Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

I am looking at getting one. I am in a top-floor flat so even before a heat wave it's a few degrees hotter than outside.

I could and may well still just buy a tower fan but I am looking at getting a portable air conditioner instead. I wondered if anyone had any feedback on these? I am especially concerned about the exit vent, my windows only open slightly ajar so not sure it would fit correctly. The only other option is a door to the balcony which would work but I can't really seal it effectively. So either I just have the extract pipe going outside with no deal or i place it on a window edge 'sorta' directing out but again unsealed and some of the hot air still coming inside.....

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Are you sure your windows do not have a hidden latch on the inside? I thought mine only open a little till i found the latch hahaha

I had one gave it my daughter and the hose went through the window sealed it by putting it though cardboard and used tape. Not elegant but it works

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Our top floor flat (11th) had windows that normally only partially opened (for safety). By we could rotate the handle the other way and the whole window opened inwards, or by using the key, we could make the top to open inwards.

There was always a breeze if we opened windows on opposite sides of the flat, but I had to make hard foam stoppers to prevent any open doors slamming shut, making a sound like a bomb going-off.

Lidl is having an air-conditioning unit on sale in a few days. £169.88. Cools, dehumidifies or fans. 785w.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

The window does have a latch but I am worried about keeping it open all the time, I am not really sure why there is a latch tbh. Plus now I have blinds so when it opens inwards it might knock em.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

I have one it's vented into a chimney breast, they have a 5or6inch outlet pipe but you can buy reducers to vent through small gaps, mine used 2.8kw per hr and is a bit noisy https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adaptor-Con.../dp/B07R4NCXKP

The cat loves it stops him getting hot n bothered,i couldn't sleep without it on hot nights.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

I have a similar setup to the one you propose. I have the exhaust hose venting out of one of the Velux windows using a "flattened" adapter (like this). You may need a hose plus an adapter depending where the window is. The unit I bought is 5000 BTU which is ok for a small room. Get a 10000BTU unit for a larger room.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

I have a unit in the bedroom that came from B&Q a number of years ago and as papa does have vented it up a disused chimney. IIRC it's rated at 8,000 BTu which equates to about 3Kw* of cooling. Even if the outside temperature is 28C it can get the room down to below 16C. You do need an outside window slightly open to replenish the air going up the chimney.

*Think of how much a 3Kw electric fire would heat up the room.

The Lidl unit is available from Thursday at £169 and also dehumidifies as well. I suspect with the heat coming this weekend they'll sell like hot cakes.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

The flatterned adapter might be a good idea. I'll see tonight how much space i can move the window without taking out the blinds.

Looks a lot of faff so might just get a tower fan

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

A fan will just move the hot air around. I tried that ...

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Depends on the fan. A vortex type actually does cool the air. A cheapo standard pedestal fan will just do as you say.

I got a Woozoo desktop type (got mine for £38) which I'm using now and the air is a lot cooler than what I used last year (12" 3 blade pedestal).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07TC59P...tag=2371116147

As for tower fans, I had one and gave it away a few days afterwards. Useless things.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Fans are meant to do one thing: to cool your skin by evaporating sweat or moisture. There's little sense in having one running if it's not doing that.

Air conditioners are basically the guts of a fridge with a fan to blow the cooled air around, and an exterior heat exchanger to remove the heat collected. I've seen small homes in Cyprus with a doorless fridge in a room with the coolant pipes running through the wall to the compressor and radiator panel on the north side of the house.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Aren't air conditioners a little expensive to run now - they must use a fair bit of electric ?

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Used a 12000 BTU in the bedroom and it was a dream. Died two years two days later, just outside of its warranty which is typical and of course just as it got hot here again.

You really do need to vent the hot exhaust air or they are pointless imo. They do different types of adapters for different styles of windows. Some use velcro to stick on just to cover the gaps so your cold air doesn't escape. There will be an adapter or solution for your type of windows.

