I have always wondered why people put their AIR CONDITIONING units on the front lawn, and their satellite dish over the front of the house. Is it so people can see (and others can see) that they have these things? I know satellite dishes must face a certain direction but if it is on the top of the house can’t you direct it anywhere?
And does the air conditioner work better if it is placed at the front of the house?
I dunno about A/C units, but dishes need to point to sattelites, and depending on which way your house is oriented the front yard may be the correct location.
Brian
Do you mean central air A/C units? In my experience (suburban NJ, mostly), they’re in the backyard. Modern satellite dishes (the ones the size of pizza plates) are wherever they can be aimed at the satellites without trees and other buildings blocking them.
Don’t know how things are where you live … but around here (SE Louisiana), there are no A/C units (compressors) at the front of anyone’s house. Invariably in the backyard.
I can think of some reasons why a central air unit might be placed in the front yard: not enough room anywhere else, time spent in a smaller back yard could be disrupted by the noise, not enough airflow available in the back, dogs in the back preventing maintenance people from entering.
As for dishes, you probably could mount one on the very top spine of a roof, but that would be more visible and more exposed to wind.
I didn’t have any choice on the location of my dish. With all the trees in the yard, there was only one place the dish could be mounted and still hit the satellites. The A/C unit is on the side of the house, towards the back.
Not having the cooling coils in the direct sun also helps improve energy efficiency. Does it matter when the front yard is solid with vehicles?
That would be my thought, as well as which side is closer to the A/C insidie the house.
As has already been said, satellite dishes must face South to see the satellites.
I don’t have a cite, but I remember reading a debate on an HVAC message board where some of the pro’s were saying that it really doesn’t make a huge difference if it’s in the sun or not. [I’m not necessarily agreeing, I’m repeating something I read in passing].
Also, it’s going to depend on the city, in my city the AC unit has to be behind the house…not just in the backyard, but actually behind the house, basically, it can’t be visible from the front yard.
My guess for the picture you included is that there’s no code in that city and the furnace is probably right inside that wall so it made more sense to put it there.
A/C units are connected to the furnace and need to pump freon(or whatever they’re using these days) back and forth to the exterior unit. I’m sure a shorter distance is preferable. I’d assume they’d place the exterior unit on the exterior wall closest to the furnace.
The length of run would only need be shorter to save money on the expensive copper pipe, refrigerant used, and wiring.
I think an AC in the front yard like many things is ugly and shouldn’t be there in a residential neighborhood, but so shouldn’t a lot of junk.
If the O.P. doesn’t mean central air conditioner, but instead wall mount or window mount air conditioner, then maybe the unit is placed where most of the living is done? That is, the front rooms of the house are the living / dining rooms, and people want those air conditioned? Likewise, they may want the shortest run of cable from sate;aite dish to T.V., just because they want a shorter run, so again, that defaults to the front of the house.
Some people like to deal with their all their major costs upfront.
Just for the initial cost, but beyond that, the freon really doesn’t care how far it gets pumped. My parents have two AC units that are probably (in pipe feet) 50 or 60 feet from the furnace. When you go to a supermarket and see all the coolers and freezers, all the compressors are typically out back or on the roof.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a central A/C unit at the front of a house . . . in fact, I’m pretty sure it’d be a violation here. Window units, sure, if that’s where they’re needed.
Ours is in our front yard. It got installed before we moved in, so I don’t know for sure what went into that decision. But I suspect that most of the back yard being made into a patio had something to do with it.
Wouldn’t installing satellite dishes on roofs be much more dangerous than installing them in a yard? That’s going to translate into higher costs for satellite companies, and therefore for customers.
My ignorance is fought. 
It costs more because the installer must dig a post hole and mix concrete. He must also dig a trench from the dish to the house, and ground it to the electrical service entrance.
The kids won’t run their bikes into it, nor will Dad have to mow around it if it is on the roof. It is also above some obstructions mount on the roof.
One reason satellite dishes don’t generally go on top of the roof is that poking holes in your finished roofing is something you want to avoid if possible. Better to mount it somewhere you can put screws into a fascia board or under an eave and not worry about causing leaks in the long run.
ETA: I also haven’t seen any AC units in front yards. They’re usually crammed in a corner of the back yard up against the house, in my experience.
The only windows in our house that are compatible with a window ac unit are in the front of the house.
