portable AC
- Thread starter Glaucus
- Start date
Hope you don't mind if I jump on this thread too?
We're in a listed building that has only one external door, the windows do not open. It has an upstairs that has internal windows overlooking the combined living/dining/cooking area.
Trying to get an 18-month old to sleep in a bedroom that is currently 27+ degC isn't nice, even with a desk fan blowing.
The plus side is that during the winter we had no heating on, in fact I could walk around in nothing but my boxers, it really is that well insulated!!
So looking for an a/c unit that doesn't need a hose to expel heat, runs reasonably quiet & cheap (lol!) and can drop the temp by a good few degrees.
We're in a listed building that has only one external door, the windows do not open. It has an upstairs that has internal windows overlooking the combined living/dining/cooking area.
Trying to get an 18-month old to sleep in a bedroom that is currently 27+ degC isn't nice, even with a desk fan blowing.
The plus side is that during the winter we had no heating on, in fact I could walk around in nothing but my boxers, it really is that well insulated!!
So looking for an a/c unit that doesn't need a hose to expel heat, runs reasonably quiet & cheap (lol!) and can drop the temp by a good few degrees.
I've got a window ac unit which is 6000 btu's and a portable 10000 btu one. The window version was $160 and the portable was $300 ( its also a dehumidifier ). The window ac out performs the portable one easily. It does the job but the window ac cools the same size room way quicker.
The portable one has a fitting that goes in the bottom of the window thats about 8" high and has a 6" hole where the air comes in to a flexible pipe to the ac unit. You need sash windows for these though.
I haven't tried the ones that just use water.
The portable one has a fitting that goes in the bottom of the window thats about 8" high and has a 6" hole where the air comes in to a flexible pipe to the ac unit. You need sash windows for these though.
I haven't tried the ones that just use water.
Using a honeywell 12000 in my server room, runs from 16 degrees to 32 or so though it never seems to be able to reduce the room below 20 degs which is still pretty cool and considering it has 4 servers, a 3kva ups, multiple switches and phone systems.
It has a long main directable jet and remote etc.
The one thing I noticed with portables is the noise, they are far from quiet. Paid 320 plus vat and del, comes with 3 year warranty and a couple of exhaust options.
It has a long main directable jet and remote etc.
The one thing I noticed with portables is the noise, they are far from quiet. Paid 320 plus vat and del, comes with 3 year warranty and a couple of exhaust options.
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Air con units gone through the roof since Saturday. I was looking at 8000-10000 btu units (usual chinese jobbies, none of them are truelly branded these days) for greenhouse on Friday, filtered, auto program, set temp, blows cold/refrigerated air and once preset temp is reached it switches over to dehumidifier. Timer can be set so the auto programme doesn't run 24/7. Cheapest decent one was £167, one with HEPA filter was £190. Today the one for £167 is £267 and one with filter is £360. Capitalism and all, but the obvious scrooging peed me off. If they won't accept offer of original price I'm going to import one from continent, prices don't change in summer over there and semi decent conditioner/dehumidifier/heaters units can be found for around £190-220 delivered.
As a side note, many people don't realise,proper cold air units come with exhaust tubes. You need to stick it out the window or vent shaft. And are quite noisy to sleep next to. Anything without exhaust claiming to be "air conditioner" is not going to be air conditioner at all, it's going to be glorified swamp cooler - an "evaporative system" - you fill reservoir with cold water and it blows air internally over it cooling it by couple of degrees before releasing it into the room. They don't do what most of us expect in our climate and if you want one just google up homemade swamp cooler, you can easily make one for less than a tenner with a bucket and old computer fans and it's going to work better than ebay tat.
As a side note, many people don't realise,proper cold air units come with exhaust tubes. You need to stick it out the window or vent shaft. And are quite noisy to sleep next to. Anything without exhaust claiming to be "air conditioner" is not going to be air conditioner at all, it's going to be glorified swamp cooler - an "evaporative system" - you fill reservoir with cold water and it blows air internally over it cooling it by couple of degrees before releasing it into the room. They don't do what most of us expect in our climate and if you want one just google up homemade swamp cooler, you can easily make one for less than a tenner with a bucket and old computer fans and it's going to work better than ebay tat.
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Caporegime
- Joined
- 18 Oct 2002
- Posts
- 33,188
Evap coolers will be even worse as I presume they increase humidity, 35c low humidity is FAR more tolerable than 25C high humidity. Also if a baby has a fan wafting over it all night I would be very worried about dehydration.
