Dear revolutionaries.

Every year I’m tempted to buy a small portable aircon unit…for about a week until it starts raining again.

This year my two year old daughter is waking up every hour in a room thats currently 26C that we just cant get cooler even leaving windows open and putting ice cubes on strings hung from the curtains. She is not a happy camper!

I was looking on the net (natch) and they look to be around £200 whne on offer… which they all appear to be. Room is 3.4 X 3.3 X 2.4 m (28M cubed) and floor area of 12 m squared…. so….. ….. 7000 BTU?. One window and is SW facing but we keep the blinds drawn the day to keep the sun out and would only use the unit at night.

It needs to be quiet, thermostat controlled and probably on a timer so it doesn’t come on in the day. Also I dont want to fit a permanant unit as we are knocking the room out in an extension in year…hopefully.

Any recommendations? I want to buy online if possible.

Any help welcome!

Scotster.

I got mine from screwfix last year, they have one for £142 at the moment which is suitable for upto 35sq metres. They also have a budget model for £98.

Hope this helps

Just buy a fan?

Second what Rudeboy said. My bedroom in my flat gets very warm as its all concrete construction and being on the ground floor I cant have the window open. Bought a desk fan and its perfect.

blinds inside thw window are useless at keeping heat out (the light/heat comes in through the glass, is absorbed by the blind and transfered to the air). Fit external blinds/shutters if you want cool’ness.

They need somewhere to dump the hot air, so you’ll have to look at modifying a vent somewhere.

Where are you? its not 26deg in the daytime in the SE at the moment, and even in the height of summer its barely 14-15deg at night? Try a fan by an open window and seeif that works?

I’ve bought loads of portables for work in the past and they usually come with hot air vent kit that will fit on your window to ensure reasonable heat exchange, they work ok but you get what you pay for so the control is not as good as a commercial unit. Also you have to drain the condensate rugularly of the switch themselves off!. I’ve looked at one for the house but to be honest if you set up a fan to shift the air around you’ll be suprised at the difference. The other option is to get one of those B&Q airforce wall mounted units although any aircon guy will tell you them they are rubbish….

All good advice!

The fan option is a good idea but when she wakes up and finds that its on then for she some reason she goes bananas… try reasoning with a 2 and half year old at 10 at night when shes grumpy..
🙂
I know that its not 26C but we have two thermometers in there and they both say 26C..

Heat must build up in the day and like you say the blinds dont work.

I think Im night just persist with the fan…disguise it as lollipop or something.

Laters, S.

I got a portable last year for around £200, they are not quiet and take up a fair bit of room with the hose etc. A fixed split unit would be better so that the noisy condenser part is outside. Plus most split units heat aswell which may help your energy bills in the winter.

We normally leave it on for a couple of hours before going to bed to cool the room down, then turn it off when we go to bed.

Hang a few damp towels on a clothes dryer, and place the fan behind it, as for not being able to reason with a 2 year old at 10 at night,wait until shes 32 and someone marries her, shel still be the same, as all the ones i know are.

silver reflective film also works.

Scotster, ive got a two year old and a 8 month old so i do know what you mean (we had to remove the clock from her room “because it tickied toooo loud!), I’d sugest leaving the door open and placing the fan on the landing, pointing to the door, it worked in the past for us.

airflow round the house during the day is key to keeping temp down, Open the loft hatch, windows and internal doors, although this is a little fruitless if there is no breeze. Our twins room was 27C when they went to bed at 6pm, fortunately they go down in just a nappy with no covers quite happily. We have a fan in the room, but not tried the wet towel thingy – good tip

Ummmmmmmmmmm, they have children in hot countries too, and many of them are brought up quite sucessfully without air-con.

Shocking I know, but still true…

During the day have the windows facing the sun shut and the curtains shut as well. Open windows after the sun has moved round, have windows open early in the morning and in the evening.
From bitter experience with aircon after living in Mississippi the main thing you’ll notice is how big your electricity bill is.

aircon is the work of the devil and has no place in a temperate climate.

Insulate the loft better and shade the windows in the daytime. (Ideally shade them on the outside of the glass). Much greener and completely quiet:)
Our place baked in the upstairs bedrooms until I shoved in an extra 18″ of glass quilt in the loft. Now it’s just fine.

