Inverter Air Con: Beware Of High Standby Power

[marshmallow 0]

ok, this is wat i just found out frm my aircon guy. but bear in mind, neither he nor I have any concrete numbers to back it up. this is based purely on wat his site "engineers" tell him.

1) all inverters will have this standby power drawn so long as the mains is not switched off.

2) M* brand does have a relatively high standby power usage, as compared to other brands, be they D*, P*, T* or any other inverter system.

3) if the time duration between switching off the mains and turning on the compressor to use the aircon is less than a day, it is still ok, and no significant damage is caused to the compressor. i take it that this means the compressor oil will not lose its temperature that quickly in order to effect its viscosity (thin out) and not be able to perform its function adequately.

4) if you're going to be away for a few days, u can either leave the mains on (thereby incurring standby power usage), or u can switch off the mains, but upon return, make sure u switch on the mains at least 6hrs before using the aircon.

the above is wat is told to me. perhaps someone more technically-qualified or who has the actual numbers and technology know-how can advise us, end-users. thanks.

Thanks for all the effort in researching... these are things that layman (like me ) won't think about.

Sorry need to ask a stupid question for my clarification... My compressor is connected via those 15A round pin kind of plug. When the switch for this plug is off, is it equivalent to switching off the mains? Or I must go to the DB to switch the power off then it's considered as "switching off the mains"?

Thanks...

[neubie 2]

Thanks for all the effort in researching... these are things that layman (like me ) won't think about.

Sorry need to ask a stupid question for my clarification... My compressor is connected via those 15A round pin kind of plug. When the switch for this plug is off, is it equivalent to switching off the mains? Or I must go to the DB to switch the power off then it's considered as "switching off the mains"?

Thanks...

switching off the 15A roundpin plug is good enuf. no need to off the DB switch.

[RimBlock 0]

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory article on standby power in multiple devices (what has it and why) here.

Table of standby power by product (note the set top box power usage) here.

NEA database of registered goods and their power consumption here. I believe Mit3a28 has confirmed this does not include the standby power consumption though. Still interesting to find out though.

I have also registered with energyrating.gov.au to access their pooled standby data so hopefully some of that will give some useful results.

RB

[manutd1972 1]

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory article on standby power in multiple devices (what has it and why) here.

Table of standby power by product (note the set top box power usage) here.

I have also registered with energyrating.gov.au to access their pooled standby data so hopefully some of that will give some useful results.

RB

this is good and helpful to all of us. only thing is, some of the products and models in the australian market is different from those here. for eg. D* brand's aircon over there is completely different from the ones sold here. so i don't know how applicable the data will be.

nevertheless, it is a good piece of information. we can perhaps use it as a general guide if there appears to be a running pattern amongst and within the brands of appliances.

[RimBlock 0]

this is good and helpful to all of us. only thing is, some of the products and models in the australian market is different from those here. for eg. D* brand's aircon over there is completely different from the ones sold here. so i don't know how applicable the data will be.

nevertheless, it is a good piece of information. we can perhaps use it as a general guide if there appears to be a running pattern amongst and within the brands of appliances.

Sure, the links are meant to be a guide only.

So, why don't we make our own ?.

If people are willing to get the specs of their electronic devices and send them to me then I will collate them in to a spreadsheet or possibly a database depending on the volume of data.

I will start by adding the ones I have where I can get the information.

If people cannot find the information about power usage then if they can post the item type (aircon, tv, set top box, games console etc), manufacturer and model number I can see what I can find out. Please note the more information you can get the better as I will be doing this in my own time.

I will look for the best way to share it, whether it be on my own website or via a third party and make the link available so people can download it with out having to request I send it to them individually. If it all goes well, hopefully the mods will be happy to sticky it.

Sending the details to my by PM would be prefered as it will not clutter up this thread. If for some reason someone does not want to send via PM then I will create a new thread and they can post it there.

RB

[wolflet 1]

Sure, the links are meant to be a guide only.

