Looking for air con: store and model recommendation please

[soistalker]

Our condo is 42sq.m. We want to get a good air conditioner to replace the old one. The old one, I believe, is 25,000~28,600 btu. Can someone recommend a store with a good selection at a good price and knowledge salespeople? What models are really good and dependable?

Edited May 8, 2018 by soistalker

[KittenKong]

My condo is much larger than that but my air-con is rated at around 21, as was the one it replaced, and it works fine. So I wonder why yours is so large?

I would always get an inverter model as it should save money on electricity costs.

I think I would be inclined to favour brands that concentrate on cooling equipment, rather than ones that make every appliance known to man including TVs, cookers, kettles etc. But my own air-con is a Hitachi and I'm still happy with it after 6 or so years, so maybe that proves me wrong.

Edited May 8, 2018 by KittenKong

[everett kendall]

Samsung

at Num Chai

[DrTuner]

Lazada or Numchai on Sukhumvit, Mitsu inverter.

 

Good luck getting a decent installing crew, even Numchai sent a clueless gang of subcontractor somchais a few weeks back. I was surprised one of them didn't fall when he thought it was a good idea to sit on the outside unit outside the house, 5m from the ground. Took all day to replace an existing unit and had to keep an eye on the bozos all the time. If any one knows of a crew that has a farang supervising every second of the installation, let us know.

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

58 minutes ago, KittenKong said:

I think I would be inclined to favour brands that concentrate on cooling equipment, rather than ones that make every appliance known to man including TVs, cookers, kettles etc. But my own air-con is a Hitachi and I'm still happy with it after 6 or so years, so maybe that proves me wrong.

 

This is my approach. Yet, I've found Panasonics and Mitsubishis to be very strong, quiet and reliable. I've also been satisfied with Daikin.  I've found Samsung and LG weak. Experience in four tropical countries. 

Edited May 8, 2018 by Kaoboi Bebobp

[johng]

14 minutes ago, DrTuner said:

has a farang supervising every second of the installation

Pretty unlikely unless the farang went through all the trouble of getting Thai Citizenship.

On second thoughts perfect  job for a "look Krung"    half Thai/Farung   Pattaya should have loads !

 

[Lacessit]

Mitsubishi has always been a reliable brand for me. Bought a couple of Panasonics on price, and have regretted it ever since. Switch gear keeps failing.

[reargunnerph3]

Central Air Pattaya Sukhumvit

[MrBanks]

I recommend Daikin, with inverter. If you go to the Daikin website there is guidance to work out how many BTU you require.

If you are in Pattaya area I can recommend ARC engineering as the place to buy and have them instal it. Sometimes they don't have it in stock but they can order exactly what you want, they also do installations and servicing.

It is a farang owned company, one is Swiss (I think), cannot remember where his partner is from and they have been doing business here for over 20 years, so they must be doing something right.

To find it, if you are coming in to Pattaya on the 7 (heading in  from Bangkok direction), when you get to the end of 7 turn left on Sukhamvit and they are approx. 200 yards up on the left.

 

[berrec]

Lots of good members first hand experience and advice ........here is a supplement supporting document of points I put together sometime back when looking around for the preferred AC option for myslef.......at the end of the document is a review of the top brands that may also help in your decision making.

 

Just keep in mind you are in a tropical climate and selecting an AC unit slightly above the suggested room size and BTU/Kw rating (a little more expensive to crank out the cold air) may be an advantage to your personal environmental comfort factor.  

AC - How to Choose an AC Unit Information.pdf

[jkcjag]

Go to Power Buy, usually in Home Pro or Central, rather than an independent shop. The installation and after sales follow up in case of problems would be more dependable.

The capacity required is easy to calculate.

"Inverter" type are the latest. I have several Mitsubishi Electric Mr Slim...recommended...and so quiet. No problems at all in 5 years so far.

[DrTuner]

1 hour ago, jkcjag said:

"Inverter" type are the latest. I have several Mitsubishi Electric Mr Slim...recommended...and so quiet. No problems at all in 5 years so far.

