Best Position for Air Conditioner in Bedroom (8 Positions Reviewed)
The best position for air conditioner in bedroom combines comfort, cost and maintenance factors. In this post, I’ll outline some of the important things to consider and review some of the most common positions for air conditioner in bedroom.
In general, the best position for air conditioner in bedroom is either on the side of the bed or above the bedhead. These positions avoid direct blow of cold air for long-term health benefits and short piping for cost-effective installation, depending on the outdoor unit location.
At first, it seems simple to just decide where to put your air conditioner in your bedroom. But when you look closer into the details, you quickly realize there are actually some technicalities involved. Below, I provide my thoughts and recommendations.
How to Find the Best Position for Air Conditioner in Bedroom?
Installing your air conditioner in the right place in your bedroom is very important. It affects your health long-term and we also need to consider that it is very messy to relocate once it is installed.
Below are 4 things you can to pay attention to when finding the best position for air conditioner in bedroom:
1. Don’t let cold air blow directly onto the bed
I must say some people really like to have cold air blow directly onto them. For temporary relief, it is fine. But long term, it can cause health issues such as dry skin, dry lips and headaches.
When an air conditioner blows cold air directly onto your body, it carries away heat and moisture at a faster rate. As the outside temperature drops in the middle of the night, you may feel too cold, too dry or discomfort in general. It may affect your overall sleep quality.
I remember when I was a kid, my air conditioner was blowing cold air towards my face all night long. Moreover, it was a non-inverter-type air conditioner. Every time the compressor kicks in, it blasts cold air at full capacity.
I couldn’t stand it and I had to either cover my face with my blanket or switch my sleeping position. Adjusting the air conditioner flaps only helps a little. I can still feel the cold air falling onto my face.
2. Don’t install it too high, it’s hard to service!
The ceiling height of a typical bedroom is about 2.7 to 3 meters (9 to 10 feet). The air conditioner should be installed at about 2.1 to 2.4 meters (7 to 8 feet) high for optimal performance.
As the filter of air conditioners needs to be cleaned every 1 to 2 months (depending on your air quality), putting the air conditioner too high will be difficult for this basic task.
Furthermore, 6-step ladders are more common. If your air conditioner is located at a height higher than expected, inexperienced service technicians may not have brought a tall enough ladder to reach it.
To make things worse, technicians might even try to reach your air conditioner despite using a short ladder due to the cost of revisiting your house, which increases of risk of injury.
3. Leave some gaps for your air conditioner to breathe
Air conditioners need a good return airflow. After all, if there is no return, how will there be supply air? Furthermore, some air conditioners work based on the return air temperature. That is how some air conditioners control the room temperature.
If your bedroom ceiling height is low, you still need to leave at least a 50mm to 100mm gap between the air conditioner and the ceiling to allow sufficient space for good return airflow.
Otherwise, you’ll strain the air conditioner and it’ll not run as efficiently as it should.
Furthermore, having a small gap between the air conditioner and the ceiling can gather insects as they like to hide in dark and tight spaces. These insects can fall into the air conditioner. Then, they’ll be stuck inside the cooling coil and you’ll need to clean them. Horrible.
4. There should be no object in front of the air conditioner
I saw some air conditioners installed above the bedroom closet. It is almost hidden above the closet. This will cause improper airflow, which will reduce the performance of the air conditioner.
Some air conditioner has a motion detection sensor that controls the energy usage based on movements. With the closet placed right in front of the sensor, it obstructed the detection and this can ruin its energy-saving function.
8 Positions for Air Conditioner in Bedroom Reviewed
Deciding where to put your air conditioner in your bedroom is trickier than you think. There are quite a few things that we need to consider. Below, I review 8 positions and provide my thoughts about their pros and cons.
As a general rule, the best position for air conditioner in bedroom is in the center of the room. The above diagram shows the 4 typical positions you can consider to put your air conditioner in your bedroom.
Here are the pros and cons of each position:
POSITION DESCRIPTION | PROS | CONS |
|---|---|---|
Position 1: On the wall above the closet entrance. | Closest to the outdoor unit. Shortest piping and doesn’t blow cold air directly onto the bed. | It may not look nice as it is not at the center of the room. |
Position 2: Opposite the bed. | Instant cooling as cold air blows directly onto the bed. | It might be uncomfortable after long hours. Piping is longer. |
Position 3: Above the window. | Looks symmetrical as it is right at the center of the wall. Doesn’t blow cold air directly onto the bed. | Tight installation space. Not possible if it is a full-height glass. Furthest away from the outdoor unit. |
Position 4: Above the bedhead. | Shorter piping. Can adjust the flap to choose whether to blow cold air directly onto the bed or not. | Difficult to do service and maintenance as you need to move the bed. Some people feel anxious having an air conditioner above their head. |
Best Position for Air Conditioner in Bedroom
Technically speaking, with this bedroom layout, I would prefer Position 1 as it is the closest to the outdoor unit, which means shortest piping, especially the drain pipe.
Air conditioner drain pipes are required to be installed with a certain slope to allow the condensate water to flow naturally by gravity. The longer the drain pipe, the greater the vertical space it needs for proper flow, which means your ceiling height will be lower.
