Portable air conditioners

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scott55405

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I just looked out the back window and saw boxes for two of those rollaway air conditioners, the kind that look kind of like dehumidifiers and you vent them out the window with a hose. Does anybody have one of these or know how well they work?

I haven't really missed not having an air conditioner here, but I've thought of this as one possibility for those occasional days we get where it might be nice.
 
Hi Scott.

I have seen one in action. My only complaint is that they use room air to cool the condenser coil (and the compressor) and then dump the warm/moist air out a window.

This will create a negative air pressure in the room(s).
The negative pressure therefore pulls warm air in from every crack and crevice in the apartment/house, causing a slight loss of efficiency over a traditional-through-the-wall or throught-the-window A/C. On a positve note/spin we can look at this feature as a built in ventilator to keep the room air fresh and clean, even with continued use.

Older models would collect the condensate (wrung-out ambient hunidity) into a bucket that needed to be emptied; newer models may mist/inject this water back into the exhaust air giving the efficiency a slight boost.

One factor to consider is noise- the compressor is in the room with you. Good sound insulation is a must, IMHO.

Thanks for allowing me so spew forth (yet again) antother opinion. LOL

Best regrads,
Steve

portableairshop.com

This domain may be for sale!
www.portableairshop.com
 
Here is a tradtional vented A/C for use with sliding windows as is commonly found in California.

A professioanl installation with a rigid panel above the unit to ensure a safe and break-in / crime-free installation (as well as other crime-prevention measures) may be something to look into.

See slider/casement style.

If I read this correctly, the thrmostat that controls the A/C is in the remote-control. This is a YAY +++ comfort feature.

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www.frigidaire.com
 
unless someone can prove me wrong, Frigidaire A/C's are extremly loud. I bought the 10,000btu unit last year from Lowes last year, installed it on, of course, the hottest day of the year, turned the thing on, and couldn't believe how loud it was. I even had Frigidaire service come out to look at it and was told it was "normal" Needless to say, it went back in a hurry, and with some further shopping, I found a very nice GE 12,000 btu that is so quiet, you don't even know its running sometimes. Just my 2 cents.
 
I can see now that those portable ones are not a very good value as compared to the window ones, except if you're very limited in your choices. If I ever get one, I'll get one of those and I know someone who can install it properly. I don't know if I ever will unless we had an unusual summer, since I'd probably use it twice a year, but it's good to know the options. There are quite a number of units available that would fit my needs.
 
another

I hear the portables are noisy and because it generates heat "inside", you should get a higher BTU output to compensate for that I was told .........
 
Also in traditional units, it is my opinion that those that push cool air in from the right side, as opposed to the top (of the front panel) are quietest.

Of course this is a HUGE capacity model, but you get the idea.

Although flimsy materials is generally a bad thing, in the new A/C's the use fo styrofoam makes for quieter units and a rustproof condition.

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products.geappliances.com
 
Scott, a 10K BTU portable unit (some off-brand from Wal-Mart) showed up at the theater a month or so ago. Purpose of helping cool the store room where the ice machine is installed. The original ice machine had a roof-top condenser. It was replaced last year with one that does NOT have a remote condensor, all the heat is blowing back into the room, along with an ice freezer for a sno-cone business run by the wife of one of the partners. (Hey, she gets free electric and water for freezing her ice blocks.) The increased heat load in the room impacts the ice machine's output capacity.

Anyway, this portable A/C is a one-hose affair that is ineffective other than spot-cooling the ice machine by blowing right at it. The exhaust is run into the ceiling, which puts all that collected heat energy blowing at the floor of the office above. I've not noticed an effect of that in the office, but still the A/C unit is effectively useless for the store room. And mind you, the exhaust is QUITE hot. I suspect 10K BTU is about half what's needed to even make an impact. It might be OK in an apartment that doesn't include a commercial ice machine! However, I'd recommend that if you hazard to try such a unit, you work a deal for a week or so trial period with rights to a full refund if not satisfied.
 
The Portable ones we get here

Have two refridgerant hoses attached to the internal blower/heat exchanger.

The Condenser/compressor can be located outside the space that is being cooled and thus all the heat is located seperately to the blower unit.

These types of devices still have the drip pan on the internal unit that needs to be emptied every 4 or 5 hours.
 
Tell me guys...how do you all function without AC?...I have two window units...the big one ..I think is a 24K btu..has not been turned off since the first part of June..it's a frididiare...really not that loud...mostly runs on low..I do kick it up to high if I get a wild hair and turn the stove on. The smaller one is in the back of the house..I think it's a Hunter..pertty quite as well. I do enjoy being able to use the timer and thermostate function on the Hunter. Today the temp is supposed to top out at 100 with a heat index of 105..humidiy is right at 100%. Stay cool/m:)
 
Dadoes, whoever sold the theatre the ice machine that does not shed the heat outside should be on the wrong end of a lawsuit, what a waste of energy. Actually, if it cannot be replaced, perhaps an exhaust fan should be installed, with another vent for air from the outside to come in, even on the hottest days it would be less hot than coming from the ice machine.
 
NeptuneBob, the same local restaurant supply provided the new icemaker that installed the original Manitowoc in 1984, and the subsequent replacement Manitowoc some years later (both with remote condensor). It's not specifically their fault. This one now is a Hoshizaki and produces flake ice instead of cubes, which is what the theater owner wanted, so it was HIS choice. Trust me, he's not exactly swift of mind. He's who bought the portable A/C and is exhausting it into the ceiling. He's also the one who, when the auditorium lights flicker, fiddled with the Up/Down MANUAL TOGGLESWITCH on the projector console and said, "I think the problem is in this switch." Completely not understanding that the automation light control circuit is either in one state or the other and simply tells the dimmer control box over on the wall (the one with all circuit boards and gizmos and level adjustments) whether to go into full-on mode or dim mode. :-D
 
Markgray, in this part of LA (near the coast) there is normally plenty of cool air blowing in off the ocean that air conditioning is really not needed. Further inland and in the valleys is a much different story (hot but dry, sort of like Arizona), but here 98% of the days you never miss it, which is why I've haven't really thought of buying one (though I will if I ever feel a need to). Sometimes you get humid days (nothing anywhere approaching what you get in middle America), but rarely does the temp ever get above 80 in my area.

I thought about the portable units because you wouldn't have to give up a window when you're not using it, but if I did get one I'd go with the standard, since I'm really not liking the sounds of these portable ones the more I learn about them, not to mention they're more than twice the cost of what a good sized regular one for my needs would be.
 

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