Update Bulletin No. 463
www.dulley.com
Jim Dulley
T
hank you for
your interest in
writing to me about por-
table air conditioners you
can move from room to
room. These can be ef-
fective with or without
central air-conditioning.
If you do not have central
air, using a portable air conditioner can elimi-
nate the need for installing several room air
conditioners. If you do have central air-
conditioning, using one will allow you to set
the central thermostat higher.
A hot air vent duct is run from the back
of the unit to a window or door to exhaust the
heat and humidity outdoors. Most of the
models include an adjustable adapter, or sev-
eral adapters, that can easily be moved from
window to window as you move the portable
air conditioner. They can also be operated
without a vent to briefly blow cool air on a
specific spot and the hot, air just blows out the
back. In this mode, the air is still being
dehumidified for better comfort too.
Most portable air conditioners are about
as efficient as a typical room air conditioner.
An energy efficiency ratios (EER) greater
Savings with a 5-Degree Cooling Thermostat Set-up (one 11-hour period)
Albuquerque, NM 10%
Atlanta, GA 12%
Atlantic City, NJ 13%
Billings, MT 9%
Birmingham, AL 12%
Boise, ID 8%
Boston, MA 13%
Buffalo, NY 14%
Burlington, VT 14%
Charleston, SC 13%
Cheyenne, WY 12%
Chicago, IL 13%
Cincinnati, OH 12%
Cleveland, OH 13%
Columbus, OH 12%
Dallas, TX 9%
Denver, CO 10%
Des Moines, IA 12%
Detroit, MI 13%
Dodge City, KS 9%
Greensboro, NC 12%
Houston, TX 9%
Indianapolis, IN 12%
Jackson, MS 11%
Jacksonville, FL 11%
Kansas City, MO 10%
Las Vegas, NV 7%
Little Rock, AR 10%
Los Angeles, CA 20%
Louisville, KY 11%
Madison, WI 13%
Memphis, TN 11%
Miami, FL 11%
Milwaukee, WI 13%
Minneapolis, MN 12%
New Orleans, LA 11%
New York, NY 13%
Oklahoma City, OK 11%
Omaha, NE 12%
Philadelphia, PA 13%
Phoenix, AZ 7%
Pittsburgh, PA 13%
Electric Cost to Operate Portable A/C - *cents per Day
Power
Rating
Local Electric Rate —
cents per kilowatt-hour
Watts 4.5 5.0 5.5 6.0 6.5 7.0 7.5 8.0 8.5 9.0 9.5 10.0 10.5 11.0
300 16 18 20 22 23 25 27 29 31 32 34 36 38 40
400 21 24 27 29 31 33 36 39 41 43 45 48 51 53
500 27 30 33 36 39 42 45 48 51 54 57 60 63 66
600 32 36 40 44 47 50 54 58 62 65 68 72 76 80
700 38 42 46 50 55 59 63 67 71 76 80 84 88 92
800 43 48 54 58 62 67 72 77 82 86 91 96 103 112
900 49 54 59 65 70 76 81 86 92 97 103 108 113 119
* Based on 50% run time controlled by thermostat in unit.
than 10 is considered to be very high. There
are no formal standards for these EER tests,
as there is for window air conditioners, so the
EER’s can actually vary depending on many
factors such as how straight and long you
expand the window exhaust duct. All the
models listed are adequately efficient to save
you money on your utility bills. If you plan
to cool a bedroom often, the small Northstar
model is very lightweight (only 36 lb.) so it is
easy to carry to a second floor room. I use a
remote control Northstar model in my own
bedroom (photo to the right). Some of the
Danby, Soleus, Sunpentown, and Windchaser
models use the newest two-hose designs (in-
let and outlet air duct to window adapter) for
higher efficiency and quiet operation. I also
use a Soleus LX-140 model with a heat pump
system for efficient heater during winter. It
uses a two-hose design and a remote control
with an easy-to-read color display. (See page
4 for details.)
All air conditioners condense water from
the air as they dehumidify. If you do not want
to remove and empty a water tray every
several days, select an evaporative model
(Delonghi, Fedders, Maytag, Soleus, and
Sunpentown) that exhausts the water vapor
outdoors with the heat from the room air. The
model I use in my own home have a water cup
which I empty once a day. It is not a problem
or hassle.
Not all of the
manufacturers have
had there sound lev-
els tested and certi-
fied, so they are not
listed. Most of them
are about as load as a
typical window air
conditioner. For the
highest cooling out-
put and most quiet operation, choose one of
the split systems by Delonghi or Northstar.
The compressor/condenser unit is placed out-
doors and attached through a window to the
indoor cooling unit by a long hose. These
units dehumidify effectively and are best for
a large room or group of open rooms. Several
of the Koldwave models use water to cool the
condenser coils so they require no outside air
venting but do need a water line/drain.
If you are concerned about indoor air
quality and allergies, and your house it not too
hot, using a dehumidifier can help. It can
make you feel more comfortable, especially
if you use ceiling paddle fans, but they do not
actually cool the air. Portable models may be
effective for small rooms, such as a bedroom
at night. The Santa Fe whole-house model is
the most efficient design available (see page
4). It can be freestanding or attached to your
air-conditioning duct system and fresh air
vents.
The prices of portable air conditioners
and heat pumps vary significantly. For ex-
ample, a Supentown 7,500 Btuh model retails
for about $429 online. A two-hose 9,000
Btuh model retails for $519. A Toyatomi
12,000 Btuh model retails for $550.
A Delonghi 13,000 Btuh model
retails for more than $2,000.
Portland, ME 15%
Portland, OR 11%
Providence, RI 16%
Roanoke, VA 12%
Salt Lake City, UT 10%
San Diego, CA 25%
San Francisco, CA 14%
Seattle, WA 16%
Sioux Falls, SD 11%
Spokane, WA 10%
Springfield, MA 13%
St Louis, MO 11%
Syracuse, NY 13%
Washington, DC 13%
Manymanuals.com
Manymanuals.de
Manymanuals.fr
Manymanuals.it
Manymanuals.pl
Manymanuals.cz
Manymanuals.es
Manymanuals-pt.com
Kommentare zu diesen Handbüchern