Portable Air Conditioner Inquiry

[Unit5]

Hi All,

I am currently contemplating buying a portable air conditioner (1bedroom apartment) and was wondering if anyone has any recommendations on a model and location in DR where one could buy it.

Thanks!

 

[JD Jones]

Pricesmart has them for around 8k. Heads up, they consume a lot of energy.

PriceSmart | Página de producto

www.pricesmart.com

This is an alternative option:

PriceSmart | Página de producto

www.pricesmart.com

 

[cavok]

Besides consuming a lot of energy, many people complain they're noisy. Make sure to check your model before you buy. I would recommend spending the extra money an get a split unit.

 

[windeguy]

Besides consuming a lot of energy, many people complain they're noisy. Make sure to check your model before you buy. I would recommend spending the extra money an get a split unit.

A split unit would certainly defeat the idea of portability, which I am guessing is the priority in this cool case, no?

 

[Uzin]

I had a look at these recently , a 12BTU new in the shop was 35k pesos, not cheap ...

Cons are in addition to noise, need to empty their water bucket, not sure how often..., also need to put the hot air hose out of the window, some come with a kit, some not..., efficiency not as good as split of course...

Pros are that they are portable, but I can't see dragging the hot air hose from living room to the bedroom and back, twice a day...! Also 110v and plug and play, no installation, maybe survive better than a split compressor which will be outside in the sun and rain..., maybe !

I think better feedback we get from people who have them and use them..., note that they start from 5BTU, so big variety and range...

 

[Unit5]

Thanks All. That is some good feedback.

 

[Unit5]

Pricesmart has them for around 8k. Heads up, they consume a lot of energy.

PriceSmart | Página de producto

www.pricesmart.com

This is an alternative option:

PriceSmart | Página de producto

www.pricesmart.com

JD, this product says 60Watts draw. That does not seem like a lot to me. Am I missing something? I don't live in the DR - this is for my girlfriend who lives in POP. I will be moving down in 1 1/2 years, so I don't really know the lay of the land. I have read about the electricity woos on this forum as well as the "no luz" from the GF.

 

[LindseyKaufman]

Pricesmart has them for around 8k. Heads up, they consume a lot of energy.

PriceSmart | Página de producto

www.pricesmart.com

This is an alternative option:

PriceSmart | Página de producto

www.pricesmart.com

I have purchased 2 of these. The one I have in the office of the learning center works great. It is only used for a couple of hours on stinking hot days.

After that purchase, I bought one for my casita. It was installed by the same electrician (although they are almost plug and go.) It burned up the electrical cord. We almost had a fire. Gave that one away and now have a split air conditioner in that location.

Yes, it was guaranteed by Pricesmart, but by the time we actually got around to installing it, the guarantee was expired. Lesson learned.

 

[Unit5]

JD, this product says 60Watts draw. That does not seem like a lot to me. Am I missing something? I don't live in the DR - this is for my girlfriend who lives in POP. I will be moving down in 1 1/2 years, so I don't really know the lay of the land. I have read about the electricity woos on this forum as well as the "no luz" from the GF.

Nevermind, it was the cheaper model I looked at. The one for 8k...lol

 

[Unit5]

I have purchased 2 of these. The one I have in the office of the learning center works great. It is only used for a couple of hours on stinking hot days.

After that purchase, I bought one for my casita. It was installed by the same electrician (although they are almost plug and go.) It burned up the electrical cord. We almost had a fire. Gave that one away and now have a split air conditioner in that location.

Yes, it was guaranteed by Pricesmart, but by the time we actually got around to installing it, the guarantee was expired. Lesson learned.

Hi Lindsey, which one are you referring to, the 8k or the 31k?

 

[windeguy]

JD, this product says 60Watts draw. That does not seem like a lot to me. Am I missing something? I don't live in the DR - this is for my girlfriend who lives in POP. I will be moving down in 1 1/2 years, so I don't really know the lay of the land. I have read about the electricity woos on this forum as well as the "no luz" from the GF.

There is no way it is 60 watts.

 

[reilleyp]

I would avoid them. They did not work very well, were noisy and did not last long. If you do get one, buy one with a dual air exchange, not a single. The dual ones bring in a little air from the outside so you don’t end up with a vacuum effect inside the house.

