You’ve moved into your very own place and although you miss mom and dad you’re secretly happy you’re not living by their rules anymore. It’s ok, we won’t tell  In this baking heat you can’t go without outfitting your apartment, or at least your room, with an air conditioner. But with so many brands and types of air conds in the market, picking one can be a hair-splitting experience.

Whether you’re after sleek design, quiet performance or affordability you want to be sure you ask your dealer these questions when you shop for an air conditioner.

What is the air conditioner cooling capacity and how much do I need ?

What you want is an air cond with optimum cooling power which depends on the size of the room. An unit that’s underpowered will be useless on a really hot day. A unit too strong and you’d be trembling all night – not to mention the unnecessary over consumption of energy.

Most people will tell you to judge an air conditioner’s cooling capacity by horsepower (HP). However what the HP refers to is the force of the motor that drives the compressor. The compressor works to drive cooling fluid or refrigerant through to the condenser. It doesn’t tell you how efficient the air cond is at cooling. This means two air conditioners with the same horsepower could produce significantly different cooling results.

To accurately measure cooling capacity, pay attention to the BTU (British Thermal Unit). To estimate how many BTUs required, follow the rule of thumb of 1,000 BTU for every 10sqft (about 1sq metre). You may need more BTUs for better cooling depending on other factors such as the number of windows in the room, the number of people expected to occupy the room, and whether the windows are facing the morning or afternoon sun.

What are the warranty and service conditions?

With warranties these days coming attached with a long list of conditions and disclaimers you can’t be blamed to think they are pretty meaningless. A matter of concern would be the tenure or period of the warranty. Longer warranty periods are valuable since they cover service costs which may rise as the air cond unit ages. Check which part does the warranty apply. Does it cover only the outer unit or compressor? What about the in-door unit? That could fail unexpectedly too.

Where is the air conditioner made?

You might wonder why this is relevant. Isn’t everything made in China these days? Well, not entirely so. The air conditioner brands available in Malaysia are mostly manufactured in China, Korea, Thailand, and domestically. We can’t make judgments about manufacturing standards since that’s more related to the brand than the country in which an air cond is made.

However, being a Malaysian company we’re obviously proud of Malaysian quality and standards in air conditioner manufacturing. With made-in-Malaysia air conditioners you’ll find the advantage of having technical staff readily available to service and troubleshoot any problems with your unit.

Which air conditioner brand is better?

We find ourselves attached to brand names whether on purpose or not. It could be because of something good you heard your friend say about it. Or that glaring billboard ad you see every day as you drive to work.

Choosing a brand has to be weighed against its cost, of course. In general, air cond brands can be sorted into two categories: those that specialise in manufacturing air conds, like Fujiaire and general electrical appliances manufacturers such as Sharp or Pensonic. You should expect a specialist brand to provide superior after-sales services so ask around to be sure. Either way, your best bet is to go with an established specialist air cond brand that has been around for some time.