The Benefits of a Portable Air Conditioner

If you are one of the millions of homeowners who don't have central air conditioning, you might want to consider a portable air conditioner. Unlike a window air conditioner, A portable air conditioner can be rolled from room to room and vented through any window opening.

Until the past decade or so, the only alternative to central air was a window air conditioner. Window air conditioners are still an excellent value. You can buy a good one for as little as $299.00 or less, depending on the features you want and how much space you are trying to cool. On the downside, window air conditioners are fixed in one room and are not designed for easy portability to cool other rooms.

One of the biggest benefits of portability (rolling the unit from room to room) is that you can take your comfort with you. Rather than wasting energy in one area of the house (while hoping that the cool air will reach into connected spaces), we like the concept of cooling only the room you're in at the time. This zone cooling concept can save a boat- load of energy. Of course, you could buy a window air conditioner for every room, but that might be a little impractical, as well as unsightly.

There is a lot of information floating around the Internet about efficiency as it relates to air conditioners. Most portable air conditioners operate with an energy-efficiency ratio (EER) of somewhere in the range of 5 to 7. Window air conditioners are somewhat higher (usually around 8 to 9). However, it is important to note that the EER rating of the unit may or may not determine actual energy savings. It is how you use the unit that can determine the greatest energy savings benefit.

For instance, if you're only trying to cool one room, a window air conditioner makes a lot of sense and you may benefit from the higher EER. On the other hand, if you're relying on that air conditioner to transfer cool air to adjacent spaces (such as a sun room, den or dining area), you could be wasting a lot of energy trying to cool those areas down. That's especially true if those other spaces are far away from the primary space where the air conditioner is located.

That's where portable air conditioners come in. Although they cost a bit more ($349 to $699, depending on features), portable air conditioners offer the advantage of taking your cooling ability to different rooms, even garages. That advantage alone may be worth the extra cost.