Best portable air conditioner?

August 21, 2020 5:54 PM

I live in a 3rd floor walkup with no shade in the Bay Area, and I think I'm finally going to bite the bullet and try to get an air conditioner. Can anyone recommend a fairly efficient portable unit for a studio apartment?

I've been reluctant to get an air conditioner because I live in an apartment with horizontal sliding windows with a maximum opening of 12 inches. I think a portable unit might be my only choice, but I've heard very bad things about their cost and efficiency. If I'm going to do this, what brands and technology should I be looking for? The most recent recommendation posts on on this site are 3-4 years old, and I don't know if the technology has changed in recent years. For example, the Wirecutter used to recommend double-hose units, but their most recent update from last year says they are unnecessary for most people.

My apartment is about 450 square feet and open plan. The kitchen and bathroom areas are partially walled off and the main room that I live and sleep in is around 350 sq ft. My main concerns are noise and energy efficiency -- I don't need to be icy cold.

I'd appreciate any help

posted by kjnet to Home & Garden (17 answers total)

It is true that "portable" air conditioners are worse in basically every category compared to window air conditioners. The fact that they are noisier and less energy efficient is a consequence of the compressor being inside your house instead of outside. Given that this issue is basically inescapable, if your windows make traditional window units impossible, then I'd just get the highest ranked Wirecutter recommendation. You're not going to be able to avoid the noise and lower energy efficiency. Moreover, the fact that these are less desirable means that there just aren't many to choose from and they're pricier. Sadly, this is not a place where there's some secret "good" solution.
posted by Betelgeuse at 6:39 PM on August 21, 2020 [5 favorites]

You're not going to be able to avoid the noise and lower energy efficiency. Moreover, the fact that these are less desirable means that there just aren't many to choose from and they're pricier. Sadly, this is not a place where there's some secret "good" solution.

This is exactly my experience. I did a lot of research, and made a lot of plans, and it didn't matter all that much in the end. I ended up buying the most "reasonable-seeming" one (because the selection was very limited) from a local chain, mostly because they offered delivery, which meant I didn't have to figure out how to get it up 4 flights of stairs.
posted by unknowncommand at 6:47 PM on August 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

On the other hand, since they are pricey and niche, it should have a decent resale value and market as far as these things go. Other people have been in your position last year and moved, or you could buy one new and plan on selling. Somewhat related, I recently sold a portable dishwasher easily for 40% what I payed new the year before, and the whole thing was worth it for me in the end. If you can find one used you might even be able to sell it for close to what you bought it for.
posted by SaltySalticid at 6:48 PM on August 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I'm in the same area and finally just ordered one because of the combination of the heat and wildfire smoke. It hasn't arrived yet (I just got one of the Wirecutter recommendations), but I did also look at one that someone was selling on Craigslist last weekend. I didn't get that one because it was *gigantic*, very heavy, and I didn't think I would be able to move it into my apartment on my own. I don't know if you have an elevator, but just something to keep in mind. They do seem to keep popping up on Craigslist so that might be worth checking.
posted by pinochiette at 6:51 PM on August 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I had a similar setup and just got a regular window air conditioner that would fit (with room to spare) and had a couple pieces of plywood cut to make up the space around it. Basically I had an L of wood around the A/C unit and between couple screws that went into the the window frame and the flex-sizing kit that came with the A/C unit everything worked fine. It did mean I couldn't see out of the half of the window the AC unit and plywood together took up, but I was ok with that. I simply hid the wood behind a dresser in the winter and it uninstalled and reinstalled with minimal fuss.
posted by tiamat at 6:53 PM on August 21, 2020

Wow. If your window only opens 12 inches, that is not legal according to the building code in California. A bedroom window below the fourth floor must have a horizontal opening of at least 20 inches and 41 inches high for emergency egress.

Is there some sort of stop mechanism that prevents the window from opening all the way that can be removed? There are a lot of options for vertical window air conditioners 14.5 inches wide.
posted by JackFlash at 6:59 PM on August 21, 2020 [4 favorites]

Ok, I learned something about portable AC this summer. I bought the Honeywell HL Series 12,000 BTU from Home Desperate online, based on it being the quietest one I could find which also had a decent rating on Consumer Reports. Here is what I learned:

• I have it in my 12'x12' office and it cools it down pretty fast! This is primarily why I bought it, so I could work from home without gradually melting into an exhausted human pile. That goal is achieved!
• It's on wheels, but that doesn't mean it's easy to move around everywhere to point the coolth at all the corners.
• It looks and sounds like a small fridge. Probably too loud for me to sleep next to.
• The dimensions of the unit are misleading. I was prepared for the unit itself to be pretty large, but was not ready for the clearspace requirements for the duct. This makes its effective space consumption much larger than I would have expected. It can't just sit neatly in the corner, because it has to be at least 2' from the window and off to the side a bit so as not to crimp the duct.
• I think it might fit into your 12' opening if the duct connection is turned 90 degrees, but not sure if that is recommended.
• As an experiment I moved the unit into my living room which is about 12'x20' and the cooling DID NOT penetrate the entire room. It seemed like the cool bubble was present in a 6' incomplete radius around the unit. Because of the limits of the duct length, I can't easily rotate it all around.
• If I had to do it over again, I would have bought one window unit for the office and another for the living room.

posted by oxisos at 6:59 PM on August 21, 2020 [3 favorites]

Don't forget ugly and bulky.