Normally, the bathroom will have a ceiling installed. However, the bedroom itself may not have a ceiling if the owner prioritized maximum ceiling height.
If so, Position 2 will have piping issues as the refrigerant and drain pipes need to run exposed on the wall, unless the room behind is a bathroom or something that you don’t mind running the pipes exposed. Still, you might need to shift the outdoor unit to better suit the piping route.
Position 1 is still viable even if the closet doesn’t have a ceiling, as the piping is only very short before it enters the bathroom, which by then it will be covered by the ceiling.
Position 4 is another good candidate as it also has a very short piping run. The air conditioner is mounted on the exterior wall, which means everything can run outside the house.
This is especially good if you plan to just discharge the condensate water to the scupper drain outside your house. Having the drain pipe exposed and not connected to the bathroom floor trap also makes service and maintenance easier, as you might need to vacuum out the slime buildup over time.
While it is easier to access on the outside, Position 4 is above the bedhead, which means every time you need to clean the filter or wash the cooling coil, you need to step onto your bed or move away the bed to put a ladder. If your bed is fixed in place, then Position 4 is not recommended.
The last one, Position 3, is viable if the outdoor unit is shifted near the Back Terrace, as the piping run becomes very short, much like Position 4. However, the fact that the air conditioner is mounted above the window means spacing is tight or straight out impossible, as there is a minimum clearance requirement.
Problematic Air Conditioner Positions in Bedroom
Now, let’s discuss some of the positions that might have problems. These positions may be considered if you really don’t have a choice, but you should be aware of their potential problems.
The above shows two new positions, 5 and 6. These two positions are not at the center of the room. If your room is big enough, you may feel the other side of the room is hot.
This problem is often overlooked as owners try to shorten the piping run. Usually, other than shifting the position, nothing can fix it, not even adjusting the air conditioner flaps.
Another two possible positions are Position 7 & 8, which are very similar to Position 1. Position 7 is above the door, which has the same space and clearance issue. Position 8 can further shorten the piping length, but it makes the air conditioner blow directly onto the bed.
Ways to Improve Your Air Conditioner Performance
If you really have no other good place to put it, here’s what you can do to improve the situation:
Option 1: Adjust the Flaps
You can adjust the flaps of the air conditioner so that it turns the airflow slightly away from you. However, it can only divert some of the airflows. You may still feel the cold air, but less so.
Option 2: Consider an Inverter Air Conditioner
Inverter air conditioners are capable of reducing cooling power by regulating the speed of their compressor.
When your room reaches the set temperature, an inverter air conditioner will reduce the cooling power and maintain the set temperature. Your room temperature will be much more consistent compared to if you’re using a non-inverter air conditioner.
With an inverter air conditioner, your room most likely won’t be too cold, even if it is a small room, because an inverter air conditioner typically can ramp down to as low as 4,000 BTU.
Nevertheless, using an inverter air conditioner only solves the too cold problem; you may still have dry skin and dry lips problems if cold air is constantly flowing through your body.
If you are interested in knowing more about inverter-type air conditioners and perhaps you are wondering if you should buy one, I encourage you to check out my 9 reasons to buy an inverter air conditioner.
Common Concerns for the Above Bedhead Position
- What if my air conditioner leaks water? You shouldn’t be too concerned if you install the air conditioner directly above the bed and it leaks water. A well-installed air conditioner does not leak water. If it does, just switch off and call for service. Rather, you should focus on the long-term effect of the air conditioner.
- What if I have only one place to install my air conditioner? You can always reposition your bed so that the air conditioner will not directly blow onto your face when you sleep. Otherwise, you can try adjusting the flaps as I mentioned earlier.
Outdoor Unit Location
Ideally, the outdoor unit should be installed in a shaded place. The outdoor unit should not be located in an enclosed space where there is no ventilation.
Also, keep in mind the accessibility to the outdoor unit for servicing. The location of the outdoor unit will affect the efficiency of the air conditioner.
Most installers quote their price based on a back-to-back installation (the outdoor unit is right behind the indoor unit), where it only involves a short length of refrigerant pipe. They usually maintain their price if the indoor unit and outdoor unit are about 1 to 2 feet away.
Beyond that, they’ll start to charge extra fees. Do check with your installer before starting work to avoid any arguments later.
The maximum distance between the indoor unit and outdoor unit of the split air conditioner is about 15 meters. For a typical bedroom, it is usually more than sufficient to allow your indoor unit to be installed at the perfect location.
I have an article discussing the effects of outside temperature on air conditioner. If you want to know how the air conditioner temperature can vary with the outside temperature, I encourage you to check it out.
If you’re into Chinese feng shui (风水), check out my post Best Air Conditioner Position Based on Feng Shui (空调风水位), where I explain different AC positions from a feng shui perspective.
Conclusion
The best position for air conditioner in bedroom is one that avoids blowing cold air directly onto the bed, has short piping length and is easily accessible for maintenance.
For a more complex house layout, optimizing the position of air conditioners becomes very important as it affects the installation cost, piping complexity and cooling performance. Not to mention, multi-split (multi-zone) and VRF/VRV systems require even more careful planning.
Lastly, consider my Mini Split (eBook) if you want to know how can you use Mini Split in your house. If you still have doubt or not feeling confident enough, feel free to consult me.
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