The Sanyo inside unit
blower fan only runs at a few fixed speeds, but the outdoor unit
has DC speed variable compressor motor and main fan motor.
When we only need 4,000 or 5,000 BTUs (instead of 24,000), those outdoor motors slow way down..
My power use meter shows 350 to 450 watts a lot of the time.
When the system goes to idle, it uses about 60 watts, as it very slowly
circulates a small amount of air past the temperature sensor in the indoor unit.
When it detects a rise in temperature, it comes back on and slowly starts
using more power until it gets up to a peak of 800 to 1,400* watts
(for 8 or 10 seconds) and then starts slowly stepping down until
it's back down to the 350-450 watt range.
*Note:
Max power peak depends on the indoor and outdoor temperatures.
This Sanyo works way better than my old 18,000 BTU Kenmore AC,
and so far, it seems to be using about 1/4 the power.
Plus that Kenmore sounds like a jump-jet is landing in the driveway.