Buy aircon and help wreck the planet, there are is some sound advice above regarding outside shutters and natural airflow. Will agree thought that certain types of building construction make solar gain a real issue.

Ummmmmmmmmmm, they have children in hot countries too, and many of them are brought up quite sucessfully without air-con.

Shocking I know, but still true…

Of course but the problem in the UK is the unreliability of our summer. It doesnt allow us to aclimatise. I love the hot weather however with young ones it comes as a shock to go from needing covers most of the year to being uncomfortably hot.
Crikey, how old are your children?
I use a pedestal fan for mine (13 and 11) they have no issues with the noise but i can understand why yours may get a fright. All I would suggest is buying a good one and turn it low during the night.

11.22m2 X 120w = 1350 odd.
120w/m2 is overkill, but you will struggle to get a unit smaller than 1.35Kw anyway. All portable systems will be pretty noisy due to the fact that the compressor is internal. It could be an issue if the compressor starts when you kid(s) are asleep as it could wake them up. Some good advice here-use AC as a last resort. A fan would absorb much less power.
As for the statement that AC has no place in a temperate climate; that shows a lack of understanding/knowledge. I think that horifically oversized domestic vehicles, our fondness for air travel, methods of electrical energy “production” are destroying the planet. Ac must be managed but it is necessary in the UK I’m afraid.

Of course an aircon unit wont do your childs health any good, but thats only a minor thing isnt it….

Aircon? UK?
WTF?

Please qualify that funkydunc.

Just to be clear, I think AC is required for the UK but only in commercial properties (not homes) but I do know of people with health problems who have it installed in their bedrooms.

Ceiling fans! Our house came with them but I can’t say we’ve used them yet. Delightfully retro way to do it.

Try an evaporative cooler. They have a water tank and a fan – as the water evaporates it absorbs heat, enough to take 4 or 5 degrees off, which is all you need for the UK. You can even put ice packs in the water for extra cooling.

They are cheaper and much more energy efficient than air con units.

Evaporative coolers? please don’t waste your money.
4-5degC? no chance, sorry Ransos. There is a reason that this kit is not widely used.
A ceiling fan is a very good idea, I have one and it works very well (looks good too!).

I fitted an Argos ceiling fan in our bedroom a few years ago. Fantastic. Just open the windows wide & wack the fan on full for 20 mins & the room cools nicely before bed.
Absolutely no need for A/C in residential dwellings in this country. We’ve a place in Africa & despite 35c day time temps even that doesn’t need A/C, just a couple of ceiling fans to move the air a bit.

Thanks everyone!
Im going with the fan disguised as lollipop idea…

“Evaporative coolers? please don’t waste your money.
4-5degC? no chance, sorry Ransos. There is a reason that this kit is not widely used.
A ceiling fan is a very good idea, I have one and it works very well (looks good too!).”

I beg to differ. We have one at work, and it is a noticeable improvement over using a fan alone. Ceiling fans just re-circulate warm air.

The reason they aren’t more widely used is that air con is more effective, doesn’t require topping up with water, and doesn’t need the windows left open. But evaporative coolers provide a perfectly adequate level of cooling for the UK climate.

backhander – Member

As your comment says

“As for the statement that AC has no place in a temperate climate; that shows a lack of understanding/knowledge. I think that horifically oversized domestic vehicles, our fondness for air travel, methods of electrical energy “production” are destroying the planet. Ac must be managed but it is necessary in the UK I’m afraid.”

Yes for an industrial process but don’t be afraid cause AC in domestic dwellings is total and utter wastefullness and like saying a patio heater is a requirement because it’s cold when I want to sit outside. Sorry to sound harsh but there are better ways of solving a problem that lasts for a few days a year.

As I clarified, I disagree with AC for dwellings but for Commercial buildings as well as industrial process it is important as well as acceptable. You can sound as harsh as you want mate, don’t be sorry. The truth is that if companies could avoid the capital expenditure of AC kit as well as the maintenance costs, they would. Unfortunately they can’t. There are good designs and bad ones and the control/management of these systems is vital to keep consumption down. And thank god for that as it keeps me in a job!
What really really annoys me is high st shops. AC running all summer, doors wide open and no air curtains. Should be fined. A lot.