These are the important points for any one looking at installing a split system air conditioner in a high rise.
Installing in high-rise apartment buildings is something that calls for more than just the installation itself. All installations require body corporate approval. As to the scope for each building, it can vary. Some can be pretty reasonable and others can be quite strict.
Generally, the only place for the outdoor unit in these situations is to mount it on the balcony of the apartment. Depending on the width of the balcony space you may need to look at the outdoor unit dimensions. If you are purchasing a 2.5KW or 3.5KW unit it is not such a big deal as all the units are approx the same size. It is the 5KW range that can have different sized out door units
It is also very important to buy a quiet unit so your neighbours don't complain. All the wall mounted split systems units listed on currentforce.com.au are in the very quiet range.
When loosing space on the balcony it is impotrant to be aware that you should not place anything on top such as plants or BBQ's (yes, we have seen it before) as this can damage the unit and void your warranty. Also, nothing should be place in front of the unit that can restrict the flow of air out of the unit. We can help you figure out which model is right for your situation in regards to the dimensions of the outdoor unit.
The main points that you need to be aware of are:
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Most will not let any pipes exit onto the balcony ABOVE the height of the balcony railing. This means pipes need to be ran inside the walls (cutting plaster) or internally.
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No drains are to allow water to drip of the balcony. Remember, water drains from the indoor unit when cooling and it also drips from the outdoor unit when it is in heating mode. If you have a down pipe on the balcony you should be ok. If not, you will need to install an evaporation tray, which usually sits under the outdoor unit.
This is essentially a heating element that evaporates the water. These are an extra cost. You can download a copy of a standard body corporate requirement list for air conditioner installation here. You should be able to gain a copy of your own buildings requirements from your building manager's office.
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The installation involves a bit more planning also.
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You will need to make sure we have a parking space made available INSIDE the building as close to the elevator as possible.
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We will also need access to a security pass for access up and down the elevator.
If this sounds like a lot of this to arrange, don't worry. We are experts in dealing with all the requirements and do our best to make it a seamless experience. If you use our online quoting system, you'll find body corporate approval will be much easier to gain.
The installation videos below are real installs
Installation of 2 x 2.5kw bedroom split systems
Suburb - Doncaster (level eight, brand new apartment complex)
This job required two different installation types. Both split systems being installed are for the bedrooms in a two bedroom apartment. Becasue if the layout of bedroom 2 it was not possible to locate the indoor unit against the external wall.
It needed to be approximately 2 meters in from the wall to be in an effective position to work at it's best. This required cutting plaster and running pipes, drain and cables inside the wall. The second unit located in bedroom 1 was what we consider to be a relatively straight froward installation.
The air conditioners installed - Mitsubishi SRK25ZMA
Check out the video below to see how we did it.
Installation of 7kw unit into lounge/kitchen area
Suburb - Melbourne CBD (Fourth level, modern apartment)
This installation was a bit of a challange because the client wanted the slit system installed 6 meters inside the apartment from the external wall on the balcony. It also had a small hallway in-between which meant we could not cut plaster out along the wall.
Fortunately there was a bulkhead running along the length of the room that allowed us to run our pipes all the way from the balcony to the preferred location of the indoor unit. While it is possible to run the pipes inside the bulkhead, we did need to cut out plaster to be able to feed them through it. And also to get the electricl supply back to the switchboard.
The location of the indoor unit was also ideal becasue the laundry was right behind it. This allowed us to run the drain directly into the waste. Without that being possible our only other choice would have been to install a water pump to extract the condensation from the indoor unit. We try to avoid that most of the time becasue pumps can create problems down the track.
The air conditioner installed - LG P24AWN-14
Check out the video below to see how we did it.
When wanting to install a split system in a large high rise building you will be dealing with a body corporate that is professionally managed. They are much stricter than body corps that are looked after by the tenants themselves. This means that any work being done on the building will be done so under strict rules.
This apartment building was no exception and had specified that there shoud be no external duct on the outside of the building. Our client told us that because of that they had been told by more than one air conditioning company that it would be impossible to install an air conditioner. They found us on the internet and used our online quoting system. Once we had established that there was a cupboard running parallel with both the internal wall of the lounge room and the external balcony wall, we knew it would be possible to run the piping, drain and cables internally through the cupboard. The result was a very neat install that complied with the body corporate.