Also worth noting that to get the best benefit of them you should close doors so they can chill a room properly or you will never get proper low temperatures.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

My parents have several in different rooms for the summer and even when energy was cheaper their electric bills were pretty hefty.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

The one from Lidl says 785 Watts

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

They're a bit slim on other details like hose requirements, BTU's etc. Mrs G is sending me down on Thursday with a view to picking up a couple of them (when I used to use the office I had to open the window, since she booted me out we need air conditioning!!).

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

How much less effective are they if the seal isn't great? The set up of my windows isn't ideal and due to how high up the window would pull on the seal pretty badly.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Yes. Years ago, I bought a Air cooler, it has a tank you fill with cold water, I used to fill a 2 Ltr bottle and put it in the fridge, you also get these flat packs with fluid in them that you place in freezer, then once frozen, placed in the water tank. It was effective for a short time, brought the room temps down a couple of degrees and the air blasting out was a lot colder than a normal fan. They’re also economically sound, than an Air Conditioner and a bit more quieter.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

3-in-1: cools, dehumidifies or fans
Temperature adjustable from 16 to 31°C
Suitable for rooms up to 60m3
24 hour timer function with digital timer switch
Dehumidifier function up to 50ml/hour (room 30°C / 80% rH)
With room thermostat
Removable air filter
Display with soft touch controls
Wheels make it easy to manoeuvre
Includes 1.5m exhaust hose and removable air filter
Including weatherstripping for bottom hung windows and 1.5m drain hose with hose connection (Hot Air Stop)
Remote control included
Cooling capacity: 7,000BTU (2kW)
Water tank capacity: 0.5L
Oscillation angle: 30-150°
Energy efficiency class A
Noise level: 65dB (A)
Rated power: 785W
Size: W39 x H69 x D33cm
2 fan speeds
Airflow: 320m3/hour
Weight: 22.5kg
Cable length: 1.8m
Coolant: R290, 140g
IP rating: IP20
3-year warranty

About 6-6.5 kwh for 8 hrs sleep not sure what a kwh costs mine is 27.44 p =£1.65 + per night i think[assuming it's on cooling cycle constantly]

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

If its not a perfect seal but no big holes it works great but if there is a tennis ball sized gap for example, it would still cool but not as fast and not quite as cold. Maybe two or three degrees difference.

Just think of it as the cold air escaping out through that gap and warm air getting in through it. I tried mine in another room where I couldn't get a perfect seal with the adapter so I literally cut up a plastic bag and taped it to cover the gap, more because it was playing on my mind that it could be working better :D More OCD and wanting it perfect than it not being cold enough.

The 8 to 12k BTU ones when I checked back when I got mine working out about 28 to 32p an hour roughly. A bit more with the new energy rates but when you go to bed but ultimately I think its worth the few quid to get a good nights sleep

Here is a video of the LIDL one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbQ4oRPzL_w

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Picked up one of the Lidl air cons this morning and its pretty good despite it size.

Takes a few minutes to start blowing really cold air compared to my AMCOR 12000 BTU one which was cold after about 30 seconds but it gets there and its a fair bit quieter.

They give you plenty of velcro so you can put it around a couple of windows in case you move the machine.

Something I didn't consider before is my other aircon unit had its vents on top and this has vents at the front which is so much better. The upward venting one cooled the room but you didn't get the benefit of the coolness blowing on you like the front facing one unless you stood over it.

Re: Does anyone have a portable air conditioner here?
 

Well, after Damien started this thread, it got me thinking, I am really not looking forward to sweltering over next few days. These are Las Vegas type temperatures and they have Air Con. I’ve took the plunge and upgraded my Air cooler to an Air Con unit. 5,000 BTU equivalent to 1.5KW power. Bought it from B&Q yesterday and also bought window sealing kit from Argos. Have to say suitably impressed. It’s not that demanding on the electric either.

Uses 0.565 KW/H. Have included pics of the setup and window seal.

https://www.cableforum.uk/board/atta...1&d=1658070605

https://www.cableforum.uk/board/atta...1&d=1658070605

https://www.cableforum.uk/board/atta...1&d=1658070605

https://www.cableforum.uk/board/atta...1&d=1658070605