Air Conditioning

SKing

Silver
Nov 22, 2007
3,750
183
63
Is there no such thing as central air in the DR? I am familiar with the air conditioners that are sold but how do you cool your whole home without buying 6 or 7?!? And are central air units able to be removed at time of move out and installed in another home??
SHALENA
 

TOOBER_SDQ

Bronze
Nov 19, 2008
708
212
0
I don't know anybody that has central air in their home. The people I know here use fans, and often a small A/c for the bedroom to be used at night. There is no urge to cool the entire house, and if you tried with 6-7 a/c units, the electric bill would be very high.
 

SKing

Silver
Nov 22, 2007
3,750
183
63
I don't know anybody that has central air in their home. The people I know here use fans, and often a small A/c for the bedroom to be used at night. There is no urge to cool the entire house, and if you tried with 6-7 a/c units, the electric bill would be very high.

I have noticed that...we don't like it very cold in the house but in my preparation for the summer, I am remembering some days when the fans just didn't cut it. Santiago gets a hell of a lot hotter than Sajoma!
SHALENA
 

ExtremeR

Silver
Mar 22, 2006
3,078
328
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I have noticed that...we don't like it very cold in the house but in my preparation for the summer, I am remembering some days when the fans just didn't cut it. Santiago gets a hell of a lot hotter than Sajoma!
SHALENA

Well it is obvious you have never spend a summer in Santo Domingo.
Central AC can be done here but it is a tedious installation (fake ceilings, or huge tubes around the house) and we you move out the only thing you can take with you is the compressor given the fact that the installation is custom made to each house.

I suggest you to buy a powerful (24,000 BTU to 32,000 BTU) Split AC for you living room and dining room, close the area with doors to the other zones (kitchen, rooms, stairs) and get AC for the rooms, with that if you have a visit or if you are just sitting in your living room you will be comfortable without sweating everything out in august. Los pasillos and the kitchen does not need to be cooled or so I think.
 

oriole100

Bronze
Oct 9, 2005
807
18
0
Split A/C is what your looking for. Their not that hard to install, but you need to know what your doing, and you can take them with you if you move. You have to check if you have enough elect. to run it before you buy one.
 

J D Sauser

Silver
Nov 20, 2004
2,940
390
83
www.hispanosuizainvest.com
Central air is available in the DR. Meaning the hardware is available and some suppliers even have the computer programs to calculate and draw the duct layouts. There are also companies who custom build solid (aluminum foil coated styro foam panel ducts) and install them.
You will find central air systems installed mostly in commercial applications like offices and stores and some hotels and luxury apartments in the two main cities.
Installing central air requires PLANING and the ability of builders and their subcontractors to STICK to the plans... abilities many if not most architects, engineers, builders and contractors building private homes off the two main cities and the few luxury locations of this country (Punta Cana, La Romana) dearly lack. Adding (planned or not) split individual A/C units is so much easier to them.
One also has to understand the building technology mostly used in this country, where roofs a mostly solid poured concrete, not leaving space for ducting without hanging false ceilings or doubling up with drywall.

An other thing, around the coasts, is, that most homes which boast more than one or two bed rooms, may over the year be quite under-occupied, as additional bedrooms may turn out only to be vacant guest rooms. Thus, it seems to many to be more economical to use individual units here and there, so to be able to only cool the most used places.
Electric power in the DR is not only sparse but also expensive.

... J-D.
 

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
18,948
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SKing: wishing you a wondeerful New Year, and congratulations on winning the Power Ball Lottery!

You'll need it to cool a house down.. about US$1500 a month if my figures are right.

HB