Winter Heating - Air Conditioning in Japan

Heating Options in a Japanese Apartment – Air Conditioners

It is getting colder and colder each night here in Yokohama. The morning commute is still nice and warm, but going home at night is a bit chilly at night.

Depending on what part of the world you are from, you may have never thought about heating issues during winter in a Japanese apartment. Or oppositely, you might be wondering how to stay warm?

There are several heating options available regardless of the type of housing you have. Conversely, there are some restrictions or non-options for almost every type of housing in Japan. It’s important to keep some specific points in mind when you go shopping for appliances that can help you keep warm during winter.

Based on my own experiences, and the fact that a large majority of our customers tend to be centrally located, I will focus more on heating a home in the Kanto Plain and the south-southeastern areas of the Chubu Region.

For today’s post, I will be focused on air conditioners.

Over the past 30+ years, I have had the experience of living in a one-room studio apartment, a 2DK apartment, a maisonette townhouse, a 3LDK condominium, a 5LDK house, and currently a 2LDK apartment. In all of these different types of housing units, I usually had at least one air conditioner. The nice thing about modern electric air conditioners is that they are safe, convenient, and for the most part, cost effective—especially the newer models.

Air conditioning does have some drawbacks though depending on several factors. But first, the pros:

- No fumes

- Low maintenance

- Remote controller

- Timer for scheduling on/off

- Can be used during summer for cooling

- May have an air-cleaning function

- May have a dehumidifying function

And now the cons:

- High electric bill depending on usage and size

- Air tends to get very dry depending on the model

- The blower fan motor or compressor may be noisy

- Installation and removal typically requires hiring a professional

- Possible expense/time related to disposal or recycling at the end of your lease

Air conditioners in Japan are typically wall-mounted types. In fact, I have never seen a window-mounted air conditioner in a Japanese home like the ones I saw back in the States or on the military bases here in Japan.

Most modern apartments in Japan, especially in buildings over 5 stories tall, come equipped with a basic air conditioner in at least one room. High-end scale apartment towers may have air conditioners concealed so as to appear as central heating units.

To avoid the hassle of dealing with installation and disposal at the end of your lease, I would strongly encourage you to go with an apartment that comes with pre-installed air conditioning!

As for how to operate the air conditioner’s remote control with all of its buttons and kanji characters, jump over to either (or both) of these sites for well-explained details on how to use the remote control:

1. http://www.survivingnjapan.com/2010/11/guide-to-heaters-in-japan.html

2. http://blog.gaijinpot.com/using-japanese-air-conditioner/

What about the cost of using air conditioning?

According to Eakon.jp (http://www.eakon.jp/ -- Japanese only), annual utility costs for different models and sizes of those models for home-use can vary from 28,000 yen to more than 60,000 yen per year. These prices average to about 2,300 yen a month to more than 5,000 yen a month.

Of course, depending on the season, the severity of the summer and winter temperatures, these prices can vary drastically from month to month and year to year. As of November 15, 2014, the prices converted foreign currency amount to the following:

Low	Month	Year
JPY	2,300.00	27,600.00
USD	26.74	320.88
AUD	22.60	271.20
PHP	889.38	10,672.56
GBP	12.62	151.44
EUR	15.79	189.48
High	Month	Year
JPY	5,000.00	60,000.00
USD	45.99	551.88
AUD	49.13	589.56
PHP	1,933.44	23,201.28
GBP	27.43	329.16
EUR	37.33	447.96

If you need to buy an air conditioner, the best place to get a good deal would be at the major electronics and appliance discount stores like Bic Camera, Yamada Denki, or Yodobashi Camera. You can also ask these companies to deliver and install the unit in your new home.

If you need English support, then it’s best to contact and work with your building’s management company or your real estate agent, such as Rent Life Co. If you go to any of the three stores listed above, then try to go to their shops in Shinjuku or Akihabara. There is a more likely chance that they will have staff who can speak English, Chinese, and maybe a few other languages.

In another post, I will talk about kerosene space heaters, municipal/propane gas heaters, kotatsu tables, portable electric heaters, and electric rugs.

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Rent Life Co., Ltd.
Shin-Yokohama Branch
Kaede Bldg. No. 2, 6th Floor
2-5-10 Kohoku-ku, Yokohama
Kanagawa Prefecture 222-0033
JAPAN
Tel. 045-470-3214
Email: e-yokohama@r-life.co.jp
URL: http://www.rent-yokohama.com/english/
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