Knowing how to choose an AC to fit your needs is more complicated than it might initially seem. With so many different types of air conditioners out there, all prioritizing different needs, features, and spaces, it's important to research and consult a heating and cooling expert to help narrow down your choices. Learning about your options, understanding the more confusing specifications, and learning how to pick the correct size and type of AC for your space is the perfect place to start.
That's where this handy AC buying guide can give you some buying tips and point your attention to the right kind of air conditioner for your unique needs, installation, budget, and space requirements or restrictions.
- Where to Start: Choosing the Best Type of AC for Your Needs
- Which Air Conditioner Fits Your Needs?
- Breakdown of Confusing AC Specifications
- Air Conditioner Sizing Guide
Where to Start: Choosing the Best Type of AC for Your Needs
There are many different types of ACs to choose from. Some are a more temporary cooling solution, like a window or portable AC, while others are permanent and long-term, like a ducted mini-split AC. Understanding the features and requirements of what each type of air conditioner provides and needs is an important starting point to narrow down your options. Let's take a look at this breakdown of each type of air conditioning system.
Window AC
Window air conditioning units are a fairly easy-to-install, inexpensive, and semi-permanent cooling solution for a single room. It can be used on its own or to provide supplemental cooling alongside a more permanent AC, during the hottest days. They mount directly on a window but can easily be removed and stored during cold months. There are multiple models to ensure you find the best window AC for your window type and room size.
- Ductwork Required?: No, but window access is required
- Professional Installation Required?: No
- Sizing: Cools one room
- Heating?: Yes, heat-capable window AC models are available.
- Best For: Single rooms, offices, apartments, and condos
- Price Range: $200 to $1,500+
Through-the-wall ACs
A Through-the-Wall air conditioner is a more permanent cooling solution. It's similar to a window AC, but doesn't require window access. This makes it ideal for spaces where there are no windows, the windows are permanently sealed closed, or to prevent a bulky AC from blocking your view or ruining your home aesthetic. It's designed to seamlessly fit into a wall cavity, saving floor, wall, and window space.
- Ductwork Required?: No
- Professional Installation Required?: Recommended
- Sizing: Cools one room
- Heating?: Yes, heat-capable through-the-wall AC models are available
- Best For: Apartments and condos
- Price Range: $200 to $1,500+
Portable Air Conditioners
Portable Air conditioners are a type of cooling solution that requires very little setup. As their name suggests, they are more portable than other ACs, making it easier to move from one room to another. The best portable AC models usually take up a little floor space, but will easily fit in most windows for ventilation via a hose.
- Ductwork Required?: No, but requires window access
- Professional Installation Required?: No
- Sizing: Cools a single room or space
- Heating?: Yes, heat-capable portable AC models are available
- Best For: Large rooms, apartments, and condos
- Price Range: $200 to $1,500+
Ductless Mini-Split System
Ductless Mini-Split Air Conditioners are a cooling solution with more versatility than traditional AC solutions. They are available for single-zone spaces (one room), dual-zone spaces (two rooms), and multi-zone spaces (more than two rooms). They consist of one or more air handlers, all connected to an outdoor compressor, and offer multiple mounting configurations, to ceilings, baseboards, and walls, to fit your space.
- Ductwork Required?: No
- Professional Installation Required?: Recommended
- Sizing?: Single and multi-room cooling
- Heating?: Yes, heat pump ductless mini-split models are available
- Best For: older homes, dorms, and multi-unit facilities
- Price Range: $500 to $3,500+
Ducted Split Systems
Ducted Split Systems are similar to a Split Central AC system, with all the same components in both indoor and outdoor units, but are designed for retrofit flex duct installation in homes with limited ducting space. Like a split central AC system, they use ductwork to bring cool or heated air to individual rooms throughout a house, but can be installed alongside a whole-house dehumidifier. There are multiple installation options to ensure you get the best ducted split system for your home.
