This is not the answer you want to hear, but please don't. Domestic aircon is the next thing B&Q and the others want to persuade us that we can't possibly do without. They've persuaded thousands of us that a slightly chilly evening on the patio MUST be combatted by burning propane into the night sky and now it seems a hot day MUST be challenged by using up yet more energy and hang the cost to the environment for this slender comfort.
|
This is not the answer you want to hear, but please don't. Domestic aircon is the next thing B&Q and the others want to persuade us that we can't possibly do without. They've persuaded thousands of us that a slightly chilly evening on the patio MUST be combatted by burning propane into the night sky and now it seems a hot day MUST be challenged by using up yet more energy and hang the cost to the environment for this slender comfort.
Completely agree with you Nsar,if only more people took this view.I've always thought it ridiculous to attempt to heat the outside although,ironically,that is what we are doing,even when we don't want it.If heat is required outdoors,try a bonfire(in a chimnea if you want to be posh),at least then wastewood can be used rather than burning gas.
How often does it get that hot in this country?It did keep me awake the other night but so would the noise from an A/C unit.
|
|
|
|
The problem is, where do you get rid of the heat? It needs to go somewhere not in the room you are trying to cool
------------------------------
TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
|
|
|
Is it possible to buy a portable air conditioning unit to use in a house that does NOT require an exhaust pipe which needs to go out of a window?
>>
As TVM says the heat has to be removed from the room.
To answer your question - Yes, but you have to drill a hole through an external wall to vent the heat.
From the instructions I have for a domestic portable unit the 106mm hole has to be between 50cm and 115cm above the floor.
So you have something like a tumble drier outlet.
|
|
|
As henry K says you can drill an exhaust pipe through the wall.
On Saturday I purchased a 9000 BTU mobile air conditioning unit from Homebase with a price of only £149.99. They also do a 12000 BTU one for £199.99. These are about as cheap as you can find on the Net.
I must say that they really do work well. You can preset the temperature down at 1C intervals down to 16C. There are also 3 fan speeds, and a timer for upto 12 hours. You can also switch between cooling and dehumidifying. Most of the water is blown out of the exhaust, but there is a drip tray that needs emptying every few weeks.
The last 2 nights have been very warm and stuffy, but I slept like a log. With so much tree pollen at present, I am very slightly affected by it, but with the bedroom temperature reduced it seems to reduce the pollen's effect.
The fan and condensor do make a noise, but there are no rattles from the machine and it becomes general background noise which is slightly louder than a large fan.
Would I recommend anyone buying one? Yes I would. At £150 it is now something I cannot understand how I lived without it. Must make sure my next car has air conditioning (my wife's has).
--
Roger
I read frequently, but only post when I have something useful to say.
|
I forgot to mention that 9000 BTU is sufficient cooling for a room about 200 square feet. At night with our bedroom door left open the temperature stabalises at about 20C, so it is nice but not too cold.
Going back to the original point about exhaust heat. My local newsagent/POst Office is like an oven at the moment due to the number of coolers and freezers they have in the shop. This is solely due to the exhaust heat from the heat exchangers not being removed outside the shop. The knock on effect is that they have to remove all of the chocolate bars from the shelves and keep them in a cooler place out the back. Why they do not instal air conditioning I do not understand.
--
Roger
I read frequently, but only post when I have something useful to say.
|
|
|
We're seriously considering one of these. Upstairs frequently sees temperatures of 35 degrees plus and no amount of fans cool you down because all they're doing it recirculating the warm air. I did a cracking bodge job attaching my fan to the window which drew in cool air but then it fell on me and cracked open on the floor so that was that.
The heat is getting really....well....hot! The dogs walk around permanently with their tongues hanging out and even having every window in the house open does nothing except allow loads of wasps in.
I noticed one in BandQ for 199 quid and I think it was a 10,000 BTu one. No idea what BTu's are but I'm assuming the higher the better?
I'm one of these who much prefers being very cold to being very hot! One question though, do you not need to seal the room in some way to make better use of it?
|
|
It's about time that houses were built that can remain cool in the hot weather, rather than burning up yet more fossil fuel to cool things down again. Nice thick stone walls is what you want.
|
The problem with our house is that it's relatively new (about ten years or so) so everything's insulated quite nicely. Great in the Winter but in weather like this...
The crazy thing is, walk downstairs and as soon as you hit the bottom step you can feel the noticably cooler air. As soon as you walk upstairs it's like walking in a desert!
|
Eh? House insulation doesn't work only one way. It keeps heat out as well as in!
|
Yeah! It's keeping the heat of the computers and fans (they must generate their own heat) in!
|
|
|
|
|
Building aircon is just like car aircon - it won't work as effectively if you have windows open. Simillar tale to the one above about the warm shop. We have a small convenience shop near us which has four huge chiller cabinets full of every soft drink you can imagine - total overkill in terms of stock being carried. The shop is stifling so he has installed a portable aircon system which is vented through open windows and he has the door open. The aircon is simply adding to his electricity bill and doing nothing to cool the air.
|
We sometimes used this sort of question during interviews for graduate engineers - along the lines of;
A reasonable well sealed and insulated room contains an operational fridge, with the door open. Describe what happens to the temperature in the room.
Some of the answers, from some of the candidates who looked good on paper were quite illuminating!
Number_Cruncher
|
NumberCruncher
Been there used that very question with the variation of starting with door closed and then opening it!
Some people do not have a clue!
