Summertime, and the living is extremely hot and sticky oh jesus

April 28, 2012 1:56 PM

How do I choose a good portable air conditioner? Your help is welcome, details inside.

We have a nice apartment with about 470 square feet to cool, and we need a portable unit because of the ledge-less windows in the main room. We're looking at the 12,000 btu specification machines for the space, but we're not sure which brand to choose, much less which model. Anecdotes, opinions, and suggestions are very welcome. We're hoping to spend $500 or less. What brand and model(s) should I look at? What features should I consider (one vs two hoses, etc)? What say you, my mefi brethren?

posted by clockzero to home & garden (4 answers total)

I just happen to be searching for an air con unit myself and have decided it must be a window unit, but in the meantime I found this that might be useful to you in deciding.
posted by thrasher at 2:11 PM on April 28, 2012

Do not buy anything that is not dual hose. And only buy from a seller with an excellent return policy -- the compressors are prone to fail. Once you have a a unit, start it cooling in advance of maximum heat in the room to prolong its life. Haier Commercial has a fairly good reputation.
posted by vers at 2:43 PM on April 28, 2012

If you're buying a portable air conditioner, as opposed to one that fits in a window, you need to buy one that has a hose attached to it, so that you can dump the heat outside. The hose should be sufficiently long that you can stick it out the window. You don't want to merely dump the heat in another room.

Make sure that your electricity is up to the task of powering an air conditioner on the circuit you want to use.
posted by dfriedman at 2:47 PM on April 28, 2012

Thanks for your responses! vers--why do you suggest dual-hose only? I know the single- and dual-hose systems draw air from inside and outside respectively, why are the latter superior?
posted by clockzero at 3:26 PM on April 28, 2012