Windows are the perfect way to let natural light into a room. They also remind us of our surroundings, connecting us to the outside world. But what happens when you are cut off from the escape that a window can provide? Perhaps you are a tenant of a basement apartment, or the inhabitant of one of the most internal rooms of your home. Especially during sweltering summer nights, you may wonder, “how can I cool a room with no windows?”. There are multiple ways to cool a windowless room, from turning off electronic appliances that may radiate heat, to using fans with ice or wet towels. However, using a portable air conditioner will be the most effective way to cool a room without windows. Windows are a common way to ventilate portable air conditioners, but they are not the only method available to you. As long as the air conditioner exhaust does not remain in the room in which it is cooling, windows do not have to be the only form of escape for the portable-air-conditioner vent! Ensuring that your portable AC’s exhaust is vented away from the room it is trying to cool is the primary goal in mind for the portable-air-conditioner vent—with windows being one of many ways to achieve this task.
“PVC Flexduct General Purpose Blue”
“Thermoplastic Flex Medium-Duty WS”
“Wind Handler”
What Happens if You Don’t Vent a Portable Air Conditioner with an Exhaust Hose?
If you do not vent a portable air-conditioner with an exhaust hose, all of the hot air and moisture that is vented from the unit will circulate back into the very room you are trying to cool. This will cause the temperature in your room to rise and fall in an endless loop. Failing to ventilate via the exhaust-vent for portable-air-conditioner units will result in the wasted efficiency of your device. So, how do you know what happens? If you don’t vent a portable air conditioner with an exhaust hose, there is no direction for the exhaust to travel in. Again, without installing portable-AC exhaust hose-work, the heat and moisture that is created inside of your unit will re-enter your cooled living-space. The formation of these byproducts is an undeniable part of the portable AC process. Heat is formed due to the energy of all the moving pieces of machinery inside of the unit, from compressors to exhaust fans. Water is produced by the transformation of refrigerant liquid to gas. Without any of these processes, the portable air conditioner would not be able to function. Therefore, the venting of these byproducts is an indisputable necessity for the unit. We have established that it is practically impossible to use a typical portable air conditioner without an exhaust hose. (An exception to this rule is the evaporation cooler, also known as the swamp cooler. These coolers are technically not portable ACs and do not require a portable-air-conditioner vent, nor hosing.) But why is it so important to use a vent tube for portable-air-conditioner units? Without a portable-air-conditioner hose/vent, the heat and moisture will flood back into your room, warming it. This will counter-act the intentions of your unit. The purpose of the portable air conditioner is to cool and dehumidify your room. Once again, without proper ventilation to the outside, the portable AC will expel the heat and humidity back into the room in which it is placed—which is typically the area it is trying to cool. This cycle of hot and cold air will only result in needless work from your unit, wasting your money and time. It is a requirement to use a portable AC with vent/hose-work, but do all portable air conditioners have to be vented out a window?
Do All Portable Air Conditioners Have to Be Vented Out a Window?
No, not all portable air conditioners have to be vented out a window. There are two ways in which this is possible. You can either utilize other methods of venting that do not require the use of a window, or you can opt for a unit that does not need a portable-air-conditioner vent altogether. Windows are not your only option for proper, portable-AC ventilation. As long as your exhaust is being vented outside of the room you are trying to cool, this can be deemed effective. This is to ensure that you are not heating up the same area you are attempting to cool. Other methods involve ducting through doors, walls, or ceilings, just to name a few. Doors that lead to the outdoors or doors that lead to other indoor spaces are both satisfactory options. Venting through walls and ceilings can be a more complex choice in ventilation, but it is advantageous for aesthetic purposes. If you do not wish for your guest to view an unsightly maze of portable-AC-vent duct-work, routing your hose through your walls or ceilings will keep it hidden from wandering eyes. However, venting through foundations may be traumatic for the exterior of your hose. Abrasive materials can wear away at the external body of a poor-quality hose—causing tears, punctures, or leaks. The exhaust hose that often comes with your portable AC unit is ill-crafted and not meant to last.
