Air Conditioning Types for Dummies

Ductless mini split AC system

We hate to belabor the point, but it apparently bears repeating: if you want to read accurate information, you should probably look for a source written or compiled by someone who knows something about the subject. We doubt our readers would immediately trust medical information they get from some crayfish farmer or COBOL programming suggestions they hear from a kindergarten teacher's aide – yet that's pretty much the business model of the old eHow site (now disintegrating into several niche sites). A case in point, former English student Christine Lebenik (aka Krista Lebednik), who made a mess out of the eHow post "The Difference Between a Split AC and a Window AC"¹ at HomeSteady.com.

According to Lebednik,

"In [some] circumstances, the householder may have the option of choosing between a split AC and a window AC; in that instance, the householder should understand the differences between them and the advantages and disadvantages arising from those differences."

Umm, yeah, you have the option to choose... but what Lebednik doesn't mention, obviously because she doesn't know this, is that a split AC system is usually central air conditioning! We looked: the word "central" does not appear anywhere in Christine's post! At the very least, Lebednik should have pointed out the (rare) ductless, split systems available in the US, but "ductless" isn't in there, either.

Lebednik did a copy-reword-paste job on some moderately authoritative website to define a split system, but still missed the point. According to Christine (Krista), here are the chief differences between a window unit and a split unit:

"The primary considerations in making a decision between the two types of AC systems involve noise level, installation cost, ease of installation and ease of service because effectiveness and operating costs between the two types are comparable. Split AC systems compare favorably to window AC units in terms of lower noise levels, a circumstance that results because the compressor unit responsible for the operating sounds of an AC is positioned outside of the residence. Window AC units, however, compare favorably with split AC systems on all three of the other factors--installation cost, ease of installation and ease of service. Another significant consideration is that the residence must have sufficient available outdoor space for mounting the outdoor compressor unit of the split AC system; absence of such available space rules out the use of a split AC system."

Well, yeah, a $150 window unit in the master bedroom is a lot cheaper than central air, but come on, Christine: are you never going to mention that the ductless split system requires – we dunno – at least one hole cut in the house (per room); if not ductwork for the more common split central air system? Idiot... So Lebednik misinforms her readers chiefly through omission, because she apparently doesn't realize that the split systems of (apparent) interest to the OQ are better known as (mini) ductless split systems. What a maroon -- our Dumbass of the Day!

¹ The original has been deleted by Leaf Group, but can still be accessed using the Wayback machine at archive.org. Its URL was   ehow.com/list_7488616_difference-split-ac-window-ac.html

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