Wall Air Conditioners - Not as simple to install as you think

Wall air conditioners are very similar to window air conditioners except that they are normally mounted through a wall or in a wall and they are normally rear-vented. Both these types are designed to cool a single room and need to be installed either in a window or in the wall. This facilitates easy exchange of air as cool, dry air is inducted into the room and the hot, damp air is pushed outdoors.

Installation of wall air conditioner is usually done by making a hole in the exterior wall of the house. Making such a hole might not be very difficult in some cases, as the area might be free of pipes and wires and you would only need basic carpentry skills and the requisite tools. However, making a hole through concrete, brick or stone is no easy task and unless you have some experience in doing so, you should give the job of installation in solid masonry walls to professional contractors.

For proper installation of the wall air conditioner you should read the manufacturer's directions that accompany the air conditioner unit very carefully and then proceed with the cutting and building of the opening as per these instructions. Care should be taken to set the unit slightly out of level so that the condensate can drain easily. You should also check the voltage of the unit and then arrange to plug it in according to the voltage i.e., 120 volts or 240 volts. The unit should not overload the circuit and as such you should check the capacity of the outlet circuit and also ensure that the cord of the unit will be able to reach the outlet.

You will also have to build a header - a horizontal beam that picks up loads from studs that are cut short and carries them to the sides of the opening, if you plan to install the wall air conditioner in a solid wall. However, you can install an in-wall unit beneath a window if you want to avoid taking the trouble of doing the above procedure as this space already has a header and should have double studs running down each side all the way to the floor.

If you plan to place the wall air conditioner under the window, you will have to make the in wall air conditioner space smaller than the window and you won't have to worry about supporting loads from above. This will also give a very good look to the whole set-up, as a metal box poking through a clean wall of siding will attract your attention. Under a windowsill, if you trim the exterior of the air conditioner the same way as the window is trimmed, it will be less noticeable.

You should start work on the inside of the opening before the outside as you will have to replace only a section of drywall and repaint the damaged wall if you encounter an unexpected obstruction like a gas pipe. This will be better than adding nailers to support the pieces of the siding that you have cut.

Just a few thoughts as you are looking at appliances. There are many more appliance articles in our appliance section. There is more specific information in the links at the beginning of this article. They can guide you where you need to go.

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