The newest mitsu inverter in quiet mode is so quiet you can barely hear it. Quite nice in the night.

[johng]

The newest mitsu inverter in quiet mode is so quiet you can barely hear it. Quite nice in the night.

What about if you need some "white noise"
to drown out the soi dogs howling and Mr my exhaust pipe is huge but something else is miniscule ?

[Sir Galavant]

I highly recommend 'PK Air and Service' on Thepprasit Road in Jomtien.   

https://www.facebook.com/PkAirAndServicePattaya/   

081-344-9052 - Khun Pittaya

I try to support the local family businesses whenever possible, and Pittaya had been previously recommended to me for a cleaning and repair of my old Mitsubishi, which was still running after 14 years.  I was impressed by him, so I took a gamble and it really paid off for me - best service experience I've had in my 15 years here.

 

I got the best price, best response time, an excellent installation, and all equipment delivered by Pittaya and his three other workers, all who seemed experienced, knowledgeable and professional.  So much better than the subs I've dealt with from the big box stores.  

 

They showed up at 9:30am with all equipment still in unopened boxes, and the installation went perfectly, and that never happens. They cleaned up and were gone by noon.

 

After some research, I'd chosen a 15,000 BTU Mitsubishi Mr.Slim Inverter Unit for one of my two 32 sq. meter rooms. Mitsubishi has one of the best reputations for reliability, and this one is also strong and quiet.  I'm actually using it to cool both rooms, especially at night.  

Edited May 8, 2018 by Sir Galavant

[Pattaya46]

6 hours ago, everett kendall said:

Samsung

at Num Chai

 

I buy 2 Samsung aircons with inverter 5 years ago and I am very happy with them. Quiet, efficient and economical 

 

The shop where you buy them has little importance IMHO, as you can have the surprise to see you aircon bought at BigC installed  by the same people as for your aircon bought at NumChai ! Most big shops use several subcontractors 

 

For aircons - as for TVs - I would recommend to follow promotions of the big shops. The main sale season for aircon is already over, and promotions can be very interesting. I just bought (this Sunday!) another Samsung aircon with inverter for less than 12'000 baht   (installation included) in a "clearance sale" at BigC Xtra. 

 

[DrTuner]

53 minutes ago, johng said:

What about if you need some "white noise"
to drown out the soi dogs howling and Mr my exhaust pipe is huge but something else is miniscule ?

Turn off the quiet mode and set fan to 3 or 4, there will be the usual sound of air rushing. There's very little buffeting though, Mitsu improved the airflow a lot in the latest model. I have 4 Mitsus in the house, 9 - 24k btu, three are inverter and one is old school, inverters are far superior for comfort.

[cacahootie]

I've heard lots of people bash Samsung, but of all the aircons I have in 2 houses so far, the Samsung I bought from PowerBuy has been the best, quiet and reliable.  I definitely think the inverter is a smart choice - particularly because it can "throttle" the compressor and keep a steady stream of cool air instead of alternating very cool and room temp air - I like the steady stream of cool air.  I purchased mine online at a sale via PowerBuy, and the installation crew was very quick and efficient.  The people I had remove it and then the crew that subsequently reinstalled it for me in Chiang Mai were not at the same level of professionalism, imo.  PowerBuy has always followed up with me to make sure everything was delivered and installed properly, and I find their prices are typically good, especially on sale.

[peterb17]

Air con shop? - Ask ? 

[Pattaya46]

1 hour ago, cacahootie said:

I've heard lots of people bash Samsung, but of all the aircons I have in 2 houses so far, the Samsung I bought from PowerBuy has been the best, quiet and reliable.  //

Ignore these people, they probably all have an iPhone and/or iMac... 

 

More seriously, as I said before I already bought 2 aircon Samsung 5 years ago, and just bought another one for another condo unit. Nobody that I know who had problems with Samsung aircon. Samsung aircons are good ones IMHO.

