Tuesday, August 6, 2013

How To Choose The Perfect Portable AC

How To Choose The Perfect Portable AC

By Doug Freedman


When choosing a portable air conditioner there are a few things to remember and adhere to when selecting one. It's not just a case of choosing the one that mostly matches the color scheme of the room; although that should play a small part too. Below are guidelines and tips for picking the right one for you and your home, to get the best from your purchase.

Probably the most important thing you are looking for in your portable air conditioner is that the BTU suits the size of the room you are looking to use it in. The BTU, (British Thermal Unit), simply is the amount of energy needed to heat or cool the room. If you get this wrong you will either be spending money on BTU's that are not needed or your room is not being cooled adequately.

Calculating the BTU you require is very simple, once you know the room size in square meters. For example, if the portable air conditioner has a BTU of 18,000, this will adequately cool a room size of 50 square meters. Some other factors will influence the level of BTU you require. If the room is very sunny or is a kitchen, you will probably need a higher BTU from your portable air conditioner. The BTU of an appliance will be clearly displayed on it, there are also helpful BTU calculators available online.

You also need to ascertain what will happen to the condensation that will be produced by your portable air conditioner. Usually in portable air conditioners, there's a couple of ways to do this. There are 2 different models, the drip model and the non-drip model. Firstly the drip model, which tends to be the less expensive option, drains the moisture produced away into a bucket which needs to be emptied regularly. How often you empty it will depend on how much you use the unit. Secondly, the non-drip model reuses the moisture produced and filters it back out as cooled air. This is why this model is usually the more expensive.

Excess heat is also produced during the air conditioning process, and this will need to gotten rid of too. One way this is achieved is by using ducted condensers. Inbuilt into the unit is a duct, which blows out the hot air produced in the cooling process. Ducted condensers need to be placed near a window or on a window to vent the hot air. There are remote condensers, which are slightly more portable in that they have a tubing that can be hung out of a window or opening allowing you more mobility than the ducted condensers.

Lastly but not least, cost and energy efficiency should play a part when choosing your model. Try and choose a model with a high energy rating efficiency. This will tend to cost more but is much more environmentally sound. It will also save you money on your energy bills. Always check the energy rating label on the unit itself, this will give you a good indication of how energy efficient it is.




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