Portable air conditioners

You have to keep putting water in some of them. They work quite well,though.

Every winter we look at these and wonder if we ought to be prepared for a hot summer. What puts me off though is the size of the thing and its weight. So moving and storing it must be difficult. Also, the pipe has to go out of the window which must be a faff.

We have one and once it is set up (make sure you get the correct window fitting kit) it's great. They are noisy but I find once you settle down it's like white noise.

We have a chiller unit on wheels, not heavy, just bulky, you put water in it and it does chill the whole room beautifully, no venting required.
Pro breeze are the brand we bought

Bought this one in 2021 Inventor Portable Air Conditioner Magic 4-1, Powerful 9000BTU Mobile AC, Dehumidifier, Cooling, 3 fan speeds Digital Display, Remote, Window Kit, 24 Hr Timer for 217ft[Energy Class A] (WEE/MM0449AA) [Energy Class A] - best thing we've ever bought - a bit noisy but you do get used to it and makes the bedroom like the inside of a fridge! you'll need to vent through a window and no need to fill with water - utter lifesaver!!

I think they work quite well but are a bit noisy. We had Aircon fitted in the lounge and bedroom which is more expensive but very quiet. Keeps the bedroom lovely and cool all night without any hassle.

We bought one for a fraction of the rrp, from b & Q, ‘AirForce’, bought many yrs ago. Not portable but in the conservatory, pumps outside. . Also is a heater & dehumidifier It will cover the whole of the open plan living room.
I don’t think the portable ones are powerful enough to cool a full room, plus do you have to vent through an open window?

Another one for Pro breeze. We have 2, one in the bedroom and one in the lounge. Wouldn’t be without them now, I set it up in the morning in the lounge (bucket of cold water & an ice pack) it lasts for about 8 hours. I do the same in the evening with the one in our bedroom. We put them in the attic during the winter out of the way. Far superior to an ordinary fan. I noticed when recommending to my Son last week that they have actually gone down in price this year too.

Everyone I know who has a portable air conditioning unit essentially complains that they are very heavy and make a lot of noise - which precludes them being used to keep a bedroom cool.
Those who have installed air con units seem very happy with them. There are “slimline” units available that don’t have any bulky equipment installed on the outside of the house if that is a concern.

Quoting myself, from a different thread---

Portable air con do make a huge difference, or so I believe.

Ours are fairly quiet, small, roll around, and my husband fitted vents for them by engineering the hose vent parts to fit wall openings he also engineered.

That's a funny coincidence ... I've just opened the latest edition of Which magazine (July, 2025) and there's a section "Find the Best Portable Air Conditioner", which suggests several Best Buys.

Do you need to get planning permission to install aircon? According to Wiltshire council, you do.

I’ve read that a former council house tenant who purchased his house 4 years ago, has been ordered to deinstall his aircon unit as his 2 neighbours were refused permission as they were tenants. They expected the council to provide it for them.

The downside to air conditioning is for it to work efficiently you need to have the windows closed, which I struggle with.

We have gone for large ceiling fans in all the upstairs rooms.

I am currently in the bedroom with the air con I bought last year. So pleased I did. It has kept this room cool for the last few days. It is essential as DH is bedbound.
The rest of the house is 30 plus.

It is wheelable, but heavy. We have sash windows and the pipe to vent goes out of the open bottom sash, but it comes with a sash window fixing kit. A bit of a faff to fix but I managed it. I wouldnt be effective in an open plan house. I keep the bedroom door shut. And the windows shut.

For this dreadful heatwave in outer London it has been literally probably a life saver.. it is a Black and Decker via Amazon.

glammagran

Do you need to get planning permission to install aircon? According to Wiltshire council, you do.

I’ve read that a former council house tenant who purchased his house 4 years ago, has been ordered to deinstall his aircon unit as his 2 neighbours were refused permission as they were tenants. They expected the council to provide it for them.

I believe one does need permission to install permanent air con. Portable (rolling) air con requires no permission, merely fitting the heat removing hose properly through an engineered vent.

I think I need to do my homework on these for upstairs.
Meaco are quite good for fans & I think they do the portable machines.

Yes Meaco do and it looks good. Looked on the john lewis site and they are out of stock. DD is thinking of the black and decker but she cant find one. They must be flying off the shelves.

They are heavy to get up the stairs. The Amazon delivery young men brought it into the hall downstairs. One wasnt happy about taking it upstairs the other one was fine and said yes of course. They are strong. I gave him 20.00 which no doubt he shared with the other guy.
I am pleased I bought one when I did. I would recommend it or similar when back in stock. There is another heatwave on the horizon and no doubt more.
Today is perfect weather here in outer London. A lovely cool breeze. I am taking this afternoon very easy. Just had a Magnum.