I need some input from you guys....

[Upthevibe]

I live in an apt. in North Redondo Beach, CA. We don't have air conditioning. You used to not need it but man have things changed. I'm going to HAVE to get some kind of an air-conditioner. I can't get a window unit (it's kind of a complicated situation). Fans don't work-I've tried every kind of fan you can think of. This is going to get urgent since I'm not working and it's already starting to get hot in L.A. The past few years (when we've had heat waves) I've stayed at a friend's who has a/c. I can't do that now because she's a cancer survivor with a compromised immune system. HELP!!!!! (I'm post-menopausal and I get so hot that it borders on dangerous)..

Do they sell some kind of stand-alone air-conditioners?

.Thank you

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Would a portable AC work for you?

I got one a couple of years ago because my window unit was too heavy for my creaky old back to manage. It's on wheels and you can move it anywhere near a window where you can connect the exhaust hose. They run about $300 - $600. Here are some examples: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/air-conditioners/portable-air-conditioners/abcat0907004.c?id=abcat0907004

[Turbineguy]

4. We have one from Best Buy

Their house brand, Insignia. It's been going for three summers now, no problem. It's a little small for our 1350 SqFt apartment, but helps.

[Upthevibe]

10. Turbineguy....

Thank you! I'll check Best Buy. My space is small so I'm good there....

[Upthevibe]

9. The Velveteen Ocelot...I'm just now getting back to this thread...

Thank you sooo much for this link.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

17. I got mine from Best Buy, it's a Frigidaire.

You can set it up to cool without dehumidifying if you don't have high humidity, that way you don't have to empty the catch-tank. It works quite well. I didn't use it at all last summer because it was so cool and rainy, though.

[LunaSea]

2. Swamp cooler

Essentially a cooler filled with ice and a fan.
Lots of configuration ideas available on the interwebs.

Free standing ACs are available too. Check Lowes or HD.

https://www.homedepot.com/b/Heating-Venting-Cooling-Air-Conditioners-Portable-Air-Conditioners/N-5yc1vZc4m4
https://www.amazon.com/portable-air-conditioners/b?node=1193678

[Upthevibe]

11. LunaSea....Swamp coolers haven't

worked.....I need a free standing AC so thank you for the Lowes suggestion..

[FM123]

3. I'm so sorry you are going through this.

I have no expertise where it comes to AC units, but I came across an article that might be of some use to you. Please take care and also keep us posted on how you are doing.

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/appliances/g21286604/best-portable-air-conditioner/

[Upthevibe]

12. FM123

....Thank you for your kind words....I will check the thread that you posted....

[MLAA]

5. if Humidity isn't too bad where you are

There are lots of options. Do a google search on portable evaporative coolers ❄️❄️❄️❄️☃️☃️

[Upthevibe]

13. MLAA

When I first moved to L.A. (in 1988) the weather was PERFECT! It's now a different world and there's humidity. Thank you for your input.....

[bluecollar2]

6. A couple of questions

Size of apartment?

1st floor or higher?

If higher how high?

Apartment face outside of the building or inside?


You have a number of relatively "inexpensive" options based on your setup.

M

[Upthevibe]

14. bluecollar2

The apt. is 1150 square feet but I don't have to cool the whole apt., just my area. I'm in a nice sized bedroom with a full bath attached. I close the door that goes out into the hall and the living room/dining room portion of the apt.- (once again, I don't have to worry about cooling that area). I'm on the first floor in a four-plex and have a window.

Some folks have posted some great options for me to explore (and I definitely need to go inexpensive). Thanks for your response.

[mnhtnbb]

7. Yes. These are used a lot in Europe

where a/c is not prevalent and the change in climate has made it difficult to live without a/c.

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/appliances/g21286604/best-portable-air-conditioner/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=arb_ga_ghk_m_bm_hp_g21286604&gclid=CjwKCAjwv4_1BRAhEiwAtMDLso9vRSgH5RFrDgpujdDnrdh0PN66bMm1rzZqGfwv9K_eBLGV5q5iQRoCNYYQAvD_BwE

[Upthevibe]

15. mnhtnbb...

Thank you for your thread. I'll be checking out what you guys have posted.....

[marble falls]

23. PIZZZA!

[Kali]

27. delish!

MIR Team (Kali) banned nikujena728

[marble falls]

24. 10 - 9 - 8 ...

[Major Nikon]

8. A window unit is your best bet

If you can't go that route there are portable models, but they need to be vented to the outside which is usually through a window anyway. You'll also have the added problem of condensation which takes the form of a tank which will need to be emptied often.

Swamp coolers work great in very dry places, but probably not so great in LA where the humidity is normally 70-75%. On very humid and hot days when you need it most, you'll be lucky if it drops your room temperature by 2-3 degrees.

Whatever type you go with they will need to be sized for the area you are trying to cool. It's best if you can just cool one room and stay in there as needed as it will require a smaller unit. If the unit is too small for the area, you won't drop the temperature by much. If it's too large, the unit will short cycle and will be inefficient.

[Upthevibe]

16. Major Nikon....

I wish I could go with a window unit but that's not possible. I'll check some of the threads and suggestions that folks have posted. The good news is the area that I need cooling isn't that large - just my bedroom & adjacent bathroom. Fortunately, when home, it's almost like my own studio apt. The only time I need to go into the main part of the apt. is to the kitchen and since I don't cook I'm only in there long enough to toss something into the microwave. Thank you for your ideas....

[Major Nikon]

18. I'm just saying even with a portable unit you're going to have to vent it to the outside

Otherwise the unit will do absolutely no good. So you're still going to need a window, and most of these portable units have a window adapter that mounts a round vent hose to a square adapter you place into a window opening. Then you're still going to have a condensation tank which must be emptied periodically.

Measure the square footage you are going to cool and the salespeople where you buy should be able to help choosing the right size.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

19. You don't have to empty the condensation tank if you run it on cool only.

At least my unit has that option. If you don't have high humidity, just running it on cool without dehumidifying works quite well and you don't have to empty the tank.

[Major Nikon]

20. I suspect yours has some kind of rehumidifier

There will always be condensation from the cold coils. It's possible to evaporate the water again on the hot side. I'm not sure how many units would have that option. I have one that just has a tank, but it's a cheaper model.

[marble falls]

25. Evaporative cooler. Great in low humidity situations.

[smirkymonkey]

21. I just got a portable AC last summer when I moved into my new apartment.

My previous apt. had free central air. I absolutely hate the heat and humidity so I knew I would need more than just a fan. I have a Black and Decker portable unit that my brother sent me from Amazon. You still need to vent it through a window, but it just needs to be opened a little bit to fit the panel for the exhaust hose. It was really a life saver for me last summer!

Good luck with everything!

[DonaldsRump]

26. Tons are available on Amazon too

We live in the Bay Area. With the combination of the heat and the smoke, I think we will eventually get an a/c. We really don't need it but with the smoke, we couldn't open the windows. I finally turned on the fan on our central heating, which helped cool our place down along with some standalone fans.

We could deal with the heat, but not the heat and smoke together.

The portable a/cs are probably fine for smaller areas so long as you have somewhere to vent the water. We may convert our central heating only to HVAC, but need to see about the cost.

I mean this in every nice way: Chill!

[Upthevibe]

28. Update....

I'm going through my posts (trying to find one from yesterday that I had meant to reply to but didn't) and I came across this one. Thank you guys for all your feedback.

I ended up getting a wonderful portable A/C that has worked like a charm! It was under $300 (including tax and shipping). I found it online. It's a Koldfront. I hadn't heard of that brand before but it's excellent. It came within a week after I placed my order. I received it the first week in May.