Question:
Has anyone tried using a Movincool air conditioner in their shop? I'm
thinking about getting something like this:
http://www.movincool.com/product_cl18.shtml
It is similar to a home portable air conditioners but runs on 240V and is
quite a bit larger. I would imagine the air coming directly out of the
ducts is cold, but does the cold air spread around the room? Or does the
overall room get hotter, with just a very localized area getting colder?
Answer:
The site says: " ** Exhaust duct required in most cases." So the heat goes
wherever you exhaust it to, typically out a window or a dryer vent.
Note that there are many amall packaged 110V. units on the market these days,
they are used where it is not convenient to have an air conditioner hanging out
a window. Usually cost $500.00 to $800.00 and are typically 10,000 BTU or less
I have used a home one in a home. I think it's about 1.25HP. It is
almost useless in a 12*15 room. whereas a wall-mounted one would make
quite a difference, even though barely adequate. They are probably
about 1/3 as effective as a wall-mounted one of the same power. Maybe
1/2. The salesman actually tried to stop us buying one, but we were in
a temp situation and did not want to install.
The problems are:
- the exhaust tube. Cooling air needs a lot of air movement, and the
tube restricts that. The tube also gets damned hot. We were forever
mucking about placinf blankets around the tube to insulate it
- Also, of course, all of the unit's own heat generation is inside
the room/shop, not elsewhere on the wall. Although a lot of that is
taken out the pipe, it all adds up.
