Portable air conditioners are the easiest way to get air conditioning in the small office or home in the UK. Installation is simple and they can easily be stored out of the way. Mobile air conditioners work by taking heat from a room and expelling it to the outside. Air inside the room is chilled and recirculated.
Two types of system are available – single units and split systems.
Single Units
These are the simplest units and have an exhaust hose which is used to expel the hot and damp air to the outside. Single units can cope with a wide range of room requirements
Split Systems
For larger rooms or rooms that have bigger heat loads split systems are normally required. These have a separate, fairly large condenser box that needs to be placed outside the room.
How the heat is expelled:
Single Units
This is achieved by means of a short flexible hose which is vented through an outside wall or window..
Split Systems
The separate external condenser box is connected to the main inside unit by means of refrigerant lines. These lines can be passed through a hole in the wall, about the size of half a brick before reconnecting. The external box can then be positioned on the ground outside or if not at ground level, can be hooked by straps over the edge of a window frame.