It may be quite interesting for any number of people to discover how portable air conditioners evaporate water, especially if they are buying one online or at their local store.
When comparing window or portable air conditioning unit options, it is likely that air conditioning units with a self evaporating function will crop up.
Let's take a look at what that term means and how these coolers achieve this task as well as how they work.
As well as blowing chilled air into a room, refrigerant-based air conditioners also draw moisture from the air in the room into the air conditioning unit itself.
Obviously, this moisture must go somewhere, but where?
Growing in popularity, a fully self evaporating portable air conditioner provides the added feature of being able to get rid of this excess moisture.
The air in all homes and work places naturally contains humidity, which is another way of saying the moisture in the air. This exists as invisible water vapor.
Humidity indoors is created by a number of things, including normal human functions such as breathing and perspiring. It also includes actions like cooking, making hot drinks and bathing. As more moisture is released into the air, the relative humidity level in the interior rises.
An air conditioner removes this moisture as part of the process that cools the air.
This is why most window air conditioners need to be installed with a slight slope down facing the outside.
The moisture from the air is converted into liquid form by condensation inside the unit. This condensate is allowed to drain out of the outside-facing side of the unit to be collected in a container such as a bucket.
That bucket will require emptying regularly while the air conditioner is being used.
Manually emptying a water container outside or emptying a portable AC unit's water collection tray is a chore that many people dislike doing.
However, a window or portable air conditioner featuring self-evaporating technology certainly reduces or even eliminates this chore altogether.
These coolers are also referred to as no-drip AC units, as water does not drip from below the rear of the unit or require a drain hose.
The way these coolers work is by recycling a large percentage of the condensed water by using it to assist in cooling the inner cooling coils. This allows the unit to operate more efficiently.
Following the recycling, the unit then disperses by re-evaporation the remaining water, exhausting it into the outside air with the hot air produced by the refrigeration process.
Portable AC units operate in a similar way to window units, with the difference being they disperse the exhausted water vapor through the flexible vent pipe connected to a window.
What a self-evaporating portable air conditioner does is to eliminate any unnecessary water being collected inside the unit itself or in an outside container
This new breed of portable air conditioners brings many more positive features to the table, as we have seen. This is not to be confused with evaporative coolers (swamp coolers) that are sometimes referred to as a "no vent portable air conditioner."
There is some minor maintenance that still needs to be undertaken with self evaporative AC units.
If the room the air conditioner is installed in has a high level of humidity in the air, the condensation inside the AC unit may accumulate faster than the unit is able to recycle it and exhaust it into the outside air.
When faced with more extreme conditions such as this, it would be necessary to manually empty the water that has collected in the small tray or tank that is located inside the self-evaporating AC unit.
It is always a good idea to read the owner's manual in order to ascertain when manual emptying becomes necessary as well as how to locate the tray or tank inside the air conditioning model you have purchased.
It is also possible to take action to lower the indoor air's humidity level and prevent the self-evaporating (especially portable air conditioners) unit from becoming overloaded with condensed water that would otherwise need to be emptied manually.
This action could save money on air conditioning operating costs by making it work with better efficiency. Variations in the air humidity level determine how rapidly the unit's water tray would fill up.
Another good ideas would be to invest in a good quality hygrometer. This is a device that measures humidity and indicates when the level has become too high.
It is also a good idea to make use of vent fans in bathrooms and kitchens when in use. For really high humidity levels, the use of a dehumidifier can also help to reduce the humidity and improve efficiency of the air conditioner in rooms being cooled.