More power and portable A/C unit

TCinTEXAS

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I currently have 11 video games and a pin in my tiny (about 20x18) upstairs gameroom. The room was serviced by a single 15 amp breaker. Needless to say, at about 10 machines, I was flipping the breaker. I had an electrician come out and run two 20amp lines with quad outlets, in addition to the 15amp circuit. Should be good now.

I've also noticed that the room starts heating up after the machines have been powered up for a couple of hours. My house does not have zoned A/C, so there's not much I can do to add cooling with the central air. I pulled the trigger on a Black+Decker 10,000BTU portable A/C unit:

https://www.amazon.com/BLACK-DECKER...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B01DLPUWG2

I'm hoping this will provide enough cooling to compensate for the heat from the machines. The specs say it pulls about 7.5amps, so I should have enough headroom.

Do any of you have experience with these small, portable A/C units? Good, bad or otherwise?
 
I've used portables for a long time and have one in my shop right now at work but we always have one on hand in case someones a/c goes out at night or weekend and i dont have a replacement. They work OK in small rooms so generally i will put it in a bedroom so the resident can sleep comfortably so it should be fine for your space, my shop doesnt cool down in the summer but sitting in front of it provides some releif from this Texas heat.
 
I've used portables for a long time and have one in my shop right now at work but we always have one on hand in case someones a/c goes out at night or weekend and i dont have a replacement. They work OK in small rooms so generally i will put it in a bedroom so the resident can sleep comfortably so it should be fine for your space, my shop doesnt cool down in the summer but sitting in front of it provides some releif from this Texas heat.

Do you have a particular brand which has worked better for you? The B+D was cheap, but also had a 4 star rating.
 
not really just whatever our supplier has, right now its some italian sounding name i think but i'll check.
 
not really just whatever our supplier has, right now its some italian sounding name i think but i'll check.

Ok, thanks. Not that it really matters. I'm hoping it will solve my cooling problems. I, then, have to figure out a new arrangement, because I've got to squeeze two more machines in!
 
I have one of those.

Window units are MUCH more effective.

Better than nothing, yes.

I used mine to cool a bedroom that only had a patio door (no windows) and created an adapter for it to the door. I also forced mine to have an "intake" as the rest of my apartment didn't have A/C, I didn't want to draw warm air in due to the venting. This may help you pull from the rest of your cooled house though.

The big draw backs are:
1)Portables need a second fan for the "hot" side.
2)They also have to do "something" with the moisture. Either tank it or blow it out as humidity.
 
I have one of those.

Window units are MUCH more effective.

Better than nothing, yes.

I used mine to cool a bedroom that only had a patio door (no windows) and created an adapter for it to the door. I also forced mine to have an "intake" as the rest of my apartment didn't have A/C, I didn't want to draw warm air in due to the venting. This may help you pull from the rest of your cooled house though.

The big draw backs are:
1)Portables need a second fan for the "hot" side.
2)They also have to do "something" with the moisture. Either tank it or blow it out as humidity.

My HOA would have technicolor kittens if I installed a window unit!

The room as a ceiling fan, so I'm hoping that will distribute the cool air. This particular model says it blows the moisture out with the exhaust . It's in an already air conditioned room, so humidity should already be low.
 
The key to success with a portable AC is to get the TWO HOSE models. The single hose models are about 1/2 as efficient. The two hose models are about as efficient as a window AC. If you have a window, I'd go with a window AC...

I own two single hose units and a double hose unit. The double hose unit works much better.

EDIT: BTW... the difference between a single hose and two hose model is that the single hose models cool the compressor with air from within the house and then blow it outside as warm air... that creates a negative pressure in the room, so air from outside the room is drawn in. Dual hose models are pretty much just like window models... in that air is drawn in to one hose... which cools the compressor... and that hot air is then expelled out the other hose... thereby NOT creating the negative pressure that the single hose models create.
 
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I tried one similar to that for my garage, and it didn't do much. Your room is a little smaller, and probably better insulated, so it may fare better.

I ended up going with a bigger but similar unit from costco. I think it was $750, but it has worked well for the last couple of years.
 
The key to success with a portable AC is to get the TWO HOSE models. The single hose models are about 1/2 as efficient. The two hose models are about as efficient as a window AC. If you have a window, I'd go with a window AC...

I own two single hose units and a double hose unit. The double hose unit works much better.

EDIT: BTW... the difference between a single hose and two hose model is that the single hose models cool the compressor with air from within the house and then blow it outside as warm air... that creates a negative pressure in the room, so air from outside the room is drawn in. Dual hose models are pretty much just like window models... in that air is drawn in to one hose... which cools the compressor... and that hot air is then expelled out the other hose... thereby NOT creating the negative pressure that the single hose models create.


Well, crap! That makes perfect sense, and didn't occur to me. Oh well. I'll make do with the B+D. If it doesn't do the job, I'll sell to to a client for a backup server room A/C and buy me a 2 hose version.
 
I've got one of the portable units that I use to supplement the house A/C during arcade parties (blue room w/ pins, sit down drivers, etc: http://projectvb.com/arcade/ ). It works really well... the one time I even forgot to open the house A/C vents in that room and it kept up. I don't remember what brand I have... I picked it up cheap used on CL a couple years ago.

I vent it through my sliding patio door (I used a 2x6 to put into the track, with a hole in it for the vent). It's a single hose model, but I think the negative pressure actually helps in my case, as it draws the house A/C into the room. When I crank up the A/C for the arcade, the rest of the house can get pretty chilly.

DogP
 
I deal with the a/c problem as well. My gameroom is 18x20(ish) above the garage. In the winter, its no problem, if it gets warm, i open a window and put a box fan in it, and it cools it right down.
In the summer, its another issue completely. I have a 10,000 btu window unit in the gameroom, and central a/c throughout the upstairs. There are also 3 more window units in the other rooms. I recently added 2 20 amp circuits to power the games (16 full size cabs, mame bartop, megatouch, and mini 60-1). If i'm having a party, i turn the central ac down as low as i can the day before, and usually, it'll catch up that night. The day of the party, i turn the a/c from auto to fan, and crank up all of the window unit a/cs.
By doing all that, it normally will stay comfortable in the gameroom through the day and all night, even with lots of people in and out of the gameroom.
I really should hook a fan up to my electric meter when i do that as well, as it really spins.
 
I deal with the a/c problem as well. My gameroom is 18x20(ish) above the garage. In the winter, its no problem, if it gets warm, i open a window and put a box fan in it, and it cools it right down.
In the summer, its another issue completely. I have a 10,000 btu window unit in the gameroom, and central a/c throughout the upstairs. There are also 3 more window units in the other rooms. I recently added 2 20 amp circuits to power the games (16 full size cabs, mame bartop, megatouch, and mini 60-1). If i'm having a party, i turn the central ac down as low as i can the day before, and usually, it'll catch up that night. The day of the party, i turn the a/c from auto to fan, and crank up all of the window unit a/cs.
By doing all that, it normally will stay comfortable in the gameroom through the day and all night, even with lots of people in and out of the gameroom.
I really should hook a fan up to my electric meter when i do that as well, as it really spins.

Sounds familiar! I had a little "Man Night" get together a few weeks ago. I cranked down the air all day long to cool things down. It dropped to the 50s that evening, so I opened the game room window. Unfortunately, there was cigar smoking on the patio, and the smoke was drawn right into the house and up the stairs. Wife wasn't happy the next day.
 
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