Buying an air conditioner in St.Croix

Do you own or rent?
If condo, you may have to check HOA to install a split unit.
If you own you can buy a split unit AC from Home Depot.
Hire someone to install as they have to drill thru wall to mount unit plus you need enough space outside for the condenser.
They carry Frigidaire. I have one and it's worked marvelously for 5 years now. Much better than the very expensive Mitsubishi unit I had, previously.

I believe central air would be difficult and cost prohibitive to install.
Someone else can chime in on that.
Or add another window unit.

Thank you Alena,

I owe a condo in Colony Cove. Also I rent it short term until I am able to come for
longer stays than a month in winter.
I read on Forum that it is cheaper to use AC than ceiling fans.
I have renters coming in summer and I have a ceiling fan and a stand up fan in the living room.
If I buy AC at Home Depot , does anybody know a good installer?
Thanks.

I read on Forum that it is cheaper to use AC than ceiling fans.

That couldn't be further from the truth!

http://blog.ceilingfan.com/the-cost-of-ceiling-fans-vs-air-conditioning-whats-the-difference/

Running an AC vs using ceiling fans, can run your WAPA bill thru the roof, especially those that run it 24/7. Vacation rental guests are not known to be conservative users since they are not footing the bill. Good luck with that!

Thank you for the link, Old Tart. I didn't think that the AC is cheaper than fans, I just mentioned
that somebody said that on Forum.
I agree that if you don't pay for the electricity, you don't care about the cost.
Anybody knows a good installer for the split unit on St. Croix?
Thank you.

I don't know what the system is (but I can check if nobody on this forum knows or you can't otherwise find it) but friends who own a rental condo here can remotely track from off island what's going on in their condo when they have guests. If guests leave the A/C cranked up when they're out and about, they can adjust it. If guests leave the door or windows open when they're out, they can fix that too. There's a slew of things they can check on without any invasion of their guest's privacy and it's really worked for them in terms of both security and eliminating waste.

Hopefully someone on STX can help you with recommendations for an installer.

Thank you OT.

If guests leave the A/C cranked up when they're out and about, they can adjust it.

How do they know they are out and about without some privacy invasion?

A split unit is not only much less expensive than central AC it's likely your only option for a condo short of a window/wall unit. Split-units are much more efficient than window units (i.e. cost less to operate), not to mention significantly quieter. Of course you will have to work with your HOA on what they allow in order to drill through the wall and locate the outdoor units.

How do they know they are out and about without some privacy invasion?

As I said, I don't know the details but if the OP is interested and can't find information online, I'm more than happy to ask my friends who are longtime vacation rental owners.

I know of a house with split units that is a vacation rental. Sensors on the sliding doors shut down the AC until they are closed. That and a limiter on how low they can set the thermostat.

Not sure how it all works but there is a way.....

I know for a fact our Mitsubishi mini-splits used less electricity than our ceiling fans! I tested it and came out more comfortable and out a lot less money!

I didn't believe the maintenance man who came and changed our filters in our rental. He said why aren't you running these instead of the ceiling fans. So, I tested my mini-Splits against the fans and he was right. I think it makes a big, big difference in the brand however. I highly recommend the Mitsubishi mini-split!

The window units will run more than your ceiling fans.

skysthelimit and rosesisland -both good info , thank you

I was in a Best Buy on Puerto Rico a few weeks back. There is home automation technology that can remotely monitor/control virtually any device in your home, including A/C, these days.

I already have IP cameras that I can access anywhere from any computer or my Android device to keep track of whats going on around my home and office. So, for example, if my AirBNB renters are leaving doors open while the AC is on, I can react to that.

I know for a fact our Mitsubishi mini-splits used less electricity than our ceiling fans! I tested it and came out more comfortable and out a lot less money!

This is something you mentioned before on another thread but I have to wonder if you're correct as it really makes no sense. Since you mentioned it I've not been able to find anything which supports the claim, either from consumer reports or manufacturers. No similar claims from consumers either. it seems there's no question that a mini split is less expensive to run than a traditional whole house central system or window units, but less expensive to run than ceiling fans?

