High Capacity 1000 Sq. Ft. or More 20000 – 29999 BTU Greater than 300000 BTU << Shop All Appliances | Shop BBQ >> These days, portable or window air conditioners can be purchased just about anywhere. Air conditioners of all types and sizes can be bought at grocery stores, home improvement stores, big box retailers, discount super stores, convenience stores, and nearly everywhere in between! So why shop for your next A/C unit at Karl's Appliance? Karl's Appliance has been selling air conditiioners for decades, and when we say we know air conditioners, we mean business! Have questions on whether to use portable air conditioner or a window ac unit? Karl's Appliance the go-to experts for all your A/C unit needs! At Karl's Appliance, our air conditioners range from the least expensive window air conditioners, through the wall A/C units and sleeves, as well as casement, slider, and portable A/C units. And if that is not enough variety for you, we even have dehumidifiers!

We'll help you find the perfect A/C unit to suit your needs. Our stock from all the manufacturers includes: Shop now and purchase any of our A/C units online, or stop into one of our convenient locations to browse our full selection of air conditioners. 3 ton 16 seer ac unitContact us now before the next summer heat wave! sanyo split ac unitsCheck out our Air Conditioner Buying Guide. hvac unit for bonus roomAlready own an air conditioning unit and looking to get the most out of it? Check out our Air Conditioner Cleaning Guide for Room and Wall Air ConditionersThe statement above is the greatest misconception we saw regarding portable air conditioners and it results in a lot of 1-star ratings: people don't realize that, even though a portable air conditioner is not a window air conditioner, you MUST have a window to use a portable air conditioner (although, a sliding door or any other way of venting the exhaust to the outside will do as well).

We wanted to make that clear early on, so that, if you don't have the option of venting your portable air conditioner to the outside, you can head on over to our report on fans instead, to find the one that will keep you the coolest. When considering how to cool a home, there are two main options: central air conditioners (which cool the whole house from a central location) and smaller window or through-the-wall air conditioners that cool down individual rooms. We cover both of those types of air conditioners in their own reports, but there's also a third alternative -- a portable air conditioner. These are similar in scope and cooling capacity to a window air conditioner, but their more modest venting requirements make them easier to install -- especially in rooms where installing a window unit is either undesirable or impossible, such as apartment units where they may be prohibited. The best portable air conditioners can be set up quickly by just one person and can be moved around to cool a different room as needed, although they're still heavy in spite of having wheels.

A portable air conditioner doesn't commandeer a large section of the window (like a window air conditioner does), but a portable AC still needs access to outside air. Each portable unit comes with a window kit, which mounts one or two hoses to a small panel that's installed in a window. Some experts prefer the dual-hose style because it provides slightly better performance. says that, while that's true in theory, in practice the difference is actually very slight. In our research, we found that single-hose models often rate as well or better than many dual-hose portable air conditioners, and typically cost less. All air conditioners, including portable air conditioners, pull excess moisture from the air. This is stored in a water tank that must be periodically emptied (machines will shut down when the tank is full) or drained continually through a hose running outside. Portable air conditioners with a self-evaporative system minimize the need for emptying, though under more humid conditions, the water tank may still need to be emptied occasionally, and more frequently if the humidity is exceptionally high.

Some portable air conditioners have dehumidifying functions that pull excess moisture from the air without cooling it. If you are primarily interested in that, we cover dedicated dehumidifiers in their own report. In doing the research for this report, we quickly found that expert reviews of portable air conditioners offer only half-hearted recommendations, and user reviews aren't much rosier. Like window air conditioners and central air conditioners, the cooling capacity of a portable air conditioner is measured in British Thermal Units, or BTUs. , portable air conditioners aren't held to the same rating standards as window units or central air systems, so there's often a disconnect between their claimed BTU rating and the size of room a portable air conditioner can satisfactorily cool. McCabe notes that even different models with the same BTU rating will vary in their actual cooling capacity. That means that the disparity between the BTU ratings of window and portable air conditioners renders traditional sizing guidelines somewhat moot.