PS
have you used the one of a boat in a lake containing 1 person and large rock? Lifts rock and heaves over side. Absolute level omans head? Water level?
--
pmh (was peter)
|
>>PS
have you used the one of a boat in a lake containing 1 person and large rock? Lifts rock and heaves over side. Absolute level omans head? Water level
Yes, that's one of the better questions we have used! There aren't too many who can work through it logically in the heat of an interview though!
We used the questions not so much to see if the candidate knew the answer, but to see if the candidate could string together some kind of plausible technical argument, and as starting points for more technically probing questions.
These relatively simple questions would often weed out candidates with good degrees from god Universities, but without any real idea or feel about engineering problem solving.
Number_Cruncher
|
|
|
|
"quite illuminating"
well they would be - the fridge door is open.
A phrase we use at work to describe someones comprehension "well the fridge door is open but the lights not on"
------------------------------
TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
|
|
|
|
|
Hi Adam
The BTU relates to the rate of cooling a machine can achieve. No doubt a quick Google will give a definite answer if you need it.
You could always make a blanking plate out of Perspex for the window and fix the the exhaust vent through that. It would certainly seal the window and would make the airconditioning more efficient, but the change would only be small relating to the overall cooling effect.
As I mentioned in my last post Homebase do a 12000 BTU for £199.99, so it is more powerful than B&Q's.
Another point I should mention is that the unit 9000 BTU unit is 37Kg, the 12000 might be slightly heavier still. If you are taking this upstairs on your own, it is quite heavy and awkward to lift upstairs.
--
Roger
I read frequently, but only post when I have something useful to say.
|
Thanks for that Roger. I don't know about Imagos but I'm sold!
Now to convince Mum and Dad we need one for every room...
|
Adam
I doubt you need one for each room. Would suggest buying one and seeing what you think. You can always use extra fans to direct cool air to another room. The cold air will also sublime down the stairs. I thought about getting a second one, but decided against as you still have to store them somewhere for the rest of the year.
--
Roger
I read frequently, but only post when I have something useful to say.
|
|
|
|
"If you are taking this upstairs on your own, it is quite heavy and awkward to lift upstairs. "
Err, given his antics with writing off a fan, I think it may be wise to leave it on the ground floor ;-)
I spent most of my childhood in hot climates, many people in the UK are just not capable of dealing with heat. We always kept our windows and shutters closed in the scorching heat, in the UK shutters are hardly ever fitted and people immediately open all the windows on a hot day. During the harvest a lot of the old boys kept their waistcoats and long trousers on, it helps keep the heat off. These days everyone stips off to the bare minimum in the heat. We used to sit in the cellar for ten minutes when it got all to much but were strictly forbidden to touch the bottles...
|
I spent most of my childhood in hot climates...
Me too - in a climate where the temperature over 30C day in, day out, 365 days a year and never goes much below 25C even at night! You simply get used to it after a while and get on with life.
>>..many people in the UK are just not capable of dealing with heat.
Though that is true, I don't think it's a particularly fair comment; What is the average temp in South East? Say 12C? So when you get the occasional day when it reaches 30C, most people quite naturally will find it "uncomfortable".
By the same token, you'll find that people from warmer climes will find even what we'd call a warm day, quite chilly. For example have you seen the Sri Lankan cricketers wearing jumpers in 25C sunshine!
I must admit to becoming a softie - as soon as it reaches anywhere near 25C, I simply can't do any work and have to go down the nearest beer garden ;-)
|
By the same token, you'll find that people from warmer climes will find even what we'd call a warm day, quite chilly. For example have you seen the Sri Lankan cricketers wearing jumpers in 25C sunshine!
We were in Rome in May, and while I was finding it uncomfortable and getting sweaty in a T-shirt, all the locals were milling about in jumpers, coats, big padded bodywarmers, with not a bead of sweat in sight!
|
|
|
|
|
No idea what BTu's are but . . .
Derives from the energy needed to raise one pound of water by one degree F -- the old imperial units.
As opoosed to the calorie, one gram of water raised one degree C.
453.6 grams in one pound and one degree F is 5/9 degrees C so calories for a pound of water by one degree F is 5/9 X 453.6 which is 252 calories.
Otherwise have a read of:
www.simetric.co.uk/sibtu.htm
|
This is wonderful - am I reading it right that air conditioning units actually burn calories?
I'm off to B&Q for the biggest one I can find, and to cancel my gym membership on the way home.
Thanks!
;-)
Lee -- There\'s no place like 127.0.0.1
|
This is wonderful - am I reading it right that air conditioning units actually burn calories?
They do if they're powered by you on an exercise bike.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I once hired a portable unit for a computer room that had an outside unit like a car radiator and fan. The heat was transferred by means of water travelling through two hoses, each about 1.5" ext. diameter. There was also a LV power lead from the indoor unit to the outside radiator. No idea who made it.
As someone said, the heat has to go somewhere. The options are a big air hose, 2 smaller water hoses or 2 refrigerant pipes (for a fixed unit). You could also have an outdoor water chiller unit, with water piped in to a FCU, but I don't think this is commonly done for portable units. Small outdoor chillers get nicked.
|
>The heat was transferred by means of water travelling through >two hoses, each about 1.5" ext. diameter.
Like this;
www.industrialcooling.co.uk/downloads/stay_cool/Po...f
For illustration only; other manufacturers will make something similar. These are commercial rental units and the purchase price will probably be much more than domestic portable jobs.
|
|
|
|
|
