RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC?

RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (Full Version)

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DarkSteven -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/11/2010 8:52:38 PM)
You live in California - is it dry enough there that an evaporative cooler (swamp cooler) could work? Window units are much better than portable if all other things are equal.

DemonKia -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/11/2010 9:27:00 PM)
I'm just up the road from you, Tftb, same weather & humidity & all that . . . . . AC essentially requires a fairly well-sealed space to work most efficiently; swampers work better with a more unsealed environment . . . . We use a swamp cooler (two of them, actually) to cool an 800 square foot mobile home with almost no insulation & no shading over it . . .. . The two swampers do a decent job at a monthly operating cost I can afford (supplemented with a coupla box fans). AC is expensive, especially in an uninsulated or poorly insulated structure. Note carefully the many businesses that have gone from running the AC at refrigerator levels to barely keeping it 'not hot' -- because it's expensive to run AC on a month-to-month basis . . . . We've got a ton of businesses like that in Chico. Five years ago they would keep their places like walk-in fridges & now their kinda lukewarm-ish, to save the hundreds (even thousands) of dollars a month that's saving them now . . . . . . (For example, a small coffee shop downtown was paying approx $1500 a month for power during the summer +5-ish years ago, mostly to run the AC. I knew the owner.) A competent AC salesperson should be able to tell you what the expected monthly operating cost will be on any given unit purchased (under ideal conditions, naturally -- adjust the figures upward by a factor of 50%-ish or a 100%-ish to get an idea of how much it'll cost you to run it in your relatively uninsulated space) . . . . . (You'll need to know, roughly, how many square feet of area is to be cooled.) Your local power provider (SMUD?) should also be able to help you figure this out . . . . . I would be totally unsurprised to learn that it costs you at least a $100 a month to run an AC in your situation, & could be as much as $200 a month. Extra power cost just from the AC. Can you afford that?

TheHeretic -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/11/2010 10:19:38 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Toppingfrmbottom It's not hardly insulated at all. Then Kia is right. That a/c is going to cost you a lot more than the purchase and installation cost. Our last house was a 1950's built California crackerbox with nothing in the walls or ceiling to keep heat in or out. When I was getting up for work at 1:30 a.m. and going to bed by 7:00, the electric bill was $100 a month more to keep the bedroom tolerable. Funny thing. The new house has three times the square footage, plus vaulted ceilings and our heating/cooling costs are nearly identical to normal costs at the old place. Lots of insulation in the new one. Swamp coolers are great if your local climate is dry enough, and much cheaper on operating costs, but if there is humidity, they become worthless very quickly. There are programs that can make weatherproofing your house very affordable, if you aren't broke enough to get it done for free.

DemonKia -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:13:53 AM)
Swamp coolers will not produce the extreme cooling that the AC does. That's one of the trade-offs of the lower operating cost. In the heat of the day on hot days it's more like barely tolerable in here, but in the summer I sleep during the day & am awake at night. She & I are both in the greater Sacramento valley in inland, northern Cali, I think. I'm roughly a hundred miles north of her. Our humidity runs in the (roughly) 20%-40% range, & the swamper works fine. Especially cuz greatest heat & lowest humidity tend to be correlated 'round these parts . . ... My concern was pricked by the statement that she couldn't afford the $500 to insulate her space. If that's true, she probably similarly won't be able to afford the additional power cost of running the AC for the July-Aug-Sept heat still left in the summer, especially if she gets a unit that's too small for her square footage (also out of cost concerns) &/or lives a conventional day-dwelling life & will want it maximally cool in there during the day. Personally, I tend to want too much cooling power for my square footage (ie, my two swampers). & we've had a remarkably mild summer so far, for which I'm devoutly grateful, by the way. Only a coupla days of triple-digits so far. It's been as hot as 117 F here in the north valley in previous years, & week-long stretches of 105-ish temps with 'breaks' down in the 90's are pretty routine for Sac valley summers . .. . ..

DemonKia -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:22:31 AM)
Oh. & a separate note about whole-house fans, the largish ones up in the attic. They're awesome for cooling down a structure at night, after it's started to cool down outside. Useless for cooling during the heat of the day, tho'. Their purpose is to change out the air inside a structure fairly rapidly, so if the air outside is blazing hot they'll just drag that hot air inside. The most efficient use of them is in well-insulated & -sealed structures located in places that get sufficiently cool at night. The fan is run in the early morning hours, when temps are at their local lows, then the house is sealed up nice & cool before the day's warming gets going. Makes running AC during the day somewhat cheaper & more efficient to start with an already cool house, that kinda thing . .... .