I have this one in my bedroom. Every day I look at it and go ew, but every night I am so glad I have it, until the return of cool weather means I can put it out of sight again. In my opinion it is not much louder than a rotary floor fan. I can't speak to energy efficiency directly, but my summer electric bill is only about $50 more a month than my winter bill, using the AC every night in summer.

In short, I recommend it, but boy is it ugly.
posted by pH Indicating Socks at 7:01 PM on August 21, 2020

Make sure to get a unit with two hoses, they work much better than units with only one connection to the window.
posted by TheAdamist at 7:15 PM on August 21, 2020 [3 favorites]

I have the Black & Decker model from the Wirecutter article that Betelgeuse linked above. I’ve used it in a couple of 350-400 square foot apartments previously and it gets the job done. It’s about as noisy as a regular window unit and energy costs were similar. I did like that it was much easier to put away and store when it got cold and I no longer needed it; with my window unit I just left it in the window all year round, which is prohibited in some buildings.

I now have the same unit in a 650 sq ft apartment with a separate bedroom, and maybe it’s just the quirks in airflow in my place, but I find that keeping the unit in my bedroom somehow manages to cool the entire place down more efficiently than when it’s in the living room. Also I was thinking about selling it a while back and had offers at $300, so it keeps its value if you decide to move on to another unit at some point.
posted by Fuego at 7:39 PM on August 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

If you can get the windows open a few more inches to 15.5", Frigidaire has this window A/C which is tall and narrow (essentially like a normal window A/C turned sideways). It works pretty well for my bedroom.
posted by ShooBoo at 8:51 PM on August 21, 2020

We have the Whynter Elite ARC-122DS, which used to be the Wirecutter top pick. As the article states, I cant see a big difference using the 2 hoses, but doing so does help equalize the air pressure as the instructions say. It has fittings that should work with your narrow window.

On these 100 degree days in the North Bay, after a head-start with the natural overnight cooling, it holds about 400sf (more than it is rated for) at 75 degrees most of the day, gradually breaking down to about 80 by 6:00. Its quiet enough that we could sleep with it on if needed...
posted by TDIpod at 9:48 PM on August 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

This Technology Connections video convinced me to get a dual hose model (I think it's also a Whynter Elite ARC-122DS, or something similar). As TDIpod mentioned, this idea behind a dual hose is that it can maintain the air pressure in your house. A single hose blows air out, causing the pressure in your house to drop, which forces hot outside air back in. If you're just sitting directly in front of the output of a single hose unit, you'll feel pretty cool, but it shouldn't be able to maintain coolness in an entire house/room. That's the theory, anyway, I've never compared.

I have mine cooling a 450 sqft space, and it works, but it is very slow. If I turn it on in the morning and leave it on all day, it's able to maintain temperature, but it only seems to be able to reduce temps by 2-3 degrees an hour. It dehumidifies quite quickly, though, which helps with the perception of coolness (but then eventually the air becomes uncomfortably dry, at which point I usually just turn it off).

Like others have said, the hose(s) take up more space than you think, and it ends up being pretty ugly. Also, I'll just weigh in and say that it's noisy enough that I doubt I could sleep with it on. Worth it for those really hot days, though!
posted by array at 1:47 AM on August 22, 2020 [1 favorite]

I have a dual hose model, not currently handy to get the make and model unfortunatly. The single hose units blow air out, and air is going to come in from somewhere to replace it. If you live in an apartment that has a hallway of nice cool air and enough of a gap under your door, perhaps that would be desirable. It's considerably less desirable if more hot air is getting pulled into your house from outside, both for comfort and energy efficiency.

If you can insulate the hose pushing hot air out somehow, that's going to help with efficiency. This is the hot air from the AC coils so it's considerably hotter than outdoors, 130 F - 150 F. Having something that hot in a small room adds a fair bit of heat.

While the unit I have is noisy, I have gotten used to it for sleeping because it's much better than having the room too hot to sleep. I turn it off for more formal phone calls, but leave it on for casual chatting with a friend.
posted by yohko at 12:30 PM on August 22, 2020

Also, in theory, I completely understand that a two-hose unit is better, but I've never noticed any issues or weirdness having a single-hose one. I have a draft blocker for my door (that I made from a pool noodle), so I don't know exactly where all the "extra" air comes from, but it's not noticeably hot or unbreathable air.
posted by unknowncommand at 1:15 PM on August 22, 2020

I just bought one from the orange store - a Toshiba, because that's what they keep in stock. The fan is not quiet but okay; the compressor is intrusive; but apparently when I get into my work I tune it out.

It's the 10000BTU unit cooling about 350sf, and you might need a size up from that. In the heatwave it was running at about 6kWh per day, according to the power monitoring smart plug I put it on, to get the room down to 76F (and I think there's a thermocline in the room because the wall thermostat for the furnace claims it's still at 80F). On non heatwave days it doesn't need to go on until well after midday, but the in the heatwave the room warmed up rather than cooled down overnight.
posted by How much is that froggie in the window at 8:02 PM on August 22, 2020

Oh, and I checked the vent outside. It doesn't seem to move much air down the hose, which is probably why it also warns you that the hose needs to be well clear of things - it gets noticeably warm.
posted by How much is that froggie in the window at 8:07 PM on August 22, 2020