How to run a portable A/C all day?

June 14, 2024 4:15 PM

I have a portable A/C in my room. I'd like to keep it on all day because it takes a while to cool the room, but I'm limited by the fact that it drains into a bucket and produces lots of water when it's super hot out.

For now, I don't feel super comfortable having it running when I'm not home, because I never know exactly how much water it will produce and I don't want the bucket to overflow. I'm limited in the size bucket I can use by two things: the hose has to run downwards to drain, so the sides can't be too tall, and I have to carry it downstairs to empty it and am weak like a shrimp.

Is there a way to maybe: turn it on and off remotely? Raise it and drain it out the window? ??? some other thing?

If there's a window A/C that would fit in my casement window, I'm open to that as well, but when the window is fully open there's only about 12 inches of space, and when it's not fully open, it would block the A/C unit from protruding outwards as it needs to.

posted by wheatlets to Home & Garden (13 answers total)

Drain into the bucket, and then set up a pump to pump the bucket water out the window?
posted by bowbeacon at 4:26 PM on June 14 [2 favorites]

To add detail: you can buy a portable pump with a float switch, so the pump will kick on when the level in the bucket gets past a certain point. This one is even marketed at exactly your use-case. I can't vouch for it since I've never used it in particular, but the concept seems legit.
posted by Alterscape at 4:47 PM on June 14 [3 favorites]

In the short term, could you put the portable unit on top of something, like a stool, so it could drain into a bucket with higher sides? When you need to get rid of the water, you could pour it into smaller containers that you can carry downstairs.

You can also get a window kit that would allow your unit to vent out your window. This is an example. A hardware store might be able to cut the plastic insert so that it would fit in your small window.
posted by rpfields at 4:48 PM on June 14 [1 favorite]

And yeah, my LG portable AC has a pump and a hose that can run the drain out the window vent. Since I'm using mine in the basement I had to put my AC up on a stand, so I have a 2.5 gallon mop bucket underneath it instead. I'm not sure I'd recommend my actual unit, but just more of a note that they're out there. And it also has an IoT WiFi connection so I can turn it on and off from anywhere I have my phone, which is kind of nice? Although that's more of a "ugh this thing is making a racket and I can't get back to sleep and it's cool enough, you can shut down for the night" feature than anything else.

That said, it also claims that in normal use the condensate gets thrown onto the hot coils and exhausted out the window that way? And it mostly sort of did last year? But this spring we've been far more humid, so it might not have been able to keep up coz every now and then an inch of water shows up in the bucket. In any event, yes, there are portable ACs that don't need to be manually drained.
posted by Kyol at 6:45 PM on June 14

The term you are looking for is “condensate pump.” At a big box hardware store it’ll run you 50-60 bucks.
posted by rockindata at 7:48 PM on June 14 [3 favorites]

If you can get a window unit to work, you will save money AND have better cooling in the long rn. But 12 inch sized casement window is a pretty hard use case for this!

You could look at suggestions for small windows here.

If you want to go a step more expensive/complex (but also saving money in the long run) you could install, or more likely have someone install for you, a mini-split system. These are super-efficient systems that are specially designed to get the inside part of the airconditioner/heat pump inside your space, and the outside part outside somewhere, without filling up a whole window like a window unit does.

Also FYI the usual way is to drill a hole through the wall to carry the refrigerant tubes etc, but if you have a rental people have installed the tubes running through the window so as to not make permanent alterations. The tubes would DEFINITELY fit through your 12-inch casement window with ease.

In addition to helping with a/c, mini-splits are amazingly efficient for heating. If perchance you are paying through the nose for both the electricity for the portable a/c and also some expensive heating option like fuel oil, you might find the mini-split - though expensive initially - will save you money starting in just a couple of years.
posted by flug at 8:57 PM on June 14 [1 favorite]

If I were testing out condensate pumps, especially if I wasn't closely monitoring it or with a very variable amount of water like you're describing, I would take your normal bucket, and place it inside of a larger plastic tote; not as a permanent solution but just as a backup to ensure the condensate pump is working well. Finagling emptying it out because you're sorting out a setup is cheap insurance, and emptying it like once or twice may be worth the hassle compared to the alternative.

Typically, I loathe Internet of Things things, but in a situation like this, you could get a water leak detector, and a wifi swtich connected to the unit (some AC units are already wifi compatible, so maybe you don't even need that?). I would still place a smaller bucket inside of your current bucket, and then place the water leak detector in the larger bucket. Smaller bucket fills up, pings your phone, you know to turn the AC unit off. It's also possible that you could just mount the water leak detector towards the top of your bucket. I would still probably test this with the bucket-in-tub as a backup untilI felt comfortable it would work.
posted by furnace.heart at 9:15 PM on June 14 [1 favorite]

Cheap solution - get a huge "bucket" like a giant rubbermaid tote or large plastic trash can. Leave the AC on all day, and then use your normal bucket to bail the water out of the tote and go empty it in a few trips. Also, get a water alarm for the floor in case the tote leaks or overflows!
posted by nouvelle-personne at 9:51 PM on June 14

Yes, you can get a power switch timer. Just turns the power on or off to anything.

Either the old school, kind of clockwork ones which let you set a 24 hour timer for when it's on or off, or the new Bluetooth ones which you can use with Alexa or Google Home, which would allow you to use voice commands, or turn it on well before you head home, which is probably better for your power usage.

Just Google smart plug, there's heaps of brands, they will have them at hardware stores or electronic stores.
posted by Elysum at 1:22 AM on June 15

In addition to the other suggestions, is there a reason you have to carry the water downstairs instead of emptying it out the window?
posted by mskyle at 3:36 AM on June 15

Water will wick down a sturdy cotton or hemp rope into a 2nd larger bucket.
posted by theora55 at 9:05 AM on June 15

In addition to the other suggestions, is there a reason you have to carry the water downstairs instead of emptying it out the window?

Or into the toilet, for that matter?
posted by showbiz_liz at 9:13 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

We did something similar to the answers above and it worked for the couple years we needed it. Unfortunately, it's too long ago to look up the specifics. What I remember:

We drained into a small bin with a condisate pump that then pumped into a 5 gallon water can. One of those portable blue ones, that cats/kids/critters probably couldn't get into or easily knock down, but also easy enough for us to lift. I also stuck the whole contraption in a washing machine pan to stop overflows because I was nervous the whole thing would flood.
posted by bindr at 6:55 PM on June 15