So, why don't we make our own ?.

If people are willing to get the specs of their electronic devices and send them to me then I will collate them in to a spreadsheet or possibly a database depending on the volume of data.

I will start by adding the ones I have where I can get the information.

If people cannot find the information about power usage then if they can post the item type (aircon, tv, set top box, games console etc), manufacturer and model number I can see what I can find out. Please note the more information you can get the better as I will be doing this in my own time.

I will look for the best way to share it, whether it be on my own website or via a third party and make the link available so people can download it with out having to request I send it to them individually. If it all goes well, hopefully the mods will be happy to sticky it.

Sending the details to my by PM would be prefered as it will not clutter up this thread. If for some reason someone does not want to send via PM then I will create a new thread and they can post it there.

RB

pm space quite limited. u might wanna share ur email address so pple can send it via email instead. else ur pm inbox will be full in a jiffy

[RimBlock 0]

pm space quite limited. u might wanna share ur email address so pple can send it via email instead. else ur pm inbox will be full in a jiffy

Ahh, ok, 20 message max. No forwarding option.

Ok please send to Rim_Block-@-hotmail.com (remove the '-' signs).

Thanks

RB

[marshmallow 0]

Ahh, ok, 20 message max. No forwarding option.

Ok please send to Rim_Block-@-hotmail.com (remove the '-' signs).

Thanks

RB

or maybe you can make an online spreadsheet on google document, then pple can key in the data directly into it

[marshmallow 0]

switching off the 15A roundpin plug is good enuf. no need to off the DB switch.

Thanks for your reply

so i supposed it also means that if i normally switch off my 15A round plug, i should switch it on 6 hours before i use my aircon....?

[RimBlock 0]

or maybe you can make an online spreadsheet on google document, then pple can key in the data directly into it

This would be a good idea but my work blocks the Google apps so I cannot manage it through the day if I get a quiet period at work .

RB

[neubie 2]

Thanks for your reply

so i supposed it also means that if i normally switch off my 15A round plug, i should switch it on 6 hours before i use my aircon....?

bingo.

[manutd1972 1]

Thanks for your reply

so i supposed it also means that if i normally switch off my 15A round plug, i should switch it on 6 hours before i use my aircon....?

if it's only going to be switched off for less than a day, den there is no need to switch it on 6hrs before u using ur aircon. only if u're leaving it off for an extended period of time, eg. a week or a few days at the very least, den u would need to switch it on 6hrs before using the aircon.

[user123 5]

Reading some responses here, I come to another conclusion: For those rooms which will have aircon turned on most time of day, inverter aircon may still make sense - the bills saved may well make the high standby power comparatively acceptable. For those rooms where the aircon is for occasional use, inverter aircon may not make sense - you will end up paying and wasting energy for nothing.

I have a system 3, two for room, use everynight, 1 for hall, use once in blue blue moon....does that mean the condenser for the hall will consume much energy on standby mode? Just because this is system-3, does that means the 3 blower sharing one common condenser or they have separate

"condenser" in the condenser unit?

[VerifyTheFacts 0]

if it's only going to be switched off for less than a day, den there is no need to switch it on 6hrs before u using ur aircon. only if u're leaving it off for an extended period of time, eg. a week or a few days at the very least, den u would need to switch it on 6hrs before using the aircon.

I would think that before we start switching off equipments, find out actually how much it really consume. Should not risk endangering yourself just because of some hearsay. Aircons are very much different from our TVs and Radios where they are plugged into 13A plugs and meant to be turned off by users but Aircons are high power operating equipments and turning on and off at the circuit breakers does not seem to be a very smart move. If there are real concerns it may be better to seek clarifications from manufacturers and have their advice on record.

[VerifyTheFacts 0]

did they state why the heater is on only when temp is above 21? shouldn't the heater only turn on when the ambient temp is low instead of high?

I think your logic is right, it should turn on below 21 instead of above 21.