I do not want to hijack the thread of Felix (The "straight and narrow") any longer, let's go on here. Please folks tell me what an "AC window unit" is. I only know the split AC with outside unit and inside unit.
The Official AK AC thread
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bktheking
Gitter Done!
Window shaker
http://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/danby-10000-btu-capacity-window-air-conditioner/10026842
The split unit is much more expensive and requires quite a bit of install. The window unit can be installed in minutes.
http://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/danby-10000-btu-capacity-window-air-conditioner/10026842
The split unit is much more expensive and requires quite a bit of install. The window unit can be installed in minutes.
Yes some 2000 euros for the split unit including installation, a specialist told me yesterday. The window unit is noisy? I need a solution just for my bedroom.
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Yes, compared to a central AC unit where the compressor is outside or a split unit (compressor also outside). The window unit will be more noisy. The compressor is contained in the window unit. Most of it is outside the window but you will hear it inside.
bktheking
Gitter Done!
No surprise there. If you have duct work then central AC would be the way to go, I have central air here in Canada. The window units are the quick and dirty way to get cold air into a room. I actually like the noise of a window shaker, I ran one in my camper, always fell asleep listening to it run. The split unit you speak of is typically found in small server rooms here in Canada, not in houses.
I will try to find out if such window units are offered in Germany and if so I will try to get some more informations for example eventually by customer feedbacks.
dosmalo
T-Totaled
lol!!!
Westy56
A symphony of paradox
Keeps things cool when the tubes run hot.
I lke them better than AC in this climate. It's never humid enough to degrade performance.
Steve
Sandy G
Retired Member
My parents got one in summer '67, a smallish Fedders unit that they stuck in their bedroom window... The next year, they got a GINORMOUS Fedders & put it in the kitchen window...It was big enuff to sort of cool the rest of the house, especially if their bedroom unit was going, too. Finally, in '73 or so, they broke down & installed a "Heat Pump"-Combination AC/heat unit, so the entire house was climate controlled. Once you get used to A/C, you CAN'T do without it.
stereofanboy
Addicted Member
My local Wal-Mart has 5000 BTU window units suitable to cool a small room for $104. It's about the size of a microwave oven. The bulk of the unit hangs outside the window while the control panel faces into the room.
I'm afraid I can't sympathize too much with either the noise issue or the 84 degrees. We didn't have air conditioning when I was a kid, and we lived close to a race track that hosted stock car racing every weekend all summer.
Even on nights when there were no races or practice runs, I had a fan going all night, and the crickets were constantly chirping unless it had been raining. If it had rained, then the frogs would sing to us all night. You haven't lived until you've slept by an open window that overlooks a puddle inhabited by about 40 frogs.
I'm afraid I can't sympathize too much with either the noise issue or the 84 degrees. We didn't have air conditioning when I was a kid, and we lived close to a race track that hosted stock car racing every weekend all summer.
Even on nights when there were no races or practice runs, I had a fan going all night, and the crickets were constantly chirping unless it had been raining. If it had rained, then the frogs would sing to us all night. You haven't lived until you've slept by an open window that overlooks a puddle inhabited by about 40 frogs.
Sandy G
Retired Member
My wife runs a window fan at night, she says to drown out my snoring..I just put the headphones on & listen to "Ground Zero" & Then "Coast to Coast"... But yeah those old window unit A/Cs made the devil's own racket...The big fedders shook the whole house when it started up, too..
Thanks for the infos. By the way 84 degrees may be petty for some of you living in Nevada or in hell or similar locations.
But I really suffer in my bedroom when those 84 degrees are sultry, when the air is moist, what happens more and more often here in Southern Germany.
Our highest temperatures here in the last summer were some 104 degrees, no problem for me if I could get enough sleep at night.
But I really suffer in my bedroom when those 84 degrees are sultry, when the air is moist, what happens more and more often here in Southern Germany.
Our highest temperatures here in the last summer were some 104 degrees, no problem for me if I could get enough sleep at night.
