Portable AC Units?

[AFurryReptile]

First of all, do these things even work?

Second, is there one ATOT would recommend?


My subdivision's rules forbid me from using a window AC unit, and I've got this one room in the house that is literally ALWAYS 10+ degrees hotter than the rest of the house. Unfortunately, this is where my PC is at, and it can get pretty miserable at times. Anything you guys would recommend?

Edit: I'm willing to break the rules if you guys know of a quiet window unit that the neighbors wouldn't notice...

Punted from PC Gaming to Off Topic
-ViRGE

 

[Schfifty Five]

You should ask ATOT lol

 

[lsv]

Nah placing it here will get more legit replies. ATOT will just get him some AC porn.

Get a cheaper $150 portable AC that just has a tiny thing that sticks in the window for hot air exhaust/air intake.

Just note that portable ACs tend to be more expensive than window units.

 

[Tsavo]

How big is your room?

I was in the same boat. My PC room is by far the hottest room in the house, and this place has AC units for each floor.

This room would easily be 90+F while all the other rooms 75, so I got a KUL portable (From Lowe's, $300) that takes the edge off, but this room is only 12x14. I keep the 2nd floor thermostat set at 75 and turn on the KUL when I need to reel in the temps.

KUL: kind of hard to recommend since the thermostat on it doesn't work. The unit has to be manually turned on or off which isn't a big deal for me since it really cools off here at night, not to mention it also has a remote. It does blow cool air, but it (like all portables) is loud.

Get the very highest BTU unit you can find.

Also, I assume your house has main AC? Has it been serviced lately? I had an AC guy come out last month and it was low on coolant. The guy topped it off and the AC was MUCH better.

I also put some solar film on the windows, which was good for 2 degrees. Doesn't sound like much, but it helped.

 

[Tsavo]

Nah placing it here will get more legit replies. ATOT will just get him some AC porn.

Get a cheaper $150 portable AC that just has a tiny thing that sticks in the window for hot air exhaust/air intake.

Just note that portable ACs tend to be more expensive than window units.

$150 unit would only cut it if his room is 12 square feet. ^_^

 

[Tsavo]

Oh yeah, I also installed a ceiling fan and an opaque window shade.

 

[Dirigible]

They work. A portable one will be much less effective than a window unit of the same price. Beware of the condensed water - if you're in a humid area you could end up with a lot of this and that can be a pain to deal with.

 

[PieIsAwesome]

The HOA here also does not allow window units, but I am using one anyways. I made a housing for the AC unit behind the window (with integrated blinds) that hides it behind the window screen and properly vents the rear intake/exhaust.

 

[AFurryReptile]

How big is your room?

I was in the same boat. My PC room is by far the hottest room in the house, and this place has AC units for each floor.

This room would easily be 90+F while all the other rooms 75, so I got a KUL portable (From Lowe's, $300) that takes the edge off, but this room is only 12x14. I keep the 2nd floor thermostat set at 75 and turn on the KUL when I need to reel in the temps.

KUL: kind of hard to recommend since the thermostat on it doesn't work. The unit has to be manually turned on or off which isn't a big deal for me since it really cools off here at night, not to mention it also has a remote. It does blow cool air, but it (like all portables) is loud.

Get the very highest BTU unit you can find.

Also, I assume your house has main AC? Has it been serviced lately? I had an AC guy come out last month and it was low on coolant. The guy topped it off and the AC was MUCH better.

I also put some solar film on the windows, which was good for 2 degrees. Doesn't sound like much, but it helped.

Pretty much this is my situation exactly. ~90 F in my room is not unheard of, and it can get humid as hell when I start sweating. I can imagine this is doing terrible things to my PC.

The sad part is that the AC in the house WORKS... I just have difficult family members that don't want to turn it DOWN...

Anyway, I had no idea that there were portable units with a hose the would hang out the window; all I was finding were ones that required actual ice in them. I might have to try and find some of those.

 

[MotF Bane]

Nah placing it here will get more legit replies. ATOT will just get him some AC porn.

Get a cheaper $150 portable AC that just has a tiny thing that sticks in the window for hot air exhaust/air intake.

Just note that portable ACs tend to be more expensive than window units.

Rule 34.

 

[Tristicus]

Window ACs rock.

 

[DougK62]

Get the very highest BTU unit you can find.

I was always told to buy an A/C unit with a BTU rating to match the size of the area you're cooling - going too big is inefficient. If it's just a small room you won't need any more than a 5-6k BTU unit.

 

[brtspears2]

I think the two most overlooked items when buying a portable AC is noise levels and water issues. Some units have a separate removable tank/bucket you can dump the water out, others you will have to haul the unit outside and remove the drain plug. Overflow this, and you got a mess.

