Air Conditioner Requirements

Venting

• Air conditioners work by pulling the heat from your home. However, for this to work, the air conditioner needs a place to vent the exhaust heat. In central air conditioning systems, the entire compressor system is generally installed outside. The excess heat it generates is simply vented out the top of the unit. Other types of units require a window, a screen door or another access point to outside to vent the heat being drawn out of your home.

Location

• You need a suitable location for your air conditioner. This is particularly important with window air conditioners, because they need to be set in a window that is a suitable size for the unit and that is strong enough to bear its weight when installed. You also need a place where you can anchor the mounting brackets for a window unit. Even units with an outside compressor unit need a suitable level platform on which to install the machine.

Power

• To operate, air conditioners require a power source. Smaller household air conditioners are plugged directly into an outlet. A dedicated outlet is a good idea for larger conditioners, because of the load they put on the circuit. Large commercial air conditioners may need to be on a special type of circuit or breaker to handle the load.

Airflow

• You need a way to get the cool air from your air conditioner to the parts of the house that you want cooled. This might not be a problem if you're concerned only with cooling a single room, such as a bedroom, with a smaller air conditioner, For central air conditioning, however, you must have existing ductwork in the house or else have ducts installed to move the cool air to all the rooms.