[anku94]

Hi, does anybody have experience buying air conditioners online?

Flipkart and Paytm are offering some really good deals - http://www.flipkart.com/lg-lsa3np3a-...me4bkuum8w2khk

I just moved to Mumbai, and need a couple of 1 ton split ACs, and will probably go for the cheapest LG/Voltas model, that we can use for an year or two and then sell at half the price.

[mukeshgoel]

Hi guys.

My Sharp Inverter AC AH-XP18PMT/PHT has stopped cooling. Only IDU's fan is running. Outdoor unit's fan is not running.

Operation lamp (red) is ON (the way it should be) but Timer lamp (orange) is blinking (unusual).

I think the gas has leaked (there was some different smell in the room but I am not sure).

Any suggestions? Any idea of refill cost of R410A gas? (I read somewhere it needs 700 gms. gas)

PS: Sharp service in Gurgaon is VERY bad. Now my AC is out of warranty (AC was bought in April, 2014) but even when it was in warranty, after registering complaint, they never came to attend the problem(s). Last time when it was cooling less, after waiting for 7-8 days, got it fixed from my trusted AC mechanic (it needed a thorough cleaning). It happened twice.

[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by kalpeshc

Does buying extended warranty make sense for modern day split ACs? The cost for a 1 ton 3 star split ACs extended warranty is appox 1500 for a year (and one can buy for a year)

Most modern electronics and household appliances don't have any issues for several years. Manufacurers or stores offer these extended warranties as they know there is little chance of them having to repair the item. I would save the 1500 and worry about any issue if required rather than have a guaranteed loss of Rs 1500.

[mykal shoemaker]

I have purchased a Hitachi inverter AC recently. Once in a while a pungent odour (like some cleaning chemicals) spreads during the startup of A/C. (Mainly around the auto cleaning period). Is that normal? I did get a support person visited once and he told all looks okay, as he couldn't feel anything extra.

[mukeshgoel]

Originally Posted by mukeshgoel

My Sharp Inverter AC AH-XP18PMT/PHT has stopped cooling.

And Sharp gave me an estimate of 11.5k+ for the ODU PCB.

Oh god why I bought a Sharp AC. It died a few months after after warranty expired.

My 2005 Hitachi split AC is doing great after 10.5 years.

I will never ever buy/recommend a Sharp AC again.

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by mukeshgoel

And Sharp gave me an estimate of 11.5k+ for the ODU PCB.

Try getting quotes from local ac technicians. They usually replace with compatible other brands and will be atleast 50% cheaper. I had changed the IDU for my cousins AC this way.

[Thad E Ginathom]

This is my worry about Sharp: it is relatively new in market, and "compatible" replacement parts may not be available. The local-street guys won't even have seen many of them yet.

Still, I am tempted to buy again, on value-for-money basis, to replace main hall AC. This 7-yr-old Samsung gets its leaks mended and gas refilled every year or two, is working fine, but now Internal unit is noisy and I am fed up with that. I will replace it sometime between now and next year's high summer.

[sgiitk]

Sharp is getting quite popular due to its lower price in the top end, and R410a. Sharp is a good brand, and by and large quite reliable, your incident notwithstanding.

[mukeshgoel]

Originally Posted by diyguy

Try getting quotes from local ac technicians.

I tried but the PCB is not available with any of the the old time experienced AC service guys including someone who was running Sharp service center till last year in a different city.

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Sharp: it is relatively new in market, and "compatible" replacement parts may not be available. The local-street guys won't even have seen many of them yet.

+1

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Sharp is getting quite popular due to its lower price in the top end, and R410a. Sharp is a good brand, and by and large quite reliable, your incident notwithstanding.

I agree. I think till 2013, Sharp AC were CBUs (in Team-BHP's language ) imported from Thailand but 2014 onwards, they are being manufactured in India and they seem to have reduced the quality to keep the cost down.

BTW, Sir, have you yourself used Sharp inverter ACs or impressed by some astonishing reviews that appeared last year on most of the forums simultaneously ?

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by mukeshgoel

.....
....
or impressed by some astonishing reviews that appeared last year on most of the forums simultaneously ?

Ha ha, those were all posted by a gent called rishiguru. I have tried asking him (at the thread he posted at BCMT) about his own experience with his Sharp AC but he has not replied yet.

How much warranty does the motherboard carry? Is it also covered for five years like the compressor? In fact I'm not sure which parts of an inverter AC ought to be covered under warranty. I suspect that the motherboard or the inverter unit is probably more expensive than the compressor (which used to be the most expensive component of the ACs of yore).

[Thad E Ginathom]

How much warranty does the motherboard carry? Is it also covered for five years like the compressor?

I was looking at the brochure yesterday: Indoor unit is only one year, outdoor unit is five. I suppose the PCB is in the indoor unit?

In a moment's weakness (I usually follow the policy mentioned a few posts ago) I signed up for AMC. It is over 4K, which, in th e cold light of day, is probably far too much to pay. If we had not a part failure in the first year, I would not have considered that.

Don't let me give wrong impression: I am far from put off Sharp by the one failure. I am thinking of replacing our now-noisy elderly Samsung in the main hall with another Sharp.

The engineer, in passing, advised us to get 1.5 ton. With a 1.1-ton in the bedroom, and a change from 2-ton to 1.5-ton, both inverts, I'd hope for a noticeable change in the electricity bill.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

.....
.... I'd hope for a noticeable change in the electricity bill.

I think a little differently now; if the saving on the electricity bill gets offset by the huge expense of having a part changed, nothing has been saved really.

Unfortunately, the failure rate with most appliances these days is far greater than with the previous generation of household appliances.

[Aroy]

Recently I realised that barring the compressor, every thing blows in the modern AC. In one of my window AC the MB and the fan blew - 8K in repairs. Now I have gone for AMC, which includes parts and labour for every thing except the compressor and the coil - gas is included.

All of us should at least consider AMC (even though it is quite steep - 2K in my case), but with modern electronics you never know.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by Aroy

.... but with modern electronics you never know.

I dare say it is more to do with planned 'obsolescence' or planned failure. The world has become very greedy.
And process control is so good these days that almost every aspect of performance or non-performance can be controlled to a remarkable degree.

I would like to point out that today's electronics CAN be made very very reliable, IF the intent is there. Sadly, it is only commercial considerations that drive the consumer market of today.
Such is not the case with products made to, say, mil specs.

The good old honest to goodness product cannot be found in today's marketplace.

[khoj]

That to me was less of a review and more of Sharp's marketing spiel.

Originally Posted by mukeshgoel

BTW, Sir, have you yourself used Sharp inverter ACs or impressed by some astonishing reviews that appeared last year on most of the forums simultaneously ?

IIRC it was posted in this thread too, either in part or in full.

Anyhow the PCB or the logic board carries 1 year warranty and Mathur ji you are correct what with this being the most delicate as well as the most expensive component of the inverter machine. I am currently in the process of finalising a couple of these machines and the dealers are insistent that I use a transformer for the sake of the board. I have therefore decided to get myself a couple of CVTs rather than the plane jane transformers. Overkill? maybe but better to be safe(r) than sorry.

Originally Posted by anupmathur

Ha ha, those were all posted by a gent called rishiguru. I have tried asking him (at the thread he posted at BCMT) about his own experience with his Sharp AC but he has not replied yet.

How much warranty does the motherboard carry? Is it also covered for five years like the compressor? In fact I'm not sure which parts of an inverter AC ought to be covered under warranty. I suspect that the motherboard or the inverter unit is probably more expensive than the compressor (which used to be the most expensive component of the ACs of yore).