With noise, quieter is always nice. You can get a 9000 BTU unit for about $300, or a super quiet 38dB model 9000 BTU model, $450.

 

[sdifox]

would a portable unit with vent that is attached to the window considered a window unit?


http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/ima...e-garden&img=2

 

[Vette73]

would a portable unit with vent that is attached to the window considered a window unit?


http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/ima...e-garden&img=2

Yea I was about to say you better check as a lot of HOAs are complete ass's and will pick at anything.

The other thing is portable AC units are not as efficent as a good window unit. And if you get one make sure to keep the exhust hose as short as you can.

 

[Phoenix86]

IIRC you only have 2 options, swamp cooler (not gonna happen in Houston) or a window unit. Now some window units are detached from the window but you still have to exhaust the hot air somewhere and some have a vent tube that leads TO a window (like sdifox linked). That's your best bet as the HoA is mostly concerned about looks. I'd still check it out before I bought one.

Last option is to clean/re-do the duct work in your house.

 

[NoCreativity]

Pretty much this is my situation exactly. ~90 F in my room is not unheard of, and it can get humid as hell when I start sweating. I can imagine this is doing terrible things to my PC.

The sad part is that the AC in the house WORKS... I just have difficult family members that don't want to turn it DOWN...

Anyway, I had no idea that there were portable units with a hose the would hang out the window; all I was finding were ones that required actual ice in them. I might have to try and find some of those.

Try adjusting the vents in the basement (if you have one). Make them so that other areas of the house get less while the vent for that room is on full.

 

[Scouzer]

I have a portable unit. It sucks, but the heat sucks worse. Things to keep in mind

- Humid air sucks. It makes the reservoir fill up rapidly which has to be dumped which is a messy job
- Loud
- Inefficient.. uses a ton of power for not a lot of cool
- HUGE units
- Ugly
- Some models like to leak!!!
- The thermostats in them are useless

I still hate heat enough to get over all these cons, but keep them in mind.

BUY THEM USED!!!! Used A/C units depreciate like hell, especially portables. My unit was $450 at Sears and I got it 1 year old for $150.

 

[KB]

Don't mess with an HOA in Texas. They have amazing power including the ability to sell your home with you in it, in order to recover a few hundred dollars in penalties.

http://motherjones.com/politics/2010/05/soldier-iraq-loses-home-homeowners-association-foreclose

Can you setup a fan system to move the air from other rooms into that one?

Sdifoxes recommendation is a good one. If they still have issues with that window unit you can install a dryer vent and vent the hot air out of that.

 

[PhaZe]

Getting the highest btu is not the best move, there are guides for the size you need. Check http://www.abt.com/about/Buying_AC.php3

To paraphrase, they can cycle off too quickly and not remove the moisture from the air.

Ah - a fellow Houstonian, what side of town?

 

[Capt Caveman]

My parents have a portable unit that works pretty well and vents out any condensation thru the exhaust hose(no water reservoir to empty).

You should be able to find a 9000-10000 btu portable unit that exhaust any condensation out the exhaust hose for $300-400.

Costco has a Panasonic 10000btu unit for $400 and I believe is 43db loud.

 

[Tsavo]

Getting the highest btu is not the best move, there are guides for the size you need. Check http://www.abt.com/about/Buying_AC.php3

To paraphrase, they can cycle off too quickly and not remove the moisture from the air.

Ah - a fellow Houstonian, what side of town?

The reason I recommend max BTU is because they seem to be quite optimistic about their ratings. Not to mention the chart on the link you provided is way too optimistic. My PC room is not quite 175 sq ft, and my 8500 BTU would barely be able to keep it comfortable all by itself, running all the time. The 300-350 sq ft / 8000 BTU recommendation on the chart you linked is a joke.

 

[AFurryReptile]

BUY THEM USED!!!! Used A/C units depreciate like hell, especially portables. My unit was $450 at Sears and I got it 1 year old for $150.

You know, I like this idea. My room is probably not even 125 sq/ft, I bet I could get away with even the cheapest of AC units. I'm sortof willing to take the risk of getting a used item if I can get it for cheap. At least that way I'll not be out ~$400 if the neighbors complain to the board...

 

[AFurryReptile]

Getting the highest btu is not the best move, there are guides for the size you need. Check http://www.abt.com/about/Buying_AC.php3

To paraphrase, they can cycle off too quickly and not remove the moisture from the air.

Ah - a fellow Houstonian, what side of town?

Thanks for this link. TBH I wasn't even sure what BTU was before this thread... I would have impulse bought something "big".

And yeah, Houston - Spring, actually - how you enjoying the 100 degree weather and 100% humidity? Just moved in from Michigan... holy God, I didn't expect this heat.