Anyone using Window Air Conditioners?

[momoney]

Our central air conditioning unit recently went out on one of the hottest days of the year so far. I ran out and picked up the cheapest ($129) AC window unit I could find. I was quite amazed at how well the 5,000 BTU unit cooled off multiple rooms with the help of another fan in the doorway. This led me to start researching window units on Amazon and YouTube. I was particularly intrigued by the window units that operated as heat pumps.

I've thought about installing a mini-split system when my central air unit needs replacing, but now I wonder if these quiet, efficient, programmable and high performance window units are the better way to go?

Does anyone use window units exclusively?

 

[Car-Guy]

Not exclusively but I have 3 as backups to my central air. 1 unit @ 5k btu's, 1 unit @ 8k btu's and 1 @ 10k btu's. My setup is such that when I need them, I can cutoff (shut the doors) to certain areas of the house so I only need to cool down about 1/2 the home. Works for me.

 

[CaptTom]

I'm intrigued by the new "U-shaped" units. Never used one though. I did recently see a video about the type which can do reverse cycle heat, too. Apparently they're moving to these in cities like NY, where old apartment buildings had no central air plus old, inefficient or ineffective heating systems. It's an easy upgrade, saves energy and each unit can pay for their own heat and cooling.

The heat that's been moving across the country is finally reaching us. Central air tested OK, filter is new, but I really should make sure the backup window units are readily accessible.

 

[donheff]

I have one in the master bedroom. If the other bedrooms are not occupied, we will turn of the whole house AC and use the window unit on hot nights.

 

[pacergal]

Our DD and DSIL use them. They have two smaller ones in two bedrooms upstairs, plus a large fan in the hallway and a larger unit downstairs in the main living area. They work well for the areas they are in, however, they would like to get central air sometime. They have a 3 level townhome and no windows on the entry level, so window AC is not as efficient through out the home.

 

[Route246]

I have an 8K in my home office which has computing and networking equipment that throws off heat. I only use it when I'm in there working and it starts to get warm and the central A/C is not adequate on those hot days. The 8K unit chills the room quickly and saves capacity with the rest of the house.

 

[Badger]

I have a small 5 or 6 BTU Frigidaire AC in a 12x20 foot sunroom that is 10 years old and starting to get a little noisy. It does well but maybe time for another. Florida heat is a challenge.

 

[Sojourner]

I'm intrigued by the new "U-shaped" units. Never used one though. I did recently see a video about the type which can do reverse cycle heat, too. Apparently they're moving to these in cities like NY, where old apartment buildings had no central air plus old, inefficient or ineffective heating systems. It's an easy upgrade, saves energy and each unit can pay for their own heat and cooling.

The heat that's been moving across the country is finally reaching us. Central air tested OK, filter is new, but I really should make sure the backup window units are readily accessible.

I just recently purchased and installed a U-shaped unit. Couldn't resist when the price on Amazon suddenly dropped about 30%, after I'd had it on my watch list for over a year. So far, so good in terms of performance, features, and "quietness". Much quieter than any other window A/C unit I've ever been around. It was running continuously this past weekend due to 95+ degree daytime temps, and did an excellent job keeping the bedroom it's in very cool and comfortable at all times. This is at my family's small lake house (no central air), BTW, not at my primary home.

 

[Golden Mean]

Sig other uses a floor model (with hose exhaust outside) to keep her room extra cool at night, but we don't use it to cool the rest of the house. Works well.

We had a similar experience as you, in HI, where we needed a box fan to get the window unit's cooth into the back room.

I suspect the mini-splits are more efficient and of course you don't lose a window.

 

[foxcreek9]

Yes, in MB. Set at 66 while central is set at 76 when on. About 1/3 of the summer we will not turn the central on and just use the window unit at night.

 

[jollystomper]

DW likes the bedroom very cool, but in a big house it makes no sense to set the central air low for a cooler bedroom, particular with a 1-2 degree difference between floors. So we have window units in the master bedroom and a guest bedroom. Both are 5K BTU and work very well. We set our central AC to a relatively high setting. It works for us.

 

[momoney]

I suspect the mini-splits are more efficient and of course you don't lose a window.

It would be interesting to know if they are more efficient than the inverter style window AC units. I would think the efficiency might drop with the length of the refrigerant line?

 

[njhowie]

We no longer use our central AC/heat unless we're having guests over and need to cool/heat a larger part of the house. We have a window A/C in our bedroom and another in the living room. We also have a ceiling fans in all of the bedrooms, and with that on low along with the A/C it cools ours extremely well.

