Electrical Design, Installation & Maintenance
When designing electrical systems, there are two different considerations: installation, and maintenance and modifications after the equipment is commissioned.
Scotts Global technicians are highly qualified engineers who are trained both in general electrical design and installation and air conditioning-specific electrical design and installation concepts. A good electrical framework is essential for safe and efficient air conditioning installation, especially when executing large and complex commercial and industrial air conditioning projects.
Our team of Scotts Global Electrical Engineers ensures that all electrical work is done up to code and industry standards, with special emphasis on safety and efficiency.
Determining The Size of Your AC Unit
The size of an air conditioning unit is measured in BTUs. To determine the size of the air conditioning system needed to cool your interior environment, you should get advice from an experienced air conditioning technician. Several factors are considered including those listed below:
- Insulation: windows, roof and walls
- Windows: Amount and size
- Roofing: Type and condition
- Ductwork: Layout and efficiency
- Geographical site conditions
- Outdoor design conditions
- Indoor design conditions
- Building characteristics
- Configuration
- Operating schedules
Locating Indoor and Outdoor Unit
The first step in the installation of split AC is deciding the location of the indoor and the outdoor units, only then the next important steps of the installation can be initiated. Let us see the factors to be considered when deciding the location of these units:
Indoor Unit: Here are the important suggestions when deciding the location of the indoor unit inside the room:
a) The indoor unit is located inside the room at the location from where the air can be distributed evenly throughout the room.
b) As far as possible the indoor should be installed above the bed so that the maximum cooling effect can be obtained. It should be located directly above the bed. If one has to avoid the direct flow of chilled air on the body, one can always change the direction of the louvers. The indoor unit can also be installed on the wall towards your feet though it can be installed on other side walls also.
c) The wall-mounted indoor unit should be located at the height of about 8 to 10 feet from the floor so that most of the chilled air is used for cooling the room and not merely for cooling the hot roof.
d) The indoor unit should be accessible easily so that one can conveniently clean the filter every fortnight and the whole unit and also that one can manually change the position of the louvers easily.
e) If the indoor unit is installed above a certain window, make sure that it is in symmetry with the window, else the unit will look shabby. The indoor unit is meant to add to the aesthetics of the room and not destroy it.
Outdoor Unit: Here are some points to consider when deciding the location of the outdoor unit:
a) The outdoor unit should be located in an open space preferably on the terrace so that the air can flow freely over the compressor and the condenser. If the terrace is not available it can be kept on the awning above the wall or it can be hanged on the external wall supported by the angles.
b) The location of the outdoor unit should be such that it is easily accessible for carrying out the maintenance works of the compressor, condenser, and other devices. The installation and gas charging also should be convenient.
c) There should not be any hindrances in front of the outdoor that would block the passage of fan air from passing to the open space. Any blockages will seriously affect the performance of the AC and can also lead to the burning of the hermetically sealed compressor coil.
d) The surface on which the outdoor unit is to be installed should be rigid enough to avoid its vibration. The vibration of the outdoor unit will raise excessive noise and also lead to the breaking of the copper tubing and leakage of the refrigerant.
It is always advisable to keep the outdoor unit at the height above the indoor unit. If the outdoor unit is kept at a level below the indoor, some of the compressor power is used in pumping the refrigerant against gravity, thus reducing the overall performance of the compressor. Most of the outdoor units are quite silent so one does not have to worry about their noise. The internal parts of the outdoor unit are shielded against the rain and sun rays, so one can rest assured about their safety in different climatic conditions.
The refrigerant at very low temperature flows inside the tubing between indoor and the outdoor unit, and there is always some loss of refrigerant effect to the atmosphere from these tubing, hence the distance between the indoor and the outdoor unit should be kept as minimum as possible to reduce the loss of the cooling effect. The maximum distance between the indoor and the outdoor units can be about 15 meters.
Bending Copper & Water Drain Pipe
Step 1 - Rub Down the Copper Pipe
Copper pipes can tarnish by just sitting around as the moisture in the air interacts with the copper. The tarnish is a form of moisture and oil. There is no reason to get frantic if this happens but you should correct it as soon as possible. Tarnish can interfere with the process as bending copper requires even heating, and tarnish can redirect heat. Even the slightest difference can cause a problem. The copper can be cleaned with a good cleaner meant for copper. Shake the bottle to make sure none of the chemicals are separated. Pour the copper cleaner onto a clean rag and vigorously wipe down the copper pipes. Use a clean rag to buff the copper pipe.
Step 2 - Preparation
When bending copper pipes always be aware of the extreme heat that you will be generating. Fumes are not an issue so do not worry about wearing face protection. You will be working with copper that is hot and with a torch so always wear heat-resistant work gloves. Before you begin bending the copper pipes, place the clamp along the edge of a sturdy table. A stainless steel table is preferred. Determine where the bend should be and place the copper pipe you are working on in the clamp so that the area where the bend begins is visible. Do not crush the pipe with the clamp.