Listed building meaning the windows don't open? Eh, rented? I'm fairly sure that while listed means big changes externally are a major fight with the powers that be, making the houses unlivable isn't the idea, if you own it, make the windows open. If that means replacing windows with ones that look the same externally but can be opened, thats what you need to do, if you rent, I would assume you could make a complaint about it to someone that would force the landlord to provide windows that open. Not least, surely that is a fire safety issue if there is only one potential exit. Doesn't any bedroom need a window that can open in a way to allow escape legally?
Anyway as for good portable AC units... basically no, I would assume many are significantly better than they were when I got this, but many are just as bad, stupidly loud, effective but very loud. A split unit where the compressor is both outside, the main extraction fan doesn't need to shove a lot of air down a small tube and it can be firmly and securely attached all mean split units are more efficient, cheaper to run, massively quieter and seeing as most people have loads of wall space and not a lot of floor space, it saves a buttload of space and issues.
You can get ones with a removable liquid collector, I had one of those first time, worked fine but would need frequent removal in really humid weather, that one died and the next one worked to evapourate the condensation water into the hot exhaust so needs no emptying. Both work fine and make a MASSIVE difference to temp of room and comfort/humidity of room, but so loud it can almost drive you mad.
Listed building meaning the windows don't open? Eh, rented? I'm fairly sure that while listed means big changes externally are a major fight with the powers that be, making the houses unlivable isn't the idea, if you own it, make the windows open. If that means replacing windows with ones that look the same externally but can be opened, thats what you need to do, if you rent, I would assume you could make a complaint about it to someone that would force the landlord to provide windows that open. Not least, surely that is a fire safety issue if there is only one potential exit. Doesn't any bedroom need a window that can open in a way to allow escape legally?
Anyway as for good portable AC units... basically no, I would assume many are significantly better than they were when I got this, but many are just as bad, stupidly loud, effective but very loud. A split unit where the compressor is both outside, the main extraction fan doesn't need to shove a lot of air down a small tube and it can be firmly and securely attached all mean split units are more efficient, cheaper to run, massively quieter and seeing as most people have loads of wall space and not a lot of floor space, it saves a buttload of space and issues.
You can get ones with a removable liquid collector, I had one of those first time, worked fine but would need frequent removal in really humid weather, that one died and the next one worked to evapourate the condensation water into the hot exhaust so needs no emptying. Both work fine and make a MASSIVE difference to temp of room and comfort/humidity of room, but so loud it can almost drive you mad.
We have recently had our loft insulated ('twas free) and I am pretty sure it's making it terrible in this weather. Whatever we might save in the winter on heating we are spending it now trying to cool the damn place down!
Anyway, due to the current price gouging I was thinking of waiting until after the summer to get either a portable unit or a wall mounted one. I would rather go portable, but if the costs are right for the split unit, I might.
However I have a few Qs.
1) How much do they actually cost to run?
2) Would a portable unit on the landing cool the upstairs (4 bedrooms)?
3) Would a split unit with the inside part being in the computer room, and leaving the door open, cool the upstairs?
4) Any recommendations on units? Both split and portable.
Anyway, due to the current price gouging I was thinking of waiting until after the summer to get either a portable unit or a wall mounted one. I would rather go portable, but if the costs are right for the split unit, I might.
However I have a few Qs.
1) How much do they actually cost to run?
2) Would a portable unit on the landing cool the upstairs (4 bedrooms)?
3) Would a split unit with the inside part being in the computer room, and leaving the door open, cool the upstairs?
4) Any recommendations on units? Both split and portable.
Couldn't do wall mounted its rented,
If i end up getting one, would want a proper one, not an ice box etc.
When i say a window attachment, surely someone's made a triangular type thing that fits in a standard window to stop unwanted air flow.
Its a typical sized double bedroom.
If i end up getting one, would want a proper one, not an ice box etc.
When i say a window attachment, surely someone's made a triangular type thing that fits in a standard window to stop unwanted air flow.
Its a typical sized double bedroom.
Can't do wall mounted here either, rented. The external window is about 10ft high but the sill is at chin height, painted shut inside & out, with a upvc internal double glazed window that is locked & we don't have a key even if I could reach the lock! Discounting the noise, we'd have no way of venting a unit anyway.
Hmmm...
Hmmm...
I got mine from Amazon, it was similar to this. Your only cutting it down anyway so it doesn't matter about the Velcro bits, I stapled mine then because I'm neat trapped it with some door architrave I had spare and then painted it 