And yes, inverter is a must-have. The price difference is now rather small, but the gain in comfort (no noise) and in usage cost (low power consumption) is huge 

 

[hkt83100]

I would go for Mitsubishi any time. Quiet, powerful, reliable.

[Oztruckie]

I would choose a Daikin myself, on the knowledge I had a Daikin ducted system installed in my residence in Australia,17 years later, still working as good as the day it was installed,never ever required a tech to do any work on it,also recommended by couple of mates who'd been in refrig and aircon business for 50 years. 

[DrTuner]

21 minutes ago, Oztruckie said:

I would choose a Daikin myself, on the knowledge I had a Daikin ducted system installed in my residence in Australia,17 years later, still working as good as the day it was installed,never ever required a tech to do any work on it,also recommended by couple of mates who'd been in refrig and aircon business for 50 years. 

Careful comparing equipment in other country to what you get in Thailand. The products sold in Thailand tend to be the bottom of the barrel spec cheap crap that won't even be sold elsewhere.

[ubonr1971]

homepro give extra items worth considering. 2 free servicing of the unit etc etc

[Pattaya46]

On ‎09‎/‎05‎/‎2018 at 4:55 PM, DrTuner said:

Careful comparing equipment in other country to what you get in Thailand.

The products sold in Thailand tend to be the bottom of the barrel spec cheap crap that won't even be sold elsewhere.

 

Please, prove it 

FYI, I recently bought a cheap aircon, and as the documentation of such models was in Thai language only I looked for an English speaking country who would sold them too. I found them on the Singapore websites . So according to you, MrTuner, people from Singapore are also offered "the bottom of the barrel spec cheap crap"? 

[dddave]

On 5/8/2018 at 9:53 PM, cacahootie said:

lots of people bash Samsung, but of all the aircons I have in 2 houses so far, the Samsung I bought from PowerBuy has been the best, quiet and reliable

My own experience with a Samsung 21,000 btu inverter AC unit has not been positive.  I purchased the unit at Power Mall in Bangkok and they provided installation. In the 4 years I have owned it, it has required major service 5 times, averaging about 3 to 4 thousand Baht each service.  Forget about warranty, every time I have been told "That part not warranty."  Power Mall C.S. does nothing but give you the Samsung phone number and Samsung Service has never been less than a 5 day wait, then an additional 4 or 5 days waiting for parts. 

I could rant on but suffice to say, I do not recommend Samsung air conditioners.

[Fruit Trader]

58 minutes ago, Pattaya46 said:

 

Please, prove it 

FYI, I recently bought a cheap aircon, and as the documentation of such models was in Thai language only I looked for an English speaking country who would sold them too. I found them on the Singapore websites . So according to you, MrTuner, people from Singapore are also offered "the bottom of the barrel spec cheap crap"? 

It is true that some products sold around Asia have different specs and carry model numbers unique to the region. As for being cheap crap, most of those rumours come from rear end gas passed between bar stools.

Anyways, hardly the place to ask about AC brands as everyone has the Rolls Royce model from the best shop in town.

[petermik]

Daikin/Mitsubishi number 1..........Panasonic best of the rest

[johng]

I remember there being 2 grades of Mitsubishi (heavy and something else) can't remember which is supposed to be better.

[DrTuner]

3 hours ago, Pattaya46 said:

 

Please, prove it 

FYI, I recently bought a cheap aircon, and as the documentation of such models was in Thai language only I looked for an English speaking country who would sold them too. I found them on the Singapore websites . So according to you, MrTuner, people from Singapore are also offered "the bottom of the barrel spec cheap crap"? 

Just check US stores and compare. First thing you'll notice is the use of central AC instead of separate units. The high end houses here are also starting to use them. Needs to be built in from the get-go.

 

And yes Singapore is not all a millionaires playground next to the Quays. The side up near Malaysia is cheaper and the entire island is peppered with low quality HBD flats.

[soistalker]

When do the sales start for the previous model year? Has anyone seen any good sales recently I  jomtien/Pattaya?