- Ductwork Required?: Yes
- Professional Installation Required?: Yes
- Sizing: Single and multi-room cooling
- Heating?: Yes, most ducted mini-split systems have a heat pump
- Best For: New or retrofitted homes
- Price Range: $1,000 to $5,000+
RV Air Conditioners
RV Air Conditioners are exactly what they sound like: AC units specifically designed for installation on an RV. They are available as rooftop-installed or under-bench-installed models and are available in multiple sizes to accommodate the unique needs and size of your specific RV or van. They can be installed with or without ductwork to best fit your RV and cooling needs.
- Ductwork Required?: Depends on the model and RV needs
- Professional Installation Required?: Recommended
- Sizing: Single or multi-zone RVs
- Heating?: Yes, heat-capable RV AC models are available
- Price Range: $900 to $2,000+
Package Terminal AC
Package Terminal Air Conditioners (PTACs) are commercial-grade ACs most often used in hotels and other multi-unit facilities. Often installed directly under or above a window, they are capable of supplying cool and heated air for all-year-round climate control.
- Ductwork Required?: No
- Professional Installation Required?: Recommended
- Sizing: Single room or large suites
- Heating?: Yes, most PTACs have a heating element
- Best For: Hotel rooms, sunrooms, offices, and other multi-unit facilities
- Price Range: $1,000 to $1,600+
Vertical Terminal AC
Vertical Terminal Air Conditioners (VTACs) are another type of commercial AC, primarily used in multi-unit facilities like dorms, hotels, and assisted living facilities. Designed to occupy a utility closet space, they don't take up much floor space or require connection to an outdoor compressor.
- Ductwork Required?: Yes
- Professional Installation Required?: Yes
- Sizing: Multiple room heating and cooling
- Heating?: Yes, most PVTACs have a heating element
- Best For: Multi-unit facilities
- Price Range: $1,000 to $2,500+
Which Air Conditioner Fits Your Needs?
Finding a nice balance between value and cost is important, but it can look different depending on your unique needs, which is why selecting the perfect cooling system is so important. Each type of air conditioner has different requirements for installations that will largely depend on how you want to use it and the limits of your space.
A window, portable, and through-the-wall AC are great for supplemental cooling in a single room alongside your home's normal AC. Deciding between those will depend on budget, space, and window configurations within your space.
For larger or multiple space cooling, a ductless or ducted mini-split system should be considered. The decision will likely depend on the ducting capability within your home.
RV ACs, PTACs, and VTACs are not usually designed for residential use. RV AC should only be used in trailers, RVs, and vans. PTACs and VTACs are primarily used for commercial settings, like apartments, hotels,
Breakdown of Confusing AC Specifications
Don't let confusing specifications about different models' performance ruin your air conditioner shopping experience. Let's talk about some of the commonly confused specifications. Understanding what each spec means allows you to understand exactly what an air conditioner can do and helps you buy exactly what you need.
ASHRAE vs SACC BTU Ratings
One of the most confusing but important specs when it comes to air conditioners is the difference between ASHRAE and SACC BTU ratings. These specifications are a good indication of an AC's performance ability within the conditions of a space. Both ASHRAE and SACC systems rate the performance of an AC in specific conditions based on a standardized testing method. Both indicate better performance as the ratings increase.
To test and rate the performance and efficiency of air conditioners, the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning was formed and developed the original standard efficiency testing process in 1959. This became the ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers) BTU rating system, which has been an industry standard. This rating system only tests AC performance at an ideal climate of 80 degrees F and 51 percent humidity.
In 2017, the Department of Energy (DOE) developed a more precise performance and efficiency testing method, the new SACC (Seasonal Adjusted Cooling Capacity) BTU rating system. This testing method takes into account different temperature and humidity conditions and averages the performance and efficiency, giving users a more realistic representation of the system's BTU output.