AriesHausdorff -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 2:51:59 AM)
I do not know if anybody mentioned it, but: AC's that really produce cool air are basically thermal pumps. They transfer heat. Thats why your fridges back is usually pesky hot. So, a portable AC will with its one end heat your room, with the other cool it. Not a smart idea. Mobile units are designed for outside or at least well ventede areas where their excessive heat can be transported away by air currents. A window-mounted unit has its "hot end" outside and its cool end inside. They are the only sensible solution when you want to use a AC. However, Lucky you when you have a basement: Subterranean is cooler on average. Ideally move your live down to the cellar for the hot times. When you don't have a basement, still you could do what DemonKia says: open the house up in the early hour right at dawn , let it air out, and then seal it up. Old linen are perfectly suited to be stabled on the outside over the windows, intercepting the sunlight before it can heat the glass. Additionally, you can hang up a ceiling-fan, a slow-rotating type, and hang strips of fabric to it which you can dip with peppermint-oil or wetten them slightly - not dripping!

Toppingfrmbottom -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 9:10:32 AM)
We do not have a lot of money to spare on more bills no. We need to do something though, because it literally is un bearable to me to be in here once summer gets into full swing. There are certainly a number of downsides to living in a garage turned housing unit lol. Last summer I spent a lot of my day's camped out in the house, in my moms bedroom with the house AC on and a fan directed my way lol. It was wonderful and nice, while I could be in there, but I couldn't spend all my time in there, my sweet heart came home and I wanted to spend time with him, and eventually of course my mom needed her bed back:P so back to the roasting oven I call my room I went :P Once you've spent many an hour very cool and happy, to go back to a roasting hot room, it's torture, and not of the fun variety lol. quote: ORIGINAL: DemonKia I would be totally unsurprised to learn that it costs you at least a $100 a month to run an AC in your situation, & could be as much as $200 a month. Extra power cost just from the AC. Can you afford that?

Toppingfrmbottom -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 9:20:59 AM)
Once it's cool outside, opening the door, and putting a fan by the bed works well for keeping me cool enough. And if we're not trying to watch tv, one in the doorway leading out works well too. If you're trying to watch tv, or you don't like the noise of a fan running and it drives you batty, fans just drown out the tv or provide to much white noise over stimuli to damned much to tolerate lol. But in the very hotter days, it's worth it. Sometimes I put the fans on and then go in the house, so it's getting cooled in here, and I don't have to listen to the "white noise" of a fan running long enough to bring in cool air. And sometimes We get very very lucky, and we have a delta breeze to help cool things off. And yes, as mentioned earlier , so far, things have been very very milk, we're lucky. Living fairly close, we will both see just how mild things stay come August and September though. My parents kee the doors open all night, and then in the morning close up and pull all the curtains shut, and even at the height of the heat, it's still pretty cool and tolerable in there. I have requested we work on sealing our place up too, because really, there's no reason to put up with a place being drafty, not when my Dad has the knowledge of how to seal the place up, we just haven't done it yet. quote: ORIGINAL: DemonKia Oh. & a separate note about whole-house fans, the largish ones up in the attic. They're awesome for cooling down a structure at night, after it's started to cool down outside. Useless for cooling during the heat of the day, tho'. Their purpose is to change out the air inside a structure fairly rapidly, so if the air outside is blazing hot they'll just drag that hot air inside. The most efficient use of them is in well-insulated & -sealed structures located in places that get sufficiently cool at night. The fan is run in the early morning hours, when temps are at their local lows, then the house is sealed up nice & cool before the day's warming gets going. Makes running AC during the day somewhat cheaper & more efficient to start with an already cool house, that kinda thing . .... .

calamitysandra -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:02:34 PM)
Considering your limited funds, you should definitely do the insulation first. The 500 $ it will cost you are easily recouped in lower electrical bills during a summer season. The AC will be of no use to you, if you can not afford to run it due to exorbitant electrical bills.

VirginPotty -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:07:17 PM)
I have a portable unit due to my central breaking down. It serves its purpose. I have no real complaints EXCEPT when I take the connection out of the window I have to put it all back together again. Minor pain in the toochie. I'd rather have a window unit but the condo assoc. doesn't "allow" those[8\|]. However on the flip side, I can take the connection out of the window when I want fresh air instead.