I had a Mitsubishi AC.
It was a piece of very expensive crap.
I replaced it with a much cheaper Frigidaire split unit which has outperformed it since installation over 4 years ago.
Before I bought any split unit AC system for the bedroom, I only used ceiling fans thruout the house. I quickly learned to use the AC sparingly as my electric bill jumped much higher with the usage of the AC, no matter the brand so I simply cannot agree with caribstx about it being cheaper to run an AC unit

I've stayed in several hotel rooms over the years with interlock switches on the sliding doors to keep the AC off when the doors are open. Just need to make sure the AC is designed to handle that sort of thing. Worst thing for an AC compressor is short cycling. Most have limiters to prevent this which means your AC (or at least the compressor/cooling function) may not turn immediately on when the door is closed. That can be a drawback.

My next door neighbor has a lovely rental home.
That live on adjacent property.
Their constant complaint is about vacation guests leaving doors and windows open while running the AC, then leaving for the day and leaving the AC on while gone. They always request that their guest close windows and sliding glass doors and turn the units off if leaving for the day. Hasn't worked.

Stateside people are used to leaving their central air whole house systems on, 24/7 for less than $100 per month. They don't have a clue! My sister has a home in FL that when they're back living in STJ they leave their central AC system on 24/7. Their bill runs $65- $75, per month. That's less than what I pay on my monthly bill without use of the AC.

The WAPA for their vacation rental bill has been outrageously high, (over $1000 in a billing cycle) especially when the rates were higher. Heck, when I first installed my AC unit, I had a $600 Bill due to AC usage. I just about had a heart attack when I saw that bill. I learned quickly to use only when necessary.

I always look forward to the winter months when the AC is not used, at all, from October to the end of May. There is certainly a big difference in my bill when it's in use compared to my just using ceiling fans.

...so I simply cannot agree with caribstx about it being cheaper to run an AC unit

That was Rosiesisland that suggested that, not me!

Sorry. My mistake!;)

Ask rental agents and sales agents for local people that can install a split system. There are plenty of people that do it. And as far as the cost of A/C in STX. It USED TO BE something like 53 cents a kw hour compared to 15 cents here in Michigan. But since WAPA runs on propane now and one solar field is in electric is down to 32 cents a kw hour. Look at your current electricity statement wherever you live to see what your usage was for a few mos. Do the average and multiply by 32 cents. Since mine is 15 cents per kw hour here in Michigan it means my bill will be a little over double in STX at 32 cents. But that's only in hot weather months. I look at it as a trade-off for Michigan winters when my bill goes over $200/mo in gas. I either suffer a large heating bill in Michigan for part of the year or suffer a large cooling bill in STX for part of the year. I'll take the sunshine.

There are supposed to be 3 more solar fields for the USVI by 2020 I believe. Electricity will continue to drop. Per USDE "60% of the USVI's energy needs would be met by renewables by the year 2025." http://energy.gov/savings/us-virgin-islands-renewables-portfolio-targets.

I have solar panels on my roof...even with running my mini-split AC system every evening until morning, I still get a credit every month.

Explorer,

We have 2 Daiken mini-splits in our home here on STX (I had a Daiken at one of the places I rented in STT, and a Mitsubishi in the other place - Daiken is AWESOME!! Mitsubishi, not so much!). We bought them from and had installed by OTL Mechanical - we were NOT happy with them and, in fact, just had to have one unit serviced due to THEIR incorrect installation of a drain line. I would NOT recommend them, unfortunately. Maybe contact Quality Electric? I think they sell split units - not sure of brands or whether they install them. Perhaps someone else here on STX can advise you - just thought I would let you know my experience!

Try Island Mechanical. They are very good! 340.783.3771

I think I recall seeing Mitsubishis at Quality Electric last time I was there. They may have others. I've had no issues with my Mitsubishis, they are about 8 years old. Very quiet inside and outside.