I've had to relocate to Brisbane for work purposes and don't expect to be here all that long but the heat is killing me. I'm in a two bed room unit and have to do something pronto about the heat and humidity so I'm thinking about buying a portable air conditioner. Any and all sugggestions will be welcomed. Thanks in advance. BTW, my initial thoughts are about quality/price and minimal noise to ensure relatively good nights sleep.
Portable air conditioner for Brisbane
CecillyL on 19/01/2017 - 11:19
Last edited 19/01/2017 - 14:22 by 1 other user
Last edited 19/01/2017 - 14:22 by 1 other user
Comments
I just played this game, Kogan won. Plenty of options…
https://www.kogan.com/au/kogan/shop/home-appliances/air-cond…
Bare in mind the condenser and motor are inside the room with you so they will also generate more noise than a properly installed wall unit. Most are water output efficient, Ive only needed to empty the tank every 2-3weeks with moderate usage.
I was just looking at these. Which model did you go for?
Kogan 14,000 BTU Portable Air Conditioner (4.1KW, Reverse Cycle).
I wanted heat and cool, I run it on low in a medium sized bedroom and its more than enough cold air for Birsbane summers.
Potentially also in the market for one of these.
Anyone with Choice.com.au access willing to share Choice's pick? Ta
Best under $800 - Honeywell MN12CES - It was $399 at Binglee (NSW only?) with a mixture of a sale + 20% off ebay for ~1 day late last year.
Mod: Removed per Choice request
The Kogan is the next best CHEAPEST option sadly..
Kogan KAPORAIR12GA $309 (Good luck finding it for this price, early summer it might have been $314?)
Mod: Removed per Choice request
I haven't found cheap prices for the other three Choice RECOMMENDED models -
Levante Tango 14 ($1100 RRP)
Mod: Removed per Choice requestMidea MPPD12HRN1 ($749 RRP)
Mod: Removed per Choice requestDimplex DC15RCBW ($1200 RRP)
Mod: Removed per Choice requestLegend, thank you!
Are those annual running costs or more likely to be quarterly?
"four hours per day for three months in hot weather" @ 30c/kWh.
My Choice subscription just ran out. There was one that they tested that was significantly quieter than the rest. I think it was a DeLonghi.
It seems odd to me that Choice places a very low weighting on noise, if any, in their ratings for all types of air conditioners. It's a major factor for me.
Most people love white noise. So good for blocking out everything else while working/sleeping. Although from my own testing, 45dB is sufficient at night for low level white noise and 55dB is better (but perhaps bordering on loud) - also the (max) recommended level for a nursery.
Honeywell MN12CES - 56.5dB
- $799 + $110/3m for Mod: Removed score cooling score.Teco TP036CFFALHBE - 55.9dB
- $633 + $112/3m for Mod: Removed score cooling score.DeLonghi PAC CN86 Silent - 54.5dB
- $649 + $86/3m for Mod: Removed score cooling score.Arlec PA1500 - 57dB
- $499 + $140/3m for Mod: Removed score cooling score.Polocool PC-58AP/C - 56dB
- $1395 + $193/3m for 66% cooling score.
This was a lifesaver the last 2 weeks, had it on 24 hrs. It is noisy but quite bearable. Cools our baby's room very well and some of it can even spread into the hallway with door open. It was on sale earlier this month for 499 down from 799 plus 20% from Bing Lee… Was gonna post here but found it with 30 mins left to go before end of sale
Yeah it was a really tight overlap.. and Bing Lee don't exactly deliver to VIC or I would have purchased one straight away! :)
FYI, Choice has made a takedown request for this comment that was republished from their paywalled article.
We have removed alleged copyrighted information (Scores).
Oh well, it's not like a few percent difference matters anyway.
The Kogan cooled ~14% less the highest one, but ozbargainers seem to anecdotally think it does fine anyway - at least the model up. The kogan was one of the most power efficient.