Replacing your portable AC hose with one of a superior quality will grant you access to more venting options, such as ducting through the harsh surfaces of walls and ceilings. Hoses like Ducting.com’s Air Ventilator Heavy-Duty Ventilation Hose are built to withstand the most rigorous environments. This fabric hose is coated in thick PVC-vinyl—PVC being a super-resistant plastic that can endure high levels of abrasion. An external wear-strip on the outer body of this hose doubly protects the steel-wire-helix from outside abrasions. Because the Air Ventilator Heavy-Duty can tolerate the harshest industrial conditions, this hose can surely withstand applications within your home.
Creating a path for your portable-air-con vent/hose through walls and ceilings is a simple task for the Air Ventilator Heavy-Duty, as well as an ideal way to directly ventilate your unit into other, low-traffic areas. Examples of optimal rooms to direct your exhaust into are attics, garages, or places with good air circulation. Unused spaces are great areas into which you can vent your portable-air-conditioner exhaust. This ensures that you are not pumping hot air and moisture into places that you or your loved ones frequently occupy. If you do not wish to employ the use of hoses or ducting, there is always the option of using an evaporative cooler. This is one such way in which you would not have to vent your portable AC out of a window, because the swamp cooler does not require ventilation, or even a portable-air-conditioner vent, in general. Due to the unique process of evaporation that allows this cooler to eliminate its exhaustive byproducts, the evaporative cooler has no need for an exhaust hose. However, this “portable air conditioner” has limitations based upon the humidity of the environment it is expected to work in. If the humidity of the area is too high, the evaporative cooler cannot work. This is why, for some, your best option for windowless venting is to utilize doors, walls, or ceilings.
Do You Have to Use the Window Hose on a Portable AC?
No, you do not have to use the window hose on a portable air conditioner. You can always choose to replace your hose if your situation deems it fit. There are many disadvantages to using the hose that comes with your unit, such as restrictions regarding length, insulation, and durability—just to name a few. Limiting yourself to a commercial portable-AC window-hose will make the path to proper AC ventilation a difficult one. Venting your AC-unit hose to window-sills (this being just one of many venting options) can be even more complex if your predetermined exhaust hose is too short. Typical portable-AC hoses are also made from inexpensive, flimsy materials that are not meant to efficiently support your unit for long periods of time. Having a hose made from quality materials—perhaps even components that include insulation—will extend the longevity of your portable-air-conditioner vent/tube. Many portable-air-con vent/pipe options are made entirely from polypropylene, which is a low-priced, plastic material that can be used adequately in different applications. However, polypropylene has several disadvantages that makes this material insufficient in terms of this specific air-conditioner-portable venting. Polypropylene has a low level of resistance to high temperatures and UV radiation and is prone to oxidation. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that occurs in the presence of oxygen. Common examples of oxidation are the formation of rust or any such deterioration of materials. Polypropylene also cannot endure large amounts of flexing that PVC or PVC-coated fabric hoses can. Having a flexible hose that can resist cracking due to strain and cyclical stress is a must-have for a portable-AC hose.
Flex fatigue starts on a molecular level, practically invisible to the human eye. The structure of your material becomes compromised due to the constant strain of flexing and can ultimately result in the failure of your product. Utilizing a flexible hose for air-conditioner-units will make it possible to extend, hide, or manipulate your AC hose without having to worry about flex fatigue. All of the hosework at Ducting.com is highly flexible and is made to endure stressful applications. From our neoprene-coated fabric-ducts to our PVC hoses, each pipe is made to last and will not easily crack under the pressure of flex fatigue!