DesFIP -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:11:03 PM)
Do the insulation yourself. Learn how. Fiberglass batting and a mask and gloves and a box knife are about it. You can take classes at Home Depot or Lowes for free to learn how to do things at home.

pahunkboy -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:34:03 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: calamitysandra Considering your limited funds, you should definitely do the insulation first. The 500 $ it will cost you are easily recouped in lower electrical bills during a summer season. The AC will be of no use to you, if you can not afford to run it due to exorbitant electrical bills. I had county weatherization do this place - and my old place. The last place I rented - the owner had to agree to a 3 year lease. But that was not a problem. This place I own. No liens, no loans. They tho decide what needs done. I am quite pleased with the program.

pahunkboy -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 12:36:23 PM)
A day like today- I get by with just a ceiling fan. But when it is hot- I use the small AC. I have to have 1 or 2 rooms. Central air is a waste- as I am only in one room at a time. Cost wise- the window unit works for me.

JstAnotherSub -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 1:55:06 PM)
This place is so educational. Before this thread, I had never heard of a swamp cooler. Seems they are not made for our lovely humid summertimes in Jawga.

AlwaysLisa -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 3:19:54 PM)
quote: How did you go about making sure the garage was sealed up well? I know our little garage isn't sealed very well, in the winter, you can feel cold air coming in from under the big wooden door. Sorry for the delay, been busy :) We went to the local hardware store and bought that strip seal for garage doors, (under 20.00)..then we put weather stripping under the walkthrough door, (under 20.00). If your talking about inside your house, just make sure the room your wanting to cool can hold the cold air and seal up the window around the hot air vent so it doesn't bounce back inside. I don't think the portable unit would work on an entire house, but for one room, I think it would be great. We set ours for 72 degrees and it runs until it reaches that temp, then automatically shuts off. Couldn't ask for anything more simple. If you want more then one room...might I suggest a wall unit, then ceiling fans to help distrubute the cold air? Good luck with your choice! Lisa

AlwaysLisa -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 3:26:20 PM)
Hi AriesHausdorff, I wanted to clarify something....since we use a portable A/C in the garage, I can state that any heat produced by this unit is blown outside through a venting tube. It's not left inside to battle the cold air :) That would be really counter productive! Thats why ya gotta have a window or way to vent out the hot air for this to work.

Toppingfrmbottom -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 4:50:04 PM)
My dad wanted to do it by himself, but honestly I don't feel safe with him doing it himself. It's not that he's not competent mentally or physically, to do those sorts of things, he is for the most part, , but he's 71 years old, and he's not as spry as he used to be, big jobs like that take a lot out of him. Plus if he was to get hurt doing the job, or fell through the ceiling or something like that, It could very well either kill him or disable him short term or permanently. Even though do it yourselfer''s can do it for them selves, I really prefer the professionals do it, they're guaranteed of doing it right,* well most the time anyway* and if they get hurt, it's not going to cripple our family. And the difference in price isn't really that different from what we calculated, between do it yourself, and having home Depot professionals do it. quote: ORIGINAL: DesFIP Do the insulation yourself. Learn how. Fiberglass batting and a mask and gloves and a box knife are about it. You can take classes at Home Depot or Lowes for free to learn how to do things at home.

pahunkboy -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 4:51:43 PM)
Why not take the whole family to Disneyland?

Toppingfrmbottom -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 4:52:23 PM)
We only have the two rooms, and even at that I don't want to cool both rooms, just the one:) quote: ORIGINAL: AlwaysLisa Sorry for the delay, been busy :) We went to the local hardware store and bought that strip seal for garage doors, (under 20.00)..then we put weather stripping under the walkthrough door, (under 20.00). If your talking about inside your house, just make sure the room your wanting to cool can hold the cold air and seal up the window around the hot air vent so it doesn't bounce back inside. I don't think the portable unit would work on an entire house, but for one room, I think it would be great. We set ours for 72 degrees and it runs until it reaches that temp, then automatically shuts off. Couldn't ask for anything more simple. If you want more then one room...might I suggest a wall unit, then ceiling fans to help distrubute the cold air? Good luck with your choice! Lisa

kallisto -> RE: Which is better in terms of cooling, a portable AC or the window unit types of AC? (7/12/2010 4:59:39 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: JstAnotherSub This place is so educational. Before this thread, I had never heard of a swamp cooler. Seems they are not made for our lovely humid summertimes in Jawga. I don't know of a single soul that has them [:)] But today was right nice .. only 95 with 90% humidity and a thunderstorm this afternoon. Made it actually tolerable.

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