Before you buy an air conditioner consider the following:

• Think about how you can optimise the efficiency of your home before you buy

• look for the star (or energy) rating label on the air conditioner:

• • more stars mean lower power bills

  • is your home insulated? Insulated homes retain cool or heat for longer periods than homes without insulation.

This is the sort of information a technician should be asking you in order to determine the type of air conditioner you need and the capacity in kilowatts (kW) the air conditioner must be to meet the physical requirements of your home.

The actual size of the air conditioner in kW is a vital consideration. If the kW capacity is too low the air conditioner will not cool the space adequately, if the kW capacity is too high, it may cause the air conditioner to cycle on and off more than it should. This will increase the wear and tear on your air conditioner’s components.

Get the kW size right and you will receive optimal cooling from your air conditioner.