If you intend to buy a casement window air conditioner, there are some things to consider first. You do have to remember that although there are several machines with the same brands, specifications and even price tag, there are still differences (both subtle and major) between all of them. Perhaps one of the first things you should decide on first is whether or not you do need (want) a portable air conditioner. If you have an HVAC installed, such a machine can only add to your expenses considerably. It would be best to make minor room improvements if one part of your house does not seem to be getting enough cooling.

Also, if you have a very limited area, cramped to the gills with stuff, a portable air conditioner may not work well at all. Yes, these smaller machines are ideal for small spaces. However, like a casement window air conditioner unit, a portable air conditioner needs to have access to a heat sink (or open and free flowing air that can be used to cool the condenser of the machine.) If you space is too cramped and air does not flow as freely, you need to at least remove some stuff in order to (quite literally) let the room breathe.

Once you have got that settled, we can now focus our attention to the pressing question of whether or not an expensive portable air conditioner is always better than the less pricey models.

Budget? ah, it?s the age old concern. Of course, this is a primary consideration for many of us because some units can reach easily into the thousand dollar range. Even the less expensive models can be more than a hundred dollars at the very least. If you have rather deep pockets, you can choose whatever brand or specifications you like. An energy saving unit can be a worthwhile investment, and may afford you a bit of savings on your utility bills in the long run. However, if you have limited options, units costing between $100 and $200 may serve you well too. The key is to look at specifications, and see what can be of greatest service to you.

If you have a very, very small space, a unit with a cooling capacity of 2.64 kW should be more than enough. At maximum power, this is enough to cool your tootsies to a numbing level. One concern for small spaces is the noise level of the machine. Anything louder than 60 dBA is definitely not good.

If you are in no particular hurry to get your own portable air conditioner, you could wait for sales: blow-out sales, closing sales, warehouse sales ? anything. You can get the best deals here yet. Check online stores for promotional deals as well. And before you take home a unit, make sure that you get all the privileges possible like: guarantees, warranties, and the lot. Not because you got it on sale, means the seller can skimp on the required services add-ons.

A hint of advice for those on really tight budgets: we do not recommend buying second hand units. Some of these may have defects or damages already that may give you more problems in the future than its actual worth in cash.

An air conditioner that you can take anywhere or from room to room may be appealing for you especially if you live in a building where standard room air conditioners are not allowed or if window space is restricted.

However, three large portable air conditioners were tested that were said to have a cooling capacity of 10,000 Btu/hr, their performance gave little relief from the heat as compared with what their manufacturers claimed. Aside from that these appliances are quite expensive at $400 to $500 compared with the standard window air conditioners.

Most portable units include one exhaust hose that shifts air from inside the room over the air conditioners? condenser coils then finally the cooled air is released to the outside. These units also have low-profile vent adapter bracket that you put in a double-hung window which allows the hot, humid air to exhaust.

It is a fact that portable air conditioners may be convenient because you can move these but the units that were test delivered only half of their cooling capacity at the most. This means they performed with a 5 or 6 energy-efficient ratio (EER), the minimum EER should be nine. Standard window models have an EER as high as 12.

As a result of the above tests, people can?t help but conclude that air conditioners are inefficient. Why is this so? Basically, air which the portable air conditioner exhaust to the outside comes from the air inside but the energy which was meant to cool and dehumidify the air is wasted and is sent out through the vent hose. This kind of setup allows the warm, humid outside air to leak back inside the room that was supposed to be cooled.

On one hand, there are portable air conditioners that have a couple of hoses ? one hose is meant to bring in outside air to cool the condenser coils while the other hose releases the air to the outside. These types of air conditioners have not been tested yet but the setup is very similar to the standard window air conditioner. Since this is the case, it is possible that these types of portable air conditioner come closer to delivering the Btu/hr ratings that they tout. But shifting the air through the two hoses waste energy hence the efficiency levels are less than the standard window air conditioners.

Another factor which affects the efficiency of portable air conditioners is the moisture. During the operation of the portable air conditioner, water is accumulated and goes directly into the drain tank. It is this water that helps cool the condenser coils then it evaporates and gets released via the exhaust duct. Unfortunately some units were not designed to use the moisture or water, as a result you would have to empty the tank at least once or twice a day while using the portable air condition.

Knowing all of these, it is recommended to use the portable air conditioner only if it is not possible to use the standard window air conditioner.

Although it is quite a serious investment to install an air conditioner, many of us just plug in the device and forget about any sort of maintenance, until our window air conditioner stops providing the service we have gotten used to. This is the last thing that you should do. Neglecting your air conditioner’s maintenance would not only mean that the efficiency levels would drop but you might also be faced with stiff repair costs. However, if you just follow a few proper maintenance guidelines provided in the instruction manual, you can avoid a lot of problems.

What we do in the following part of the article is to provide you with a basic plan on how to take proper care of your air conditioner so that it can perform at its peak and also a few troubleshooting tips when you have to deal with unforeseen problems.

The first idea is to prevent your unit before it starts showing up problems. Since all air conditioners use filters, it is of primary importance to maintain the filter as without the filter in a proper condition no unit will be able enough to perform. So if you need efficiency from your air conditioner you must have the filter clean. It is best to clean them once every month.

Also be sure that the condenser coils of the air conditioner are clean and not covered by dust and dirt. Sometimes dust and grime can hide at places where it is not visible to the naked eye. It is best to vacuum the coils with a crevice tool so that you can reach all the nooks and the corners.

Problems, however, might still crop up and you have to deal with them. Sometimes you’ll notice a musty smell coming out of your air conditioner. This may be because of the moisture dust and dirt which leads to the formation of mold and mildew in the dip tray. All you got to do is to remove the dip tray and wash it with soap and water. It is best to do this once every year which would ensure that you never get this smell.

If you find some water leaking from the window air conditioner it might well be the interior moisture. It may be because your unit is tilted inwards, though it actually should be tilted outward. This hampers the drainage. Just get the unit installed properly and you will no longer encounter the problem.