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Help with air conditioners

TwistedJesterTwistedJester Registered User regular
edited June 2008 in Help / Advice Forum
So my apartment doesn't have AC, and I've been thinking of buying one. My first problem is I'm not entirely sure what BTU\hour to look for. The rough dimensions of my main apartment area are 13' x 18', or 234 square feet. Home Depot's little guide for AC's says that I'd need about a 6000 BTU AC, but they only have them in 5,000 and 6,500 BTU. Would 5000 really not be enough, or conversely, would 6500 really be overkill?

My second problem is the fact that my apartment kind of sucks. I only really have two (two plug slots each) usable, 3 pronged outlets in my main living area. One of the two outlets is taken up by my fridge, and a powerstrip which my microwave, toaster, and various handheld charging devices. The other is taken up by another powerstrip which has my TV and game systems hooked up to, and a powersquid, which is what my computer, monitor, modem, router and speakers are hooked up to. As you can see, I don't have a plug available just for the AC. These are also surge protectors (Power Sentry brand, if that helps). Would it be incredibly stupid of me to plug an AC into one of my power strips? My "entertainment strip" is only at most running my HDTV and 360 at any one point in time.


tl;dr: which would be better for a 234 sq. ft. room, 5000 or 6500 BTU. Also, is plugging an air conditioner into a powerstrip/surge protector a horrible idea?

TwistedJester on

Posts

  • fuelishfuelish Registered User regular
    edited June 2008
    You need to know the amp rating of the outlet(look at the breaker) and the surge protector, and pick the lower. Then figure out the draw from all of the appliances on that outlet. If the second number is smaller than the first, you are OK. You can also opt to not run anything but the AC unit if it will drop your draw below the rating of the outlet.

    The AC units shold have a reccomended room size, you want one that is close to/slightly bigger than your cooled square footage. Be ready for your power bill to jump.

    fuelish on
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  • TwistedJesterTwistedJester Registered User regular
    edited June 2008
    Hm. My breaker box has a 20 on all of the trips, the surge protector says it's 15, the 360 says it draws 5 amps, the AC will draw 6.1, but I have no idea how much my TV will draw. I still have the manual and it doesn't say the amperage, just the voltage (120V) and wattage(195W).

    TwistedJester on
  • DaenrisDaenris Registered User regular
    edited June 2008
    In general I've been told it's a bad idea to plug AC units into power strips. Not sure if this is for some actual equipment reason, or if it's just because AC units tend to draw a lot of power when the condenser kicks on to cool things. This can cause a spike which might very well trip your surge protector, shutting it off.

    Daenris on
  • FyreWulffFyreWulff YouRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    edited June 2008
    AC units almost always trip power strips. So it's going to need to be directly in the wall.

    FyreWulff on
  • Dark ShroudDark Shroud Registered User regular
    edited June 2008
    I have a little experience with this from my sister's old apartment. It's going to need it's own outlet or you're going to have to upgrade one of the other outlets/breakers and not use a power strip for the AC unit. You can use a heavy duty extension cord (14gage or more) just don't use any type of power strip or multi-tap for fire risk.

    Dark Shroud on
  • EggyToastEggyToast Jersey CityRegistered User regular
    edited June 2008
    I actually got a low-profile, semi-fancy Kenmore air conditioner from Sears for $200, and it kicked ass. I think it's a rebranded LG. Anyway, far quieter than any other window AC unit I tested out and low enough that you can easily open the top of a window with the unit installed, in case you just want some breeze w/o taking the unit out.

    I just sold it to a coworker on Friday and she loved it -- far better than her bigger, older units.

    It's worth it to shop around and do some research into models. Not all models are created equally, just like any other piece of electronics. Amazon has a lot of reviews of most any semi-popular model, and probably new ones too as summer's started.

    EggyToast on
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  • RoundBoyRoundBoy Registered User regular
    edited June 2008
    Bigger is better... its better for a AC to work at a lower rating to get to the temp you want, rather then running an undersized unit at max power to get it cold.

    within limits of course.

    RoundBoy on
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  • bowenbowen How you doin'? Registered User regular
    edited June 2008
    Yeah I'd recommend going upscale on the AC too, don't overwork a smaller AC, that's going to cause problems.

    bowen on
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  • FyreWulffFyreWulff YouRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    edited June 2008
    Also, you may not think of it, but remember to change/clean the filter (they're usually permanent filters) once in a great while.

    When I moved into this apartment, let's just say it probably hadn't been cleaned in years - a good inch of dust was on the filter, which was killing it's effiecency.

    FyreWulff on
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