The fact that polypropylene hoses are designed for venting air and are susceptible to oxidation is highly concerning. The exhaust hose is directly attached to the portable-air-conditioner vent and handles, you guessed it, air! The matter remains that the hoses that are commonly used and packaged with portable air conditioners cannot withstand many of the conditions that normally occur in portable AC ventilation. We cannot, in good conscience, recommend that you continue to use the exhaust hose that comes with your portable AC when there are better options available. Such options include the wide variety of flexible and durable portable-AC hoses at Ducting.com. If you are looking for a lightweight and flexible duct that can endure outside abrasions and flex fatigue, the Tornado Flex Flexible Air Ducting hose exhibits all of these characteristics and more. The Tornado Flex is another one of our PVC-coated fabric hoses that features a black wear-strip to provide additional protection against outside abrasions. Prior, we mentioned that polyvinyl chloride—otherwise known as PVC—is an economical and versatile plastic that can be used to create hoses with excellent durability and resistance. The Tornado Flex’s composition can withstand temperatures between -20 to 180 °F and is even flame retardant! Just because this hose features every characteristic privy to proper, portable-AC ducting does not mean that it compromises on flexibility. The Tornado Flex can be compressed from 25 feet to a little more than 2 feet due to its compression ratio of 11 to 1. Typical circumstances may submit your portable-air-conditioner hose/vent to sunlight, high temperatures, and oxygen. So, do you have to use the window hose on a portable AC? The answer is no! The Tornado Flex can easily withstand abrasions, high temperatures, oxygen, and more—making it the ideal replacement vent/hose for portable-air-conditioner units.
What is the Best Way to Vent a Portable Air Conditioner?
The best way to vent your portable air conditioner is through a window. However, they can sometimes be difficult to reach, and also pose a security risk to your household. If your room does not have a window, venting your portable AC through a wall is one of the best ways to exhaust your unit. As long as you are expelling the heat outside of the room you are trying to cool, venting through walls or wall vents is a viable and safe option. There are multiple ways in which you can properly ventilate your unit, those being through windows, doors, walls, and ceilings. Many of these methods require the use of a portable AC venting kit. However, these kits are typically made from cheap plastic, and—in the case of door and window kits—lead to the outside. Using portable-air-conditioner outside venting, while being a completely viable option, could also be a potential problem for the safety of your household. Ducting your AC outdoors will require you to leave your door or window open for the time period that the device is running, potentially compromising your safety. Ducting through walls or wall vents does not create such issues. Using a wall vent that is already installed in your home is the most ideal scenario. Most homes already have dryer vents that are designed to pump the exhaust from your clothes dryer to the outside. Why not use these vents for your aircon-vent hose? If you do not already have a dryer vent handy or are perhaps trying to ventilate your portable AC to other, uninhabited areas of your house, you can always create a hole yourself. Using a drill or jigsaw to place a hole in your wall can also allow you to place part of your portable-AC hose/vent-work out of sight. A good, flexible exhaust-hose for portable-air-conditioner units can be maneuvered into tight spaces to accommodate your intentions.
At Ducting.com, hoses like the Air Ventilator Orange Flexible Ducting are such ducts that can fulfill your requirements. This fabric hose is incredibly flexible and compactable, compressing from 25 feet to just over 2. It can easily be fitted into cramped areas such as walls and is even highly distinguishable with its orange exterior! Proper ventilation of your portable-air-conditioner includes making sure that your unit’s exhaust is not affecting the room it is cooling. As long as this task is not hindered, it does not matter which option you choose to employ, although the advantages of venting through walls should not be ignored.
The venting of your portable air conditioner is one of the most important factors you should consider when utilizing an air conditioner. One of the most common ways to ventilate a portable-air-conditioner vent is through a window, but if you do not have access to one, there are plenty of other methods available. If you are wondering what is the best way to vent a portable air conditioner, this depends on your specific scenario. Some people enjoy the convenience of hooking the portable-AC window-duct into the panel a window kit provides. However, the safest and most effective way to ventilate your AC is through walls, whether it is through an existing vent or one you have created. You will not have to worry about the security risk that leaving your window open would pose. Whether you are placing your hose into the wall or attaching it to a wall vent, it is imperative to utilize hoses that are composed of the best materials. Typical exhaust hoses, even a commercial replacement-vent for portable-air-conditioner units, are not made to last. Polypropylene itself is not an adequate material. It is because these hoses are not properly reinforced with other materials that can support the drawbacks of polypropylene that typical hoses are deemed as inefficient. Products like the Air Ventilator Heavy-Duty and the Tornado Flex are composed of quality materials and reinforced with wearstrips and PVC coating. Hoses from Ducting.com are made to last, and their durable design is perfect for ventilation indoors or outdoors, through walls or windows, or wherever your portable AC ducting may take you.