How to Buy a Secondhand Air Conditioner

“Is it worth it?”, the most important question we ask  ourselves when we’re planning to buy something that has already been used by someone else. Besides the question of “Is it worth it?”, there are still plenty of questions that need to be answered before buying a secondhand item such as “how many years has it been used?”, “does it still function the way it’s supposed to function?”, “how is the condition?”, and many others. In this section, we are going to talk about how to buy a secondhand air conditioner, the right way!

Buying Secondhand Air Conditioners

If you’re planning to buy something that’s secondhand or has been used by someone else, always think things through! What I mean by “always think things through” is that you always need to remind yourself that it’s important to know every bit of detail about the said item. It’s important since if you just carelessly buy something just because of a good or low price, then you’re going to have to prepare yourself for problems in the long run.

Buying a secondhand air conditioner, you need to check the room or area you’re going to put it in, whether it’s okay or not okay to install it, how much can it cool a certain area, and how this will impact you and other persons and/or pets. This is where professionals or experts come in handy when buying a secondhand unit, they will be able to check the unit’s condition and the capability to function normally the way it’s supposed to.

When buying a secondhand unit, you also need to consider what do you look forward in a unit because there are different features and specifications for each unit and it is important to know them in order for you as a buyer to know exactly what you want.

Buying a secondhand unit, you need to read and understand every bit of detail the seller lists on the said unit, after knowing all the details about the unit, you need to “research” the unit, I know it sounds complicated when you say “research” but quite honestly, it’s very important when you think about it because not only do you know the unit’s information but also you can get reviews from other people who have tried or owned the unit and that is very important especially for buyers.

By reading reviews, you can learn so much about the item, it can help you decide whether the unit or item is worth buying or not. Buying secondhand items or units, another way to help you make your decision on buying is by seeing the unit in person and I do not only mean seeing the unit only but you also need to test it out first to test out its condition and all, bringing one with a good amount of knowledge of air conditioners and/or experts or professionals is highly recommended because they can help you on whether the item is in top notch condition or already overused, which is not good by the way.

Overused or very old air conditioners, many experts say that you should avoid these types of secondhand units since not only has it been overused but you also have a risk in buying a unit that has a little “life” left in them or near to being a “dead unit” and since it’s very old, there is also a risk of being notoriously noisy because old or overused units tend to be so noisy over the years and can cause discomfort, difficulty in concentrating or resting, and might even affect your mental health, but not only that but also we need to be very careful in picking which secondhand unit is safe because we might not know what kind of pathogens, mould spores, bacteria, and other nasties were in the air at its previous location.

Whether you’re on a budget or not, comparing prices between purchasing a brand new one or secondhand one is very important especially in terms of electric consumption, you need to know what their price differences are and how much it will cost you on the long term between buying a brand new unit and a secondhand unit. According to intec, there are four things you need to check before buying a secondhand air conditioner, first is the filter, second is its gas levels, third is the unit’s energy consumption, and lastly the noise level. Filter is the most essential component for the unit’s functions, you need to make sure that you check the unit’s filters and make sure it’s clean and without deterioration and excessive dirt.

Gas levels or refrigerant gas tend to decrease ove the years and you must hire an expert to replace the levels of the refrigerant gas and check if there is any possible gas leaks. Energy consumption is very important to know because the unit might have a high energy consumption and only give little amount of power compared to brand new ones. Noise should be at minimal level.

There are advantages and disadvantages to buying a secondhand unit, the advantages of purchasing one is it would cost less compared to a new one and if you find a near new unit, then it would serve you for years to come. The disadvantages is that if you purchase one is that you will most likely be the one to pay for its repairs when you encounter a problem, they have limited warranty periods or non-existent at all, some units have scrape marks or dents, and finding parts for repair is usually hard and tend to be quite expensive especially when the unit’s manufacturers stopped producing the unit.

All in all, be very careful when planning to buy a secondhand air conditioner and always be open to opinions about purchasing one because it can help you decide as to which unit is the right one for you and hiring a professional or expert is not a bad idea.

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