Portable ACs extract hot air, and this hot air has to be vented. If the hot air isn’t vented, the portable air conditioner will not be able to cool a room effectively. But can a portable air conditioner be vented into an attic? You can vent a portable AC through a wall vent, into the attic, or drop ceiling, or even around a door. You’re only limited by your creativity.
A portable AC can be vented into the attic to expel hot air. No one recommends it, especially for the relatively and inadequately vented attic. Dual hose portable AC performs better cooling, and they are more efficient. But with both vent hoses in the attic, in the unit, the warm air will be sucked.
The manufacturers recommend that you vent the hot air that comes out of this thing. Because essentially, it pulls in hot air, cools it down, and then expels the hot air somewhere outside.
Some technicians made a piece of aluminum with the hole cut in the wall that vented to the outside wall of the house. They started thinking about this, and this is a relatively big piece of tubing.
Finally, they could probably find a better way to not only cool the garage but also maybe possibly even help to cool the house. Like a regular mechanic works, you don’t want it blowing on you when you’re doing anything like valves. So you don’t get dirt and stuff in the valves and stuff like that.
Technicians would leave the garage door closed and mainly when wrenching or whatever. They could turn this on and have it try to blow because it gets really hot.
So, Can A Portable Air Conditioner Be Vented Into An Attic?
It’s all about attaching a venting mechanism (pipe or hose) and running through the ceiling. That enhanced space between the roof and the ceiling that allows a huge amount of slowly moving air out of the building is called an attic.
An attic can help control temperature in your home and is certainly a great tool for venting a portable AC.
A great thing about portable air conditioners is they don’t require permanent insulation. What they do require is a way to vent the condensed air out of the room. Once you’ve positioned the portable air conditioner where you like it, you must set the exhaust hose through an opening on the outside. So you’ll vent the hot air out.
An included venting kit puts the power right in your hands. There are a few steps to follow in venting your portable air conditioner. The vent can be a window, wall, or drop ceiling. Most people vent their portable air conditioner through a window because it’s usually the most convenient option. To do this, follow these steps.
How To Vent A Portable Air Conditioner?
First, slide the exhaust connector over a discharge opening at the back of the unit. The next step is to connect the exhaust hose to the exhaust connector.
You may have to adjust the length of the venting kit. One way to do this is to mark on the kit where appropriate and cut it down to fit the opening. Next, connect an adapter to the venting kit. Then place the venting kit in the window opening. Finally, connect the exhaust hose to the adapter and shut the window, close the space in the wall or drop the ceiling surrounding the venting kit.
If you’re using a portable air conditioner in your office or computer server room, keep in mind that these areas may have unique venting restraints. Windows will most likely not be available, so in these cases, you have to vent the portable air conditioner through a drop ceiling or wall.
Venting a portable air conditioner through a drop ceiling is oftentimes the best choice for the office, and this can be easily accomplished with the venting kit using the same basic guidelines as mentioned.
To vent your portable air conditioner through a wall with no exhausting wall vent, you’ll need to use a jigsaw to cut a hole through an exterior wall and follow the rest of the venting directions as provided by your portable AC manufacturer.
Your incredibly convenient portable air conditioner is now ready to use. Keep in mind that the exhaust hose should be kept straight while in use. Also, I don’t recommend increasing the length of the exhaust hose because this will lower the efficiency and effectiveness of the unit. But it may be shortened if necessary.
Read more: Can A Portable Air Conditioner Be Recharged?
Venting Air Conditioner Into A Chimney
You can make your air conditioner vent through a chimney. To be most effective for this, you will have to make a panel shaped to seal the firebox from the room. Then you will have to cut a hole in the panel to which you will attach the exhaust hose. Remember that the natural draft crafted by the chimney may mean even more cool room air being sucked outside.
Does An Air Conditioner Need To Be Vented Outside?
As portable air conditioners extract hot air, it is necessary to vent portable air conditioners. If you want your air conditioning system to cool the room effectively, you have to let the hot air vent to the outside. Portable air conditioners can also be vented through a window, wall, ceiling, or even a door or anywhere you like.
What Happens If You Don’t Vent Your Portable Air Conditioner?
What happens if you don’t vent a portable air conditioner? If you don’t use the exhaust hose, then your portable AC will not even cool your room at all. It will blow all the heat right back into your room. By removing the vent hose and running your portable AC, you can turn your portable AC into a dehumidifier.
Can You Vent A Portable Air Conditioner Through The Ceiling?
Ceiling venting is most commonly used in windowless offices. If you have a drop ceiling but don’t have a window, you can vent a portable air conditioner through the drop ceiling. This drop ceiling is a requirement here. Most of the modern houses don’t have them.
How Do Portable Air Conditioners Work Without A Window?
Portable window air conditioners need a vent to work. These units work like your traditional air conditioner in the sense that they both pick up hot air from inside, pass it over their inner refrigerant that cools the air, and finally exhaust the cold air into your room.
Can A Portable AC Cause Carbon Monoxide?
It’s good news that your portable air conditioner doesn’t make carbon monoxide in any normal situation. Due to the nature of the energy powering your air conditioner, it cannot produce carbon monoxide.
How Long Can The Exhaust Hose Be On A Portable Air Conditioner?
5-7 feet! The exact answer is the exhaust hose can be 5-7 feet long on a portable air conditioner.
Can the exhaust hose be extended? Usually, all types of portable air conditioners come with the standard hose length of 5-7 feet. If you need a longer hose, these can be easily found at a local hardware store in your area. It is a great idea to avoid hose lengths over 12 feet, or 90 degree bends.
Read more: Can A Portable Air Conditioner Be Used As A Heater?
Why Are Portable Air Conditioners Bad?
With a lot of advantages, do portable air conditioners have some disadvantages too? They do! Such as-
- They have heavy units which are difficult to move.
- High noise level.
- Draining the water regularly.
- The unit offers limited cooling space.
Are Portable Air Conditioners Bad For Your Health?
However, portable units create a closed system since they only expel and don’t bring fresh air into the home. An unfortunate side effect of this recycled air is that occupants re-breathe the same air again and again, which isn’t healthy. The vacuum that portable AC units create in a home is a serious concern, and one should be careful about it.
Do Portable Air Conditioners Use A Lot Of Electricity?
How Much Electricity Does A Portable Air Conditioner Use? Mid-sized portable air conditioners use an average of 2900 watts per hour. Particularly large units can exceed the electricity usage of even central air conditioners, expending about 4100 watts per hour.
Conclusion
I was thinking about, can a portable air conditioner be vented into an attic? And here’s my description.
In the extremely hot summer days, air conditioners are a must in some countries. Sometimes some offices don’t have windows for various reasons. Then what to do? In this situation, you can install a portable air conditioner, and if needed, you can vent it into an attic.