Please tell me about portable air conditioning units - already afraid of summer heatwaves!

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I live in the north of England and it rarely gets super hot here but last summer there were two brief full-on heatwaves and everyone in my house totally ceased to function. Neurodiverse household, sensory issues, one of us with fairly severe anxiety, all of us unable to sleep at night and do anything useful during the day because it was SO FREAKIN' HOT. And that only happened twice all summer, and only for 2-3 days each, and we still couldn't cope. Our house is fairly old but brick built and didn't keep cool for very long once temperatures rose - it made me miss my old Victorian stone-built house!

We're thinking ahead to this summer and wanting to find a way to make sure we can cool a couple of bedrooms effectively if it gets really hot. Maybe even all three bedrooms.

Would we need 2-3 aircon units? I'm thinking we need one per room?

And how do the window kits work for sealing off the opening where the hose goes out? Are they easy enough to install? Can you easily close the window when you're going out, or do you have to leave the window permanently open as long as the window kit is in place?

Please tell me your experiences and share your expertise; this will be a massive investment for us that we can't really afford, but we also can't afford to suffer like we did last summer. And I'm thinking that buying aircon units now, towards the end of winter, will be WAY cheaper than buying them once summer gets underway.

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MNHQ

Are you talking about the portable ones?
They do the job but I think you would need one per room. Obv you can try one and see how you get on.
As soon as we turn our one off the room heats up fast!
They are noisy.
Prob expensive to run.
Need room to store in winter (our one is big).
Window kits very easy to install. We have a plastic sheet style one.
We have to leave window open when it's on with hose out so we would have to turn it all off and shut window when we go out.
I don't think the portable ones are that good to be honest. We didn't use it last year. Thinking of selling it this year!

We've had a portable unit for three years now, it gets used just during those short heatwaves (last year's was a little longer!) but we wouldn't be without it. We don't bother with a window sealing kit, we have a letter-box exhaust vent that means we can 'almost' close the window (and it's rare that the entire family leave the house). We have a standard (1950s council-built) 3 bed semi, and we put the aircon unit on the landing with the exhaust vent out of the landing window - with all three bedroom doors open, they remain at a bearable temperature, not icy cold but summer bearable.

@JenniferAllisonPhillipaSue what make do you have? We have top hinged windows so can't find a portable unit that will work with those. Yours sounds interesting with the letter box vent.

I have a delonghi pinguino one, supposedly 'silent'. It's certainly not that, although I suppose there are others that are noisier! It's OK; I am find if I sit right in front of it blowing the cool air at me, but I still find that I'm sweating if I move to other parts of the room. I guess it's cooler than without, though, and I do live in a little glass box of a flat.

I have one of the velcro attached fabric window sealing kits that you velcro to the edges of the window and unzip to put the exhaust tube through a small space. It is rather unsightly the rest of the time, but liveable. I don't bother to take it down in the winter, though I probably should! It is awkward becasue I have to have the blinds open to use that window, which also means loads of other glass windows/doors are uncovered, even in the evenings, which feels a bit fishbowl like inside. I might eventually get a blind that covers each pane of glass separately so that I can open only that one in the evenings.

I saw on ebay recently a place that cuts a sort of clear plastic covering with a hole in it that fits the window, and you attach that with velcro to the window frame. I might try that this year instead. It would mean taking off the velcro that is kind of on the inside of the frame for the fabric one, and putting it on the part that faces the room - ugly but maybe not that obvious, and then it's easier to remove as it's just a big piece of plastic rather than the flexible fabric stuff. You do have to remove it when you go out, and close the window.

I have tried a letter box vent on the end of the hose, to keep the window more closed, but it never stays in place very well. I find the hose itself is quite heavy and not as flexible as it could be, so that it sometimes pops out from the unit or the window when I'm trying to get it in place (but I have a small place to put it, and a slightly awkward reach for the hose to get to the window).

I am on the ground floor, so can't have it working at night as can't have windows open. If you have it upstairs, that would be better. But it's quite heavy to move it, so you'd not be moving it from floor to floor often. You can wheel it from room to room though.

I don't know how expensive they are to run. Last summer prices weren't so bad, so I didn't pay as much attention!

It's a cheap ElectriQ device. Can't remember whether it came with the letter-box shaped vent or not, as we did buy some extras from eBay (a longer tube was one - which we then haven't needed, bloody DH!). Our windows hinge at the top with handle at the bottom, so we open the window about two inches and wedge the exhaust vent into the gap. Yes it's not brilliant as some hot air comes in the gap around the exhast vent but freestanding aircons will never be fantastic so you accept some compromises.

p.s. my windows are top hinged as well. The fabric velcro sealing kits were the only ones I could find that would work for those, until I saw these plastic inflexible covers on ebay recently. none of the other window kits were suitable for this shape and size window

I also bought the extra hose and the letterbox vent from amazon, along with the window sealing kit, but I found it hard for them to stay together despite lots of duct tape. My hose had to be at an awkward angle though. If you have lots of space, you might fare better as you can set it up more suitably to avoid the hose having to bend too much. The extra hose I bought was much thinner, and I don't know if it was as well insulated as the original delonghi bit.

We got one from screwfix when I was pregnant and it saved my life (I was the hottest ever human being to walk the earth while pregnant for some reason)

we just had it in our room. Last year when it got to 40 degrees and we had 2 kids to think about, we put it in the living room and everyone slept in there for a couple of nights with the air con to make things more comfy.

