Air Conditioner

The Way To Select The Most Suitable Portable Air Conditioner

A portable air conditioner is definitely the most inexpensive means to cool a particular room in your home or office. They are very easy to install and of course there is the additional benefit that you can move them from room to room as needed. It often comes as a surprise to people how effective a portable air conditioner can be. The effectiveness depends on making sure that you get an air conditioner is suitable for the size of your room.

The opportunity to be able to move them from room to room brings several advantages. For example you can move the unit between the bedroom at night and another living area during the day. You additionally save money compared to running window units or a central ac system which will cool down rooms even when you are not in them. There are many rented properties where a fixed air con system cannot be installed and a portable unit gets round this problem.

The first thing you need to do therefore is to calculate the floor area in the room that you want to cool. This is simply done by multiplying the width of the room in feet by the length in feet. They only need to be approximate figures. This will narrow down your search to particular models. Manufacturers always specify the square footage that each particular unit is designed for. This is important because if you choose an unit that is rated for a larger area, you will never cool the room down and if you buy an unit that is rated for a smaller area, you will be using more energy that you need to. Most portable air conditioning units are designed for rooms having a floor area between 300 and 400 square feet. As you can see this is a typical area for a bedroom or living area.

Installation of portable air conditioners is quite straightforward and the method is pretty much the same for all makes and models. The unit will come with a flexible hose that is used to vent the warm air that has been extracted. In order to remove this air from the room, a window venting kit is used which fits into your window unit and allows the hot exhausts to escape. The hoses are usually 5 to 8 feet in length so there is no need to place the portable unit right next to the window if you do not want to.

There are 2 other features that are worth having. The first is a timer, which can be used to turn on the air conditioner an hour or so before you return home in the evening. The other is a thermostat control. This is very useful for saving energy as it will turn of the unit once the desired temperature is reached.

A further factor to consider is how quiet the unit is. You want to buy an unit that is as quiet as possible, particularly if you are going to use it at night.

Has anyone had experience with modding Haier 5200 BTU AC units to be quieter/get rid of the water noise?
I've read you can drill a drain hole in it to keep the water from pooling, which leads to the annoying paddle noise and ice noise, as well as spitting water back inside and smelling bad. Has anyone done this and have advice on where on the unit to drill?

Get the answers

Why is my window air conditioner freezing?
I recently installed a Haier 5200 BTU window a/c in my new apartment. The a/c unit was purchased in 2009 but was never used due to a faulty power cord. The unit was stored in it's original box and placed in a garage since 2009. I fixed the power cord and fired up the unit and and it worked just fine where I fixed it. I left it running for a while and cool air came out of the front while warm air came out of the back along with the water that drains from the a/c. THE PROBLEM: As I stated before, I just moved into an apartment and installed this unit in a window for the first time. After I installed it, I left it running for a short time to see if it would actually cool the room. IT DID! BUT when i left the apartment last night, i left the unit on MAX cool and the high setting and it stayed that way for about 24 hours straight. When I came back home the unit was still on and blowing moderately cool air through the vent (not as hard though) but when I looked at the vent/filter in the front of the unit (the one that the air from the room sucks into) it was completely frozen over. I pulled the unit out of the window, took the front cover off and I'm letting it thaw in my kitchen sink as I type. I read only that abt 24 hours should be good for a unit to thaw and dry. Now that you have the details... My question is if something like this is normal for a unit that is left on Max cool for that amount of time, or is there something else wrong?? I stay in Los Angeles and the past few days its been high 80s low 90s but somewhat cooler/bearable at night. My window faces north and doesn't really get any direct sun light. I'm sorry if my post is lengthy but I just want to give accurate and complete info. Thanks!! The exact model number of the unit is a Haier HWF05XC7-T

Get the answers