words Al Woods
Air conditioning systems undergo improvements mainly to incorporate advances in technology. Improvements in air conditioning aim to provide more cost-effective, safer and long-lasting cooling solutions for your home.
Here are nine awesome improvements in air conditioning technology to keep you cool during summer. Since the innovations are new, they may not be widely available, it is expected that they will be readily available in plenty in the near future.
1. Smart Thermostats
You can connect your air conditioner to a smartphone or tablet allows you to control temperatures on the air conditioning unit from any location. The process of programming a smart thermostat to adjust automatically to your preferences takes a short time. For example, if you live near St Petersburg, you can program your air conditioning in St Petersburg; because the air conditioner has a certain temperature when you are out of the house than when you are at home. When you are ready to leave the office for home, you simply have to access the air conditioner through your phone and click on to begin cooling your house by the time you get home. This will provide you comfort and save energy at the time resulting in lower utility bills.
2. Smart Cooling using a Sensor Network
A significant number of top air conditioning brands are now using sensor technology to provide smart cooling. One brand uses image sensor technology that detects the number of people present in the room and their location; it then cools the room accordingly and maximizes cooling comfort. The sensor also takes into consideration the size and shape of the room and then adjusts its swing angle using a unique smart swing attribute to optimize cooling. More importantly, it recognizes when people have left the room for a certain time and automatically switches off the AC to prevent wastage.
3. Dry Mode and Auto Humid Control
During the summer season, your AC overworks and when followed by the monsoon, some air conditioners exhibit water leakage as they are unable to control humidity. In the rainy season, traditional air conditioners consume extra energy and make the room colder than required. This leads to health complications such as the common cold, sneezing, allergies, and headaches. Some new air conditioning models have dry or dehumidification mode to control humidity.
Some brands are ahead as they have high-end models that are accompanied by humid auto control. The AC processor is fed with the humidity and temperature profile of more than 100 cities. The unit adjusts air conditioning considering the data and when there is high humidity, it expedites the refrigerant cycle to rid the room of humidity. Therefore, the dehumidification/dry mode enables modern air conditioners to provide clean, dry and fresh air.
4. Thermal-Powered Air Conditioning
These use a thermal battery to provide the cost-effective cooling of the home. At night, water fills the thermal battery and a freeze into an ice block, during the day, cooling is done using the ice block. Air conditioning using ice power reduces the need to use the compressor on the air conditioner resulting in the usage of less energy thus lowering utility bills.
5. Anti-VOC, PM1 and PM 2.5 Filters
Due to the rising levels of impurities in the air, it has become crucial to have highly efficient air filters on air conditioning units. Many respiratory diseases are linked to air pollution making air filtration an important part of air conditioning. This is the reason manufacturers are constantly trying to improve air quality through multi-layer filters.
Particulate matter (PM 2.5) is fine particles in the air emitted by vehicles, burning oil and wood. Some brands come with PM 2.5 filters to remove these impurities from your home. Others have PM 1 filters for filtration of impurities smaller than PM 2.5.
Other AC units have anti-VOC filters to eliminate volatile organic compounds (VOC) from the air. VOCs are natural compounds that turn into gases or vapors as they have a high vapor pressure when at room temperature. Most VOCs are harmful when they mix with nitrogen oxides as their reaction forms smog or ground-level ozone, which contributes to climate change.
6. Solar-Powered Air Conditioners
These use solar panels placed on the rooftop to derive energy from the sun. The solar energy obtained is used to power the entire HVAC unit. Although the installation of a solar-powered HVAC unit is costly, it is money-saving in the long run. This is because you will cease to use electric power which will significantly reduce your utility bills.
7. 4D Airflow with a Larger Fan and Wider Angle
Traditional air conditioners have an up-and-down swing blade that disseminates cool air in a room. However, some brands have new models with 4D swing, which is up-and-down and left-right, to blow the air in various directions to maximize cooling in the room. The 4D swing design has a motorized vertical and horizontal swing to ensure uniform cooling. Other models have a wider angle to guarantee even the circulation of cool air in the room without neglecting the farthest corners in the room.
8. Fast Cooling Technology
Just like you prefer fast-charging for your smartphone, fast-cooling is also a welcome addition in air conditioning units. Some manufacturers have incorporated technology that allows the AC unit to disseminate cool air at high speed for about 30 minutes; after that, the temperature is adjusted to a comfortable level. Other brands have a dual-fan compressor and 3D cool extreme that uses a three-vent system to pull out hot air quickly.
9. Auto Clean Technology
When you neglect the filters on your air conditioner, it rapidly reduces its cooling capacity. An AC unit that runs for six months without maintenance and cleaning diminishes its cooling capacity by 50%. Since you may not find time to clean your AC unit regularly, manufacturers have developed a solution for this problem. The units have auto clean functionalities where the AC cleans its filters using various methods and techniques.
Another brand has its units fitted with a brush that cleans the stainless steel filter from one side by removing the dust from the wing. There is a dust box that collects dust particles from the brush. After the cleaning process is over, the brush reverts to its original position.