I will prob buy one more this year for one of the kids rooms in case of another heatwave. For what they cost I think they are really really good x

>I saw on ebay recently a place that cuts a sort of clear plastic covering with a hole in it that fits the window, and you attach that with velcro to the window frame. I might try that this year instead.

Can you give more details of where you found this Bimble? I'd got the Pinguino AC as well, and would like to vent it through a top-hinged window, using a perspex/acrylic sheet with a vent hole cut in it to stop backflow/insects...

I found this which seems promising:

plasticsheetsshop.co.uk/the-benefits-of-a-plexiglass-window-air-conditioner-seal/

Ours must be at least 12-15 years old and we use it every year and would NOT be without it! We have it on the landing and it helps cool 3 bedrooms (we shut the bathroom door as it won’t do that too). We would love to get fully plumbed in air con but it is super expensive so for now we are going to get another portable unit to have downstairs in the main family room because the heat last year was unbearable! Eventually we will get fully plumbed in.

Oh and we’ve never had the Velcro window kit until last year when our indoor cats decided to escape via the small gap! Bought it off Amazon and works a treat!

Yes, it was this listing I think. I didn't get as far as putting measurements in or figuring out exactly what I needed, so I'm not sure of the cost or quality or anything. I was going to investigate it nearer the time! I do have the metal piece that came with it with a hole in for sliding windows, so it sounds like I could send that to them and have it incorporated.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/132726549898

the plastic frame shop you linked to looks interesting too, as they suggest attaching it with frame clips rather than velcro. I'm not sure about drilling into my windows yet to attach anything, but it's an idea for the future. (I can't tell what my windows are made of, and worry that I'd ruin the frame somehow!).

Or, maybe they mean tension spring screen clips, which look like a good idea, though I'm not sure they would fit in my window. It would be good if they did though as a fly screen also sounds quite useful!!

www.amazon.com/BAOWUINGLU-Tension-Holding-Aluminum-Securely/dp/B09R1GB1WY/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=window+screen+clips&qid=1676839664&sr=8-4

I have a Vida portable unit, 700w so cheap to run...Ebay about £160, now is the time to buy as lots cheaper and also lots of used units for sale, prices soar in the summer, they either work or dont so easy to test out. ours came with window kit but hose was flimsy so got the metal hose from screwfix for about £10. works very well.

I have insect screens which are removal frames with magnetic strips, from www.streme.co.uk/product/window-fly-screen-light-duty-framed-made-to-measure

I thought of fitting the perspex sheet into one of those, though this requires some precision measuring…

You might be able to send the screen to the ebay company and get them to do it, as they seem quite willing to adapt the products to what people need.

How does it go on magetically? Do you just stick the magnetic strips on to the window frame - ie self adhesive? Or do you have to drill in somehow?

I will have to look at mine more carefully tomorrow and see if there is enough of a gap to have something like the tensioned spring clips, as that would work both with the perspex screen or with a fly screen. But i have a feeling there's a reason I've discounted that before...

In which case, velcro on the frame might be the only way. Won't look worse than the fabric velcro stuff I have now though!

We have one and run it in the kitchen which is big and our main living space. the exhaust tube goes out the catflap (we no longer have a cat!) We got it last year as DS2 was due end of June. it was great and meant we could keep one room relatively cool and not worry about overheating newborn.

You just stick strips of magnetic tape on the window frame, and on the screen, making sure they match up (they supply the tape). They also have some other systems for attaching the screen.

Just don't do what my mum did and leave the hosepipe thing sitting there in the room, because "well, if I put it out of the window the window'll have to be open and it'll get hot".... My dad had to break the news to her, after the bloody thing had been sitting like that all day!

You can make a screen with cardboard (paint it if you are posh). We have two portable units. One is about 18 years old and one we bought last year because our house is an odd shape.

min our previous house all the bedrooms opened off the hallway so we hung duvets over the bannisters and a stair gate and if you leave the doors open you can chill an entire floor. In the morning remove duvets and all the cold air falls down the stairs.
As far as noise goes it’s better for us (asd) than any white noise machine and that CD and the cool make for a fantastic nights sleep.

Sorry typos 😮

You’ll need one per room. Measure the room so you can work out what size is most suitable. There should be a cooling power, BTU rating, or recommended size for each portable air con. I’ve got three of three different brands and sizes in three rooms. One really big one for the living/dining/kitchen area and two smaller ones for two bedrooms.

Definitely buy second hand. So much cheaper and people will often sell them after only a year or two of use because they’ll have then had proper air con installed.

Some will a heating function too so doubly useful if you have rooms that get really cold in winter.

A ceiling or pedestal fan will really help to distribute the cold air around the room. I tend to aim the adjustable louvres/vents on mine up towards a ceiling fan so the cold gets blown around everywhere instead of just one spot.

They’re definitely expensive to run but life and sanity saving in the hot weather. They’re also really noisy. That can be a calming white noise for sleeping though.

An option for the window kit is to go to a hardware shop and get some plywood cut to fit your dimensions as long as it isn’t likely to get much rain on it. Thick cardboard is another option, especially if you’re only using it very occasionally.

We have penguinos and sash windows. The units came with a plastic board that fits in the window and the hose vents through a hole in the plastic board. They are noisy but a good white noise for us. If you get the room cold enough before bed it stays cold enough to go to sleep if you turn it off.

Penguinos have a quiet mode.

I’m looking at ducted solutions and cooling measures such as window awnings/shutters/ fans etc.

The downside is my energy bills do not change significantly during the summer months as anything over 19/20 degrees indoors is unbearable for some of us.