EER Vs. SEER Vs. SEER2 Ratings
SEER2, SEER, and EER rate an AC's cooling efficiency in specific conditions, showing a higher energy-efficient AC with higher ratings. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers all of these ratings when determining whether an air conditioner is Energy Star rated.
The Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) rates the overall potential energy efficiency of an air conditioner and ranges between 8 and 15, with ratings 12 and up having reliable energy efficiency. It's a basic ratio calculated by taking an AC's potential cooling capacity or maximum BTUs and dividing it by the potential maximum cooling wattage.
The Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) is a specification developed by the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) and indicates the actual energy efficiency of an air conditioning system. This ratio, usually ranging from 13 to 24, is calculated from the total cooling capacity (BTU) and the total electric energy input (kWh) used during a set testing time period. It's safe to look for a reliable SEER rating between 16 and 18 when buying an AC.
SEER2, or the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio 2, is an updated version of the SEER rating that still represents the energy efficiency of an AC. Developed in 2016 by the Department of Energy in response to stricter energy efficiency standards, they updated the testing methods to factor in real-world data like external static pressure, operational cycles, and varying airflow resistance based on ducted or non-ducted operation. This ratio usually ranges from 13.4 to 25, but a reliable AC will have a SEER 16-18 rating.
What is HSPF?
Similar to SEER, Heating Seasonal Performance Factor (HSPF) is a BTU per hour measurement of a heat pump's energy efficiency to provide warmth. It ranges between 8.2 to 13, with higher ratings indicating a heat pump is more efficient at producing heat with a lower energy consumption rate. For reliable heating, it's ideal to look for an HSPF 8.8 or higher rating.
Refrigerant and Line Sets
All air conditioners use refrigerant to cool your space by absorbing the heat from the air. So what's the difference between all of the refrigerants, what is a line set, and how are they related?
The different refrigerants in the specifications section of an AC product page indicate refrigerant formulas, which all have different efficiencies, risks, environmental impacts, and Global Warming Potential (GWP). Depending on the manufacturing year, these refrigerants could look vastly different due to shifting industry standards and regulations. The most recognizable formula, Freon (R-22), and the more recently phased out R-410A are examples of this, as they are not used in new machine production due to their higher environmental impact.
The more commonly found refrigerants used on the market today are R-32, a single-component refrigerant, and R-454B, a blended formula that is quickly becoming an industry standard. Both refrigerants are more energy efficient and have a lower GWP than their predecessor R-410A.
Line sets are the copper pipe that houses the refrigerant within mini split air conditioning systems. It's important to note that not all mini splits provide the line set for their installation, which is an important consideration when selecting an AC. Systems that do provide the line set will often state whether or not it is precharged (prefilled) with refrigerant, which could simplify the installation.
Line sets can also come in varying lengths, making it an important installation consideration as AC units, like a ductless mini-split, connect indoor units to their outdoor compressors with a line set. This makes it important to know where the AC will be installed and the distance between the indoor and outdoor units.
Wi-Fi Compatibility
This specification is fairly straightforward as it simply means the AC can connect to your wi-fi, but are smart air conditioners worth it? The answer is entirely dependent on the buyer. For those who want something simple and have no interest in advanced control over their temperature, it might not be worth it for them. However, it is certainly helpful for people who want to create routines, manage settings when the space is unoccupied, or track data for improved energy conservation and 24/7 comfort.
Air Conditioner Sizing Guide
Finding the perfect-sized air conditioner is an extremely important step towards improving your climate control. An oversized AC will result in overconsumption of power, while selecting an undersized AC will cause your system to run constantly. Neither is an outcome you want, so take a look at our best AC sizing guide below, or calculate the BTUs needed for your space.
This chart is a great general reference on selecting the correct BTU-rated air conditioner for your square footage. For rooms larger than 2,500 square feet or for more unique installation applications, please consult a professional or contact Sylvane's product experts at 1 (800) 934-9194 or experts@sylvane.com.