In the winter, we use small electric heaters in whatever room we happen to be in. No need to heat our big home when we're only in a few rooms most of the time.

Our heating and A/C costs have gone down significantly over time and we're more comfortable.

 

[GenXguy]

I have a 5000 BTU that can be set into a window easily without adding extra supports that came in handy when I have having a thermostat issue where the AC could be set to run but not turn on/off by the thermostat. It's only good for one room. I really should get another backup. My central air unit is OVER 22 years old.

 

[Car-Guy]

My central air unit is OVER 22 years old.

I've never had a central air unit last over 12 to 13 years and I buy the best and do PM each year. But I live in Texas where they run almost non stop from May thru Oct. And part time in the other months.

 

[Gumby]

We have a 167 year old house. We have hot water radiators for heat, so no ducts (and no place to put ducts), which means no central A/C. We have a window unit in the bedroom for sleeping and a larger window unit that keeps the sewing room, office and kitchen tolerable. We have a portable unit for the guest bedroom if necessary. Fortunately, it rarely gets intolerably hot here on the Connecticut shoreline.

 

[GenXguy]

I've never had a central air unit last over 12 to 13 years and I buy the best and do PM each year. But I live in Texas where they run almost non stop from May thru Oct. And part time in the other months.

I don't even do any PM on it in 22+ years. I'm not sure how old it was when I moved in. Only time my central air quit working properly was a thermostat issue. But, I usually don't cool below 80 degrees and live in the midwest. And for a good number of years, I rarely cooled below 83. If it's cool enough in the evening and not humid, I'll use a fan to blow in cooler outside air. I was able to do that a few days ago, but now the temps are up and dew point of 70. So, that's stretched the lifetime of my central air equipment.

A relative living near here had an approximately 30 year old central air and just replaced that and the furnace when they had a problem.

I have done some furnace repairs over the years myself like igniters, heat exchanger, secondary heat exchanger mounting, and gas valve.

 

[finnski1]

We have a 167 year old house. We have hot water radiators for heat, so no ducts (and no place to put ducts), which means no central A/C. We have a window unit in the bedroom for sleeping and a larger window unit that keeps the sewing room, office and kitchen tolerable. We have a portable unit for the guest bedroom if necessary. Fortunately, it rarely gets intolerably hot here on the Connecticut shoreline.

you sound like a good candidate for mini splits.

 

[MC Rider]

We had window units in our last 2 places. The second one in addition to the central HVAC.
This place has the HVAC, plus 2 evaps coolers up top. And a pellet stove for the colder months.

 

[Walt34]

I have three 5k BTU window units as backups to the central A/C. One of them is forty years old and is only used when the central unit isn't working. The other two I bought when Home Depot had them on sale in the fall for ~$110 or so and I thought "They're never going to be cheaper than that" so I bought two. I took them out of the boxes long enough to make sure they worked and then packed them back up again.

Thus prepared, this assures us that the central unit will never fail.

 

[Gumby]

you sound like a good candidate for mini splits.

Two issues: First, we live in the historic district and can't change the outside appearance of the house. Second, our house is post and beam construction with original plaster walls, so we don't have regular studs in the wall and couldn't hang the inside unit on the wall.

 

[REWahoo]

Like many others, I have two that I can use in the unlikely event our new central air system goes out or in the far more likely event we have a power outage and have to rely on our portable generator.

 

[Golden Mean]

Golden Mean said:
I suspect the mini-splits are more efficient and of course you don't lose a window.

It would be interesting to know if they are more efficient than the inverter style window AC units. I would think the efficiency might drop with the length of the refrigerant line.

Not an expert by any means, but I think having the hot and cold sides so close to each other reduces how efficient they can be.

 

[tulak]

I used a window AC for bedroom and a standing unit for the living room for a few years. Both were noisy and the latter only did an ok job at cooling.

Last year I splurged on mini-split and they work great. Much quieter and I use them for both heating and cooling.

If I didn’t get mini-splits, I’d definitely be looking at other, quieter, options.

 

[JoeWras]

I used a window AC for bedroom and a standing unit for the living room for a few years. Both were noisy and the latter only did an ok job at cooling.

A comforting sound my from childhood was hearing the Fedders compressor come on in the window unit when it was 100 degrees outside.

It was loud, but it was welcome.