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Rodzilla
Super Member
well,i would say a bit noisier than a fan...however it's a really small price to pay for the benefits!the wheeled portable units can be much noisier as all the machinery is actually inside with you...we have one of these due to our sliding windows,i wish it was quieter,but honestly when it's as hot as it's been lately?....i really don't care about the noise and i don't care about the cost of the electricity to run it either.it's money well spent as far as i am concerned and i'll accept the noise,it's far less objectionable than the heat...
if you don't have the double hung windows that the window units are made for, the portables are probably your option,the exhaust hose is like that from a clothes dryer...with a little creativity i think i could build or rig up something to adapt it to about any window that opens,but failing that,an actual 4" dryer exhaust vent in your wall would easy enough to put in and would also work perfectly....of course i have seen people mount window units directly into walls too,but these methods are more permanent,they may not be suitable or wise,and would also present some problems in colder weather...just throwing them out there
Thanx Rodzilla.
I think the window units are nothing for my double pane windows. I probably have to vote for the split AC system with the outside and the inside unit.
I think the window units are nothing for my double pane windows. I probably have to vote for the split AC system with the outside and the inside unit.
bhundu
Addicted Member
Great advice so far. It seems that your style of window will determine if a window unit is suitable. Here in Australia, houses built since around the mid 1960's have sliding windows. These weren't really suitable for the window style ACs but since they were the only thing available, many had the top 3/4 of there sliding window boarded over, and to be quite honest, they looked like crap. These days EVERYONE gets the split units, unless they budget down for a portable unit on castors.
In all honesty, by the time you think you're bordering on a purchasing decision, the heat will have past. I second my recommendation on a 5 Euro pedestal fan, a light (and if possible well-worn) cotton sheet and sleep naked or in very light clothing. Set the fan so it draws from an open window and hopefully you will have a second open window to enable draft flow. Outside temps and wind directions have influence, but ideally the "draw" window has a wind in it's direction and open 1/3 - 1/2 of the "vent window".
There will be other things you can do to reduce the heat in your room before you go to bed. Insulate the room in the daytime by closing the window in the early morning and using a heavy curtain/drape . There is one important fact when managing climate control in a house that will allow you to adapt to most situations....."Heat seeks Coolth" or rather warm air wants to get to cold air. Not the other way around.
So in Summer you want to shut out the heat in the morning and open up for the cooler air at night. In Winter you want to open up the house to the warm air in the morning and shut it in at night. The best thermally designed buildings/houses/bedrooms can only change by as little as 1 degree Celsius between Summer and Winter without artificial/energy consuming means.
From a carbon neutral dude with a well worn t-shirt, and lamb skin boots.
Good luck!
In all honesty, by the time you think you're bordering on a purchasing decision, the heat will have past. I second my recommendation on a 5 Euro pedestal fan, a light (and if possible well-worn) cotton sheet and sleep naked or in very light clothing. Set the fan so it draws from an open window and hopefully you will have a second open window to enable draft flow. Outside temps and wind directions have influence, but ideally the "draw" window has a wind in it's direction and open 1/3 - 1/2 of the "vent window".
There will be other things you can do to reduce the heat in your room before you go to bed. Insulate the room in the daytime by closing the window in the early morning and using a heavy curtain/drape . There is one important fact when managing climate control in a house that will allow you to adapt to most situations....."Heat seeks Coolth" or rather warm air wants to get to cold air. Not the other way around.
So in Summer you want to shut out the heat in the morning and open up for the cooler air at night. In Winter you want to open up the house to the warm air in the morning and shut it in at night. The best thermally designed buildings/houses/bedrooms can only change by as little as 1 degree Celsius between Summer and Winter without artificial/energy consuming means.
From a carbon neutral dude with a well worn t-shirt, and lamb skin boots.
Good luck!
They used to make specialty window units for odd size applications. I remember living in a house that had sliding windows and the window unit was tall and narrow to fit in the opening. I do remember complaints about how much more expensive it was than a standard type unit but it was less expensive than having the windows replaced. I don't know if anyone makes those types of things anymore.
The AC in this house doesn't work amazingly well, and its very expensive to try and keep it really cold. What works for me is setting it about 78 degrees and running the ceiling fan on high speed. The AC keeps the humidity oown, and the moving air keeps me comfortable. Without the fan, it needs to be more like 72 to be similarly comfortable, and that costs a *lot* more money.
The AC in this house doesn't work amazingly well, and its very expensive to try and keep it really cold. What works for me is setting it about 78 degrees and running the ceiling fan on high speed. The AC keeps the humidity oown, and the moving air keeps me comfortable. Without the fan, it needs to be more like 72 to be similarly comfortable, and that costs a *lot* more money.
Yep, it's not just the heat, it's the humidity!