Step 3 - Bending Copper Pipes
A bend consists of 3 sections, and you will need to section off the pipe you are working on. Use the pencil to mark the beginning and the end of the bend. Place another mark in the center of the bend. To get the bends accurate you may need to open the clamp and move the pipe several times. The molecules in the copper have to change in order for you to be able to bend stiff copper pipes. The torch is used to do this as you will want to heat the copper at this point. Once the copper is hot, allow it to cool slightly and bend it with your gloved hands. For extreme bends, you can fill the pipe with salt to prevent kinks in the copper pipes. This is a slow process so take your time and you will soon have the bend you need.
Pipe Connection
1. Sweating pipe the old Fashioned way
Tools and materials:
Propane vs. Mapp gas: propane does not burn as hot, so use Mapp gas.
Gloves to protect your hands from hot copper or solder. Because soldering gets hot.
Heat shield. Use a piece of galvanized sheet metal, about 15 inches wide to snap between two studs, joists, or rafters. This will keep all the heat away from the studs, insulation, and drywall.
Fire extinguisher or water in case something gets too hot.
Lead-free solder, not lead solder. The package usually says 'Plumbing' right on it. If you are standing in the supply warehouse and you cannot remember whether to get lead-free or leaded, think about how safe it is too drink water with lead in it.
Solder Paste, or flux is a paste that you spread on the pipe before sweating.
Pipe cleaner for scuffing and polishing the outside end of the copper pipe. There are pipe cleaners for 1/2 in pipe and for 3/4 in. pipe. If you don’t have a pipe cleaner, you can use 400-grit sandpaper or 00-steel wool.
Pipe cutters: It is good to have a pipe cutter that has a cutter head on both sides. Usually, the pipe that needs to be cut is in a tight space that won’t allow you to rotate the cutter 360 degrees. It is good to have a mini cutter in addition to a big one.
Step by step:
When cutting, don’t tighten the blade beyond light finger tight. If you clamp the cutter on the pipe, you can crush the pipe, which will pretty much ruin your chances of it fitting tightly into the fitting that you fit it in. Snug the cutter, rotate, twist the knob. Snug it, rotate, twist it. Snug, rotate, twist. Most cutters have a de-burring reamer. Use it to clean up your cuts.
Plan the sweating order: solder all joints that are close to each other at one time. If you sweat one joint and then sweat another closely joint an hour later, the heat from the second solder will transfer to the first and cause pinholes. Sweat all the joints that are close during the same session. If you MUST come back and sweat a joint near others, try to use as little heat as possible.
Clean the inside of the fitting and the outside of the pipe with a pipe cleaner, emery cloth, or steel wool. Clean the inside of the pipe with the smaller wire brush.
Apply the flux: Use a brush or Q-tip to apply the paste to the outside of the pipe and the inside of the fitting. "Don't use your fingers, because the oils on your fingers can cause contamination in the flux." If you don’t like working with a little brush or a Q-tip, put on a latex glove and use your finger. "That way you don’t have to keep a flux brush in your tool kit making a mess." Be careful not to get your flux dirty, if you set the pipe down, prop the end over something so that the flux does not sit on the workbench, bucket, floor, or whatever.
Heat the pipe at the joint, not the pipe. Apply the solder coil to the bottom of the joint and let it climb up the pipe toward the heat. Don’t run solder around the joint because the solder won’t be pulled into the joint. "You'll get a bad seat, and you’ll need to redo the joint." The pipe is hot enough when it migrates to the heat.
Stages of solder:
(1) the solder will not melt
. (2) The solder melts, but won't migrate.
(3) The solder migrates up the pipe and into the joint.
After soldering, wipe down the joint with a wet rag to cool the joint. All you should see is a small silver ring of solder around the joint. You should not see a blob of pipe frozen on the pipe.
Wipe excess flux off the pipe when done. Flux is acidic and can corrode the pipe and fittings.
2. Pre-soldered fittings have solder already packed into the fitting. When using pre-soldered fittings, all you need to do is clean the pipe, flux it, slip on the fitting and heat it up. For pre-soldered fittings, heat the pipe, not the fitting because the solder migrates to the heat.
Heat the pipe until you see the solder come through to the outer edge of the joint.
To remove soldered fittings, melt the solder with heat. They can be used again after cleaning and fluxing.
When cleaning, just polish the surface, it is OK if there is still solder on the surface.
3. Push-to-connect fittings are fast to connect, slow to take apart These are certainly the easiest connector to use. Just clean the pipe, slide it into the fitting, and you’re done. Teeth inside the fitting hold the pipe.
Be sure to mark the depth of the fitting on the pipe before sliding it on, to make sure the pipe is pushed fully into the pipe for a tight fit.
To remove, use a little plastic tool that costs about a buck at the hardware store. It does not work as well as they say it does, especially in tight spaces. To use the removal tool, slide it on the pipe, snug it close to the fitting, squeeze the two together tight and pull hard. Then pull harder.
