- The bill rises with no change in how it is used
- The compressor cycles more often than before
Examples
Common questions
How long does one installation take
A typical household installation with a short pipe run takes half a day to a day per unit. Drilling through concrete, concealing pipework in a ceiling, or fitting several units at once is quoted with a firm schedule after the survey
Does relocating a unit always need a recharge
If the refrigerant is pumped down into the outdoor unit properly before removal, usually not all of it. A longer pipe run than before, or a leak found on removal, does need topping up to the actual length
Can I clean it myself
The air filter, yes — and it is worth doing monthly. The evaporator, condenser and drain tray need a pressure washer and dismantling; water in the wrong place damages the control board
Repair the old one or replace it
Past about ten years, on discontinued R22 refrigerant, and with a repair costing more than half a new unit, replacing usually wins once the saved electricity is counted
Do you take on large buildings
Yes — VRV / VRF systems, ductwork and ventilation for offices, hotels and factories, designed alongside the architecture from the drawing stage
Let us look at the site first
The survey costs nothing. We measure the space, check the orientation and the electrical supply, and set out the options with the trade-offs of each before any price is discussed.