How are those portable air conditioner units?

[ViviTheMage]

I have been looking for an AC unit for my new condo and these little portable units do 9000BTU's and are pretty energy efficient and I do not have to mount it into my window, just an exhaust out to the window.

Anyone ever use one -- are they any good, do they crap out quick?

 

[pontifex]

i used one for a bit. worked pretty good. it was just for a single room though.

not only do you have to provide a way to exhaust the hot air, you have to drain them as well, which can get pretty annoying.

 

[Tiamat]

all I know is that they are very expensive, and you probably have to dump out the dehumidifier unit when it fills with water frequently. They work, my friends that have them haven't complained.

 

[ViviTheMage]

there are models where you do not have to dump out a bucket of water, it just evaporates away they say. My windows are actually very tall, would that be an issue? say 6 feet or so up.

 

[vi edit]

I'm curious too. I've got just under 3000 finished square feet in my house, but really only need to AC one room (bedroom). Our electric rates doubled this year so AC'ing the house is going to be a monstrous bill.

If I could run this a little bit before going to bed to draw out the humitidy and cool the room down it would make sleeping quite a bit more comfortable. Seems like it would pay for itself rather quickly. The bedroom is upstairs so it's always 10-15 degrees warmer than ground floor/basement. It's impossible to cool it down.

Last year my bills were around $275. This year they'll be upwards of $500 :Q.

If I could buy one of these for $300 and my bills drop to under $200 it pays for itself in one summer.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: vi_edit
I'm curious too. I've got just under 3000 finished square feet in my house, but really only need to AC one room (bedroom). Our electric rates doubled this year so AC'ing the house is going to be a monstrous bill.

If I could run this a little bit before going to bed to draw out the humitidy and cool the room down it would make sleeping quite a bit more comfortable. Seems like it would pay for itself rather quickly. The bedroom is upstairs so it's always 10-15 degrees warmer than ground floor/basement. It's impossible to cool it down.

Last year my bills were around $275. This year they'll be upwards of $500 :Q.

If I could buy one of these for $300 and my bills drop to under $200 it pays for itself in one summer.

I am looking on craiglist and I seem to be finding a few really good deals around 200$ for ones that were used for a summer or less.

What's neat is the heat, dehumidify, cool, and a few other cool things like that.

 

[BigJ]

Unless you absolute cannot put in a window unit, do not get them.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: BigJ
Unless you absolute cannot put in a window unit, do not get them.

reasoning ?

 

[lightpants]

I use on in my finished basement (the rest of the house has central air) It removes about 5 gallons of water every two days. It makes it really nice down there for watching tv when it is hot outside.
My basement only has small windows so a full size a/c was not an option. I am happy with it.