Instead, where a 6,000 BTU window air conditioner might be great for a small bedroom, testing shows that you may need to turn to a 10,000 BTU or better portable model to get the same degree of cooling. These performance shortfalls aren't a result of poor manufacturing, but a byproduct of having a unit that's designed to vent hot air to the outside while sitting entirely in the room it is trying to cool (instead of being half inside and half outside). Still, as most experts and users say, if a portable air conditioner is your only practical option, it's a lot better than having no air conditioner at all on a hot summer day., , and others. We considered performance, how easy the portable air conditioner was to set up and use, and how well it held up over the long haul, including the warranty and customer service reputation of the manufacturer. The result is our picks for a portable air conditioner for any size room.About 17 years ago the folks from Delonghi approached us with a business proposition.

Sell the first portable air conditioner named, believe it or not, the Pinguino. These were priced at $999, and sold remarkably well. Some of the early units were air conditioners and humidifiers in one, some models even had a heat function. This sounds like a good idea, right? Unfortunately they were also returned at an alarming rate of over 95% due to reliability and overall customer dissatisfaction. Let’s take a look at some of the possible reasons why, and also compare current portable models from Frigidaire and Friedrich. Portable air conditioners are designed for use in buildings with smaller windows, historic buildings where window units are not allowed, and in buildings where ductwork cannot be installed for a typical central air system. The ACs have both an intake and exhaust hose mounting to a window. The intake will obviously supply fresh air to the unit, and the exhaust will expel any heat generated by the unit. One nice feature is that these units can be moved from room to room as necessary.

The downside is that these units need to be installed in the window correctly. Some people will assume that you can just move the unit from one room to the other and they will magically provide cooling. If you do not seal the opening properly any warm air expelled by the exhaust will be drawn back into the room, greatly reducing the effective cooling. Since air conditioners will also remove humidity from the air, some of these models will have a bucket that collects any moisture and will need to be emptied occasionally. Others will have a self-evaporating system to remove the moisture. Over time there may be issues with mold. The units will also need to be descaled to get rid of any mineral buildup inside. Portables will range anywhere from 5k to 14k BTUs. Even though they may be rated at the same output as some window models, they will not have the same fan as a regular window unit. They are also not as efficient, with none being Energy Star rated. Of the units still available we found Friedrich and Frigidaire to be the most reliable.

Frigidaire will be the value brand, as with all of their other appliances they are well designed and reliable, and look good without breaking the bank. Their offerings in the portable market have become basically one model now, the FRA09EPT1. This unit is a 9,000 BTU air conditioner, heater, and dehumidifier all in one. Friedrich only manufacturers air conditioners, and produce some of the best window units around. Their 12k BTU model is really the only one we stock or sell, and that is the P12B for $559. This is an air conditioner only, 11,600 btu’s with an evaporative condensation system (no bucket to empty) with a timer and remote. I would say that the Friedrich is the better of the two. It is more powerful, and focuses on cooling only, which is the real need. It will be quieter and slightly more efficient. We recommend using these units only as a last resort. I know this may be an attractive option for many people, especially in the city, but it must be installed properly. 

Any portable will provide some relief as we enter the summer months. Just remember, the portable will never match the performance of a decent window model. The Best Bedroom ACs Download the Yale Air Conditioner Buyers Guide with specs, tips and a square foot/BTU chart to help you choose the right air conditioner. Well over 30,000 people have read a Yale Guide. The 5 Best Counter Depth Refrigerators Quietest Dishwasher By Decibel Rating (Reviews/Prices) The Least Serviced/Most Reliable Appliance Brands 2015 (Reviews/Ratings) KitchenAid vs Bosch Dishwashers (Reviews/Ratings/Prices) The 5 Best Affordable Luxury Appliance Brands (Reviews/Ratings) The Best Induction Cooktops for 2016 (Ratings/Reviews/Prices) The Best Compact Laundry for 2016 (Reviews/Ratings/Prices) Best Front Load Washers for 2016 (Ratings/Reviews/Prices) Best 30 Inch Professional Gas Ranges (Reviews/Ratings/Prices) What's The Difference Between Freestanding and Slide-In Ranges?