Getting rid of an old aircon

I HAVE not tried this -- getting the people who are installing a new aircon for you to get rid of your old one. If that works, then that is happy news, I guess, to many people.

But the world's heaviest aircon has resided in my guest room for about 15 years before I managed to get rid of it. It was an aircon left behind by the previous owner of the HDB three-roomer I am now occupying. It still works -- the parting words of the owner as he handed me the keys.

But then, there was a check by HDB on the house (I think they do this for new owners ) and it seemed that the previous owner had not applied for a permit (there were standards to be met for the brackets that support the aircon -- there being a few falling aircon cases in the past). I had a choice of either removing the aircon, or applying for a permit. Remove, please, I said, thinking of the electricity bill.

So, the contractor came to remove it. He was a nice, old man. After much huffing and puffing, the tremendously aged and rusty aircon was dragged out of the hole in the wall and into the safety of my room. It was the biggest aicon I have ever seen -- and of course, extremely heavy.

The contractor was only able to carry it out of my room before he gave up. "Sorry, I don't have strength left. You've got to call someone to remove for you, " he said, breathing very hard.

So here's how I moved it -- myself:

Slipped a thin rug underneath the aircon (you can use a steel ruler to poke the rug in, from one end of the aircon to the other).

Push  the aircon and pull the rug (alternately) to where you want (hopefully only a short distance away, as this method is not going to work for long distance). Voila.

The old, rusty aircon had been disguised in many ways as a table for my guest room -- placing a cardboard and then a table cloth over it... then books and bookends -- and occasionally a vase of flowers...

But this year, some 15 years after the heroic effort, I decided to renovate my house. And the renovation people said they would remove it for me (for a fee) along with the ancient big, fat oven and gas stove, and the dining table -- all legacies left behind by the previous owner (because "they still work"). Hallelujah!

Till today, I am still thanking myself for not letting the previous owner talk me into keeping the giant double-door fridge in the kitchen. Can you imagine how difficult it would be (and costly) to get rid of it?