 

[LindseyKaufman]

Hi Lindsey, which one are you referring to, the 8k or the 31k?

31K

 

[ese tipo]

The reason they're so inefficient is because everything that the outdoor unit on a traditional air conditioner does is handled by a single hose as opposed to having the condensing unit installed outdoor. Even an older window unit can be more efficient than these portable jobs. As someone here mentioned the dual duct units are slightly better because one hose is intake the other exhaust cutting the workload seemingly in half. Some of the newer units have a drain hose you can push out the window which negates having to have to empty the tank so you'll have that going for you. Not sure if it's a question of security? But if that's the case keep in mind that you still have to place the exhaust in a window same as a normal window unit.

 

[JD Jones]

JD, this product says 60 Watts draw. That does not seem like a lot to me. Am I missing something? I don't live in the DR - this is for my girlfriend who lives in POP. I will be moving down in 1 1/2 years, so I don't really know the lay of the land. I have read about the electricity woos on this forum as well as the "no luz" from the GF.

The 60W is an air "Cooler", not an A/C with a compressor. That's why it's "only" 8k pesos.

The other one is an actual A/C unit, and consumes a lot more and costs a lot more too!

I had a portable A/C years ago. I always ran it on the "low fan" setting, and kept it around 78 degrees. At those settings, it didn't do much more than hum, and it didn't consume a lot of energy.

Ya gotta be careful though, if she's runs it on high and tries to keep her room cold, her wallet (or yours) is gonna suffer, and there's also a very real chance of overheating the wiring in her house and causing a fire.

Food for thought.

Honestly? She's lived without it her entire life, so she has no idea what she's missing. That may be a good thing.

I suggest waiting until you move here.

 

[Buffness]

The 60W is an air "Cooler", not an A/C with a compressor. That's why it's "only" 8k pesos.

Correct !

This is one one of Miesposa’s “ I told you so”s ….bought one exactly like that from Amazon for the kids (small) bedroom …shipping cost was ridiculous…

All it did was consume electricity and blow hot air …a 1000 pesos fan works better…so save your self the time and money….we ended up installing a 12K BTU split… happy kids…happy wife …happy life .

It’s gathering dust in the garage as we speak ….as a reminder…as in ..here lies “Papi’s money saving genius idea” ….Ayyyy😩

 

[cavok]

A split unit would certainly defeat the idea of portability, which I am guessing is the priority in this cool case, no?

Maybe, but I think most people think they're just going to bring this home, plug it in, and bingo! Cool air! The reality is much different. You have to drill a drain line (unless you want to be emptying a pan every day) and also a fairly big exhaust duct hole though solid concrete with rebar and do that again in the other room you're planning to move it to.

 

[windeguy]

Maybe, but I think most people think they're just going to bring this home, plug it in, and bingo! Cool air! The reality is much different. You have to drill a drain line (unless you want to be emptying a pan every day) and also a fairly big exhaust duct hole though solid concrete with rebar and do that again in the other room you're planning to move it to.

Agreed, but if you are in an apartment, like the OP is, you probably don't want to install a split unit for you landlord.
Between a rock and a hard place he is... To the OP , is your electric bill on top of your rent?

 

[MariaRubia]

A split unit is definitely the only answer. Ask her if she actually pays for her electricity (many many Dominicans don't). If she doesn't, then you can pick up a split model which is NOT an inverter one cheaper, and quite often second-hand.

If she does pay for electricity, then you need to realise that the cost of any air conditioner is going to jack up the electricity bill quite a lot. I live on my own and only use it at night in one bedroom and the electricity bill is always over RD$ 6000 per month. If you say that about RD$ 4000 of that is the AC, over a year it's going to come in at RD$ 50,000. And unless she's earning a good salary, which I guess she isn't, then you'll be expected to contribute towards that every month. Mi Amor.

 

[MariaRubia]

Agreed, but if you are in an apartment, like the OP is, you probably don't want to install a split unit for you landlord.
Between a rock and a hard place he is... To the OP , is your electric bill on top of your rent?

It's not his bill nor his apartment, he is installing this for his girlfriend.