The rest of them are basically in the correct order, just throw the kogan one at the bottom of what I've listed. =)
I would go for a window unit if you can get permission
much better than portable units for brisbane and they sell extremely well secondhand
if you can get your hands on a window teco or LG designed for sliding windows second hand you're laughingIf you do go down the portable road they are pretty expensive to run once you start getting 8-12 hours a day out of them
Can you give me a link to a window air conditioner designed for sliding (horizontal) windows? I could not find one when I looked a while ago.
Plenty on gumtree
Teco or LG are the two I would recommend
average is about 300 bucksFound a cheapy
http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/runcorn/air-conditioning-heat…
http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/richlands/other-electronics-c…
$375 but could probably do it cheaper, the TECO are the best for Windows that slide right in
the first one for $50 bucks could do with a clean but eh for $50 if she cools down its a good buy, test before purchaseGumtree or second hand won't work for me- delivery distance.
They are discontinued models, right? You can't buy a new window wall air conditioner in Australia that will fit in a horizontal sliding window, without having to build your own frame.
Although seems to be quite simple to do.
Think what you like about the help provided
Teco and LG models would be around but expect to pay top dollar for them new
Teco may no longer be on the market but LG seem to still make them
I have bought off gumtree and never had an issue to this dayYou have to weigh up your options
- How long are you here for?
- Have you spoken to the real estate or landlord about perhaps doing the work for you for a small increase ($10 or 20 per week in rent to cover the costs)
I would steer away from portable coolers, they are exteremly ineffecient in large bedrooms and CHEW the electricity, of course if you can make the run to the window as short as possible and keep most of the heat output outside then it might stand a chance, its not going to cool the room to 18c on a 40c day due to the laws of thermodynamics but it will make it more comfortable
http://www.airwaresales.com.au/product/839/Room%20Airconditioners%20(Box%20type)/1.6KW%20COOL%20ONLY
This is the unit I installed in a place without air conditioning, 5 year warranty, pretty easy to install into a window and I had no dramas getting it to work well in the summer, it was also very cheap to run only 500w input
I ran mine of a solar setup with a big inverter and saved even more money
I ended up selling it once I moved into an apartment with actual split systems
The person who bought it was going to install that into a boat on the water, crazy but I guess it would work okay provided the salt water didn't eat the metal parts.For those complaining about not having air conditioning in Brisbane, trust me with the humidity here, fans / water coolers / dehumidifiers are useless, you can't get proper sleep without it and it makes a HUGE difference to the quality of life having a properly cooled bedroom to sleep in
I would be approaching your landlord / REA first before spending money to see what they can do to help you out
Other than that buy the Midea 1.6kw cooling for a small bedroom and it will do the job quite well, I used in in a 25m2 bedroom and it managed to cool to 22 on a 36 degree day no dramas
I bought an Arlec portable one from Bunnings last summer around $350 to $400? because the Kogan one we wanted was out of stock. Very noisy, but they all are apparently. My cousin just got the 14k BTU Kogan one and she is happy with it so far.
Would it be cheaper to move to somewhere that already has AC?
Unlikely, especially given cost of moving.
I dunno. If I'd just moved to a new city and wasn't planning on being there that long I wouldn't have all my stuff, and I might even be renting a furnished apartment. I have done that for 9months or so and could fit all th stuff I had with me in one car load.
Anyway, what is it with all this sooky 'I have to have an AC'. Plenty of houses don't have it, plenty of people lived with a bit of heat for centuries.
When I got mine about 6\7 years ago, it was $550 from bunnings.
I got one that didnt need a drain tube, because I did not want to have to empty it every night.
they have a limited cooling range compared to a convential split system, so be wary of that when making your purchase. the one i have can cool about 12 deg/c so if its 42 outside the room could get to 30, however pointing it directly at you would cool your body sufficeiently while sleeping.
the noise level is going to be high with any portable ac, but after I got used to it, i found the whitenoise blocked out everything else and i got a better sleep for it.