So the little lady and myself will be moving into the Raleigh Apts sometime in July and didn't realize until actually signing the papers that we'll need an in-window AC unit. I've never had one and never had to deal with ones other than at really really cheap hotels over the years. The place is about 1,000 sqft and the floorplan is here http://www.raleigh-apts.com/floorplans/2C.asp

So the question is what am I looking for in a really dependable unit and would it be better to get two cheap ones or one nice one? I'm the type that hates feeling the AC on me. Maybe that's hard to explain but we know who we are. I like it when it's 79 inside and 95 outside but I don't like feeling a cold blast of air to make it happen.

5/9/2010 12:30:55 AM

one in the bedroom where you sleep and some fans to circulate the air will prolly be sufficient. i wouldn't spend a lot of money; you're just gonna end up selling it when you move. although you can get portable ones on wheels that vent outside through a hose, that might be worth the extra money so you can move it from room to room

5/9/2010 12:56:35 AM

Man I hate my window unit. Most days I just say screw it and blast a bunch of fans.

5/9/2010 1:36:07 AM

pm SaabTurbo

5/9/2010 2:24:34 AM

Just keep it set on 74 degrees and you'll be good to go son.

5/9/2010 4:44:51 AM

Quote :

"one in the bedroom where you sleep and some fans to circulate the air will prolly be sufficient."

LOL. Fuck no unless you enjoy 85 degree air.

I'd recommend not moving into an apt in the south that doesn't have central air but since you seem to be doing that anyway I'd recommend getting 2 units. One for your bedroom and one for the rest of the space. And get decent properly sized units that are appropriate for the square footage and that aren't cheap otherwise you'll just pay for it in the end with higher energy bills. And enjoy hot and steamy bathrooms b/c there really isn't any way to get around that...

5/9/2010 9:39:13 PM

It's all about the BTUs man. However strong the air conditioner is then you know the max amount of cubic feet you can cool with it. Get whatever has more BTUs for the money.

5/9/2010 9:59:57 PM

see what kind of electrical service you have and buy the biggest one you can run. For 1000 sq. feet, I hope you have a 220 outlet near a window.

5/9/2010 11:01:08 PM

^agreed.

in window AC units were part of my life in NYC that I do not miss

5/9/2010 11:20:48 PM

Arrghhh I hate our stupid window AC units. Gotta love Philly. They are so loud and block all the windows and are either freezing or not cold at all!

5/9/2010 11:43:23 PM

i lived in the raleigh apts

focus on where your windows are. my living room had a good cross breeze, but i still put the unit in my living room.

my bedroom had 2 fans in the window but i mean - i was sleeping at night when it was cooler anyway. so i chose to put the unit in the living room. its up to you i guess though i just had one that the person before me left there.

5/10/2010 1:47:02 AM

Quote :

"It's all about the BTUs man. However strong the air conditioner is then you know the max amount of cubic feet you can cool with it. Get whatever has more BTUs for the money."

true but it also depends on the air circulation through their place. If your central air unit just blasted air out of one register the size of your return grille in your living room, it wouldnt be the same as having the individual registers in each room dividing up that total airflow that places with central AC have.

I personally don't use a lot of AC at night even in the summer. My wife and I don't feel like paying to cool our entire 2nd floor just to lower the temperature in our master bedroom a few degrees. I keep the thermostat set on 84 at night just so the air will kick on if it gets that high (because it's not worth it obviously to be uncomfortable and not able to sleep). But we have a really nice, quiet ceiling fan in our master bedroom with a timer and thermostat etc. I just set the temperature on that to 78 and let the fan run all night (it turns itself off after it drops below 78 of course). Also helps to open a couple of the windows in the bedroom along with the fan running.

With that being said, I would put the window unit in a main area of the apartment so that it will probably circulate through the living room, kitchen, etc. (the main living areas that are probably more open to each other and will circulate better). I feel like having it in the bedroom is a waste unless you are going to spend a lot of time in there. This also assumes your floorplan setup means the only opening between the bedroom and the rest of the apartment is 1 interior door which won't allow for great circulation of that cool air.

I would recommend 1.5 to 2 tons of cooling total depending on how many windows,exterior walls, and shading you have and how cool you want to keep the space. I'm basing that off of a residential cooling range for NC being close to 20 BTU/ft2 which comes out to about 1.6 tons (12000 BTU per ton) for a 1000 ft2 apartment. I think a lot of apartments in the raleigh area (with 1000 ft2 being a fairly good average site apartment) will stick a 2 ton AC unit in when they are providing central air. But I really think that a 1.5 ton unit (or ~20,000 BTU) is plenty for the entire space. Plus, by over-sizing your unit, you actually risk increasing the humidity in your place when it is running - so getting the biggest BTUs for your money without concern to properly sizing your system is not the best way to go.

For some final notes:

-That 1.5 ton figure also assumes you are wanting to cool the entire place. If you decide you are fine with windows and a ceiling fan in the master, you could cut that square footage out of the calculation when doing 20Btu/ft2 obviously.
-If you guys cook a lot in the kitchen, you may want to bump that number up a little bit.
-I'm assuming it is just the two of you living there?
-I mentioned this earlier, but how much direct sun will your place get and which direction do the majority of the windows face?

[Edited on May 10, 2010 at 9:49 AM. Reason : ]

5/10/2010 9:32:28 AM

^I admire people like you that can take the heat. If its above 75°F inside I'm uncomfortable, especially if I'm trying to sleep. Now low temps in the winter, on the other hand, are no problem.

When I lived in NYC in an 1000 sq ft apartment we had 4 window units. 1 per bedroom and one in the main room

5/10/2010 11:50:52 AM

I bought this unit just last week for my old as shit 1BR (I, too, was unaware of the lack of central AC when I signed the lease)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16896767748

I have it in my ~170 sq ft living room and it does a great job keeping it cool there and in my bedroom, despite the poor air flow in the apartment and the drafty windows and doors.

Probably too small for your needs, but it's cheap effective option for smaller places.

[Edited on May 10, 2010 at 12:06 PM. Reason : ]

5/10/2010 12:05:33 PM

^^ haha. Yea I totally understand other people have different comfort levels. And that makes sense with NYC since you could have at least 4 different people living there.

Also, I just realized the OP posted the floorplan. I don't know how I missed that, but I was reading through really quickly since I was at work so I'll blame it on that

5/10/2010 1:06:46 PM