Central air or box ac units?

[Jacob1983]

I know most people in Texas have central air because that's how Texas rolls. Box ac units are usually more popular up north because the summers are better there than down in the south.

I have box units at my place. I think box units suck. I would prefer central air but I rent so it's not my call. I think the electrical wiring is shitty or maybe the box units are just sorting out because lately they have been causing the lights to flicker and have made the power go out a couple of times but it's usually only for a minute or two.

[Lincoln]

Central Air is great, our house stays cool all summer long and it's been reliable for 6 years running.

[Destro]

Your neighborhood is probably drawing too much power. The kids are at home now using more power than a few weeks ago and everyone is trying to keep their homes cool. That's why it may be flickering

[mouse]

They make some really powerful window units these days and they are energy friendly. if you have only three window units but place at least three oscillating fans in the house you will think you had central air.

there is a third option its a wall unit made bay carrier popular in Vegas hotels and some hospitals.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_jl08Pk11RNI/TI7Kcp_e7QI/AAAAAAAABHw/NVXYoCgX9y0/s1600/HamptonInnBlockage.jpg

[leemajors]

I know most people in Texas have central air because that's how Texas rolls. Box ac units are usually more popular up north because the summers are better there than down in the south.

I have box units at my place. I think box units suck. I would prefer central air but I rent so it's not my call. I think the electrical wiring is shitty or maybe the box units are just sorting out because lately they have been causing the lights to flicker and have made the power go out a couple of times but it's usually only for a minute or two.

window units are very efficient these days, i use two in my house during the day when it is very hot and shut the old ass power sucking AC down. Saves me a shitload on power during the summer.

[mouse]

Also you may not know this but the Obama save energy plan will allow you to receive free central air from your local utility company if your window units are out of date. You can receive a new refrigerator if yours is older than 1993 you also get free blown insulation if its under 13 inches in the ceiling and if you have none in the walls. You also get free storm windows if you have old windows that don't have the UV ray filter. And a furnace for the winter.
And new stoves.

They do all the construction you just have to qualify but the wait list is at lease 3 to 11 months so apply today.
Trust me they want to find as much wrong as they can or they don't receive another 5 Billion the following year.
I have been doing weatherization for about a year and now do energy audits for CPS its called http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gB9tfQprHFU/T2nO1BcTL-I/AAAAAAAAAGs/wsb8ZVRAW5c/s400/Picture1.jpg

[I. Hustle]

Weatherization? I thought you were top flight security

[mouse]

Weatherization? I thought you were top flight security

I only did security at night for a friend of mine who is ex military and opened a security service with two other partners it was sitting in a tower playing on a laptop for 6 hours it was only BigZax25 saying he was going to call the head office to tell them I smoke weed because I made him leave early one night from my girlfriends house at 1:45AM after he was getting belligerent I figured he just bought a new truck 12 hours earlier and i didn't want him to wrap it around a tree and have his children hate me for the rest of my life not to mention any law suits and I didn't really want him to sleep at my place which he doesn't get and flamed out and it kinda made me drop that side work rather than embarrass the company with the unnecessary drama.

I just let the mouse haters run they're misinformed drivel around here and make them think they are so superior and better than me and deserve to live on this planet more than I and many others do.

It's actually amusing.

[DMC]

Central is the way to go, but the initial cost is large compared to box units. You can get a system with automatic baffling so you only heat or cool selected zones in your home, but to hybrid that in to an existing system is logistically difficult and still expensive. So what most people end up doing is cooling or heating the entire home even if they only use a couple of rooms most of the time. That's incredibly inefficient. They sell portable units with exhaust ducts and adapters for windows. With these you can cool a specific area and leave the rest of the home at a higher temp, saving a lot of money in the process.

So, cost wise; remote units. Ease of use; central.

[SpurinDallas]

Central air is the way to go.

Does anyone here have radiant barrier? I've been thinking of doing this for a while now but not sure how great it actually works. I was also thinking of tinted screens or using home window tint on the windows that face East on my house. 2 of our bedrooms get pounded late in the afternoon because there is no tree to block the sunlight during the hottest part of the day.

[mouse]

Right now with the economy the way it is you can low ball a central air in your home if you purchase the outside compressor unit jut pay for the Mexicans to climb in your attic and instal the vents and maybe one peon to install the thermostat. make sure he is license.


If you go to a place that wants to sell you lets say a Trane AC unit they may give you free installation just to close the deal shop around.

[Frenzy]

Trying to get my dad to get a window unit since he lives alone now.... in a 5 bedroom house no less. Why cool the whole house when he usually just chills in his bedroom. His summer bills usually range in the 300$. Hopefully the unit helps.

[mouse]

If you can locate what side of the house the air comes through you can actually instal one of these.

http://www.anytimerentalsmiami.com/images/AIR-CONDITIONERS/supercat1200.jpg

[Drachen]

Also you may not know this but the Obama save energy plan will allow you to receive free central air from your local utility company if your window units are out of date. You can receive a new refrigerator if yours is older than 1993 you also get free blown insulation if its under 13 inches in the ceiling and if you have none in the walls. You also get free storm windows if you have old windows that don't have the UV ray filter. And a furnace for the winter.
And new stoves.

They do all the construction you just have to qualify but the wait list is at lease 3 to 11 months so apply today.
Trust me they want to find as much wrong as they can or they don't receive another 5 Billion the following year.
I have been doing weatherization for about a year and now do energy audits for CPS its called http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gB9tfQprHFU/T2nO1BcTL-I/AAAAAAAAAGs/wsb8ZVRAW5c/s400/Picture1.jpg

that sucks, my last year's AGI is too high by less than 1000 dollars.

[Oneton]

I only did security at night for a friend of mine who is ex military and opened a security service with two other partners it was sitting in a tower playing on a laptop for 6 hours it was only BigZax25 saying he was going to call the head office to tell them I smoke weed because I made him leave early one night from my girlfriends house at 1:45AM after he was getting belligerent I figured he just bought a new truck 12 hours earlier and i didn't want him to wrap it around a tree and have his children hate me for the rest of my life not to mention any law suits and I didn't really want him to sleep at my place which he doesn't get and flamed out and it kinda made me drop that side work rather than embarrass the company with the unnecessary drama.

I just let the mouse haters run they're misinformed drivel around here and make them think they are so superior and better than me and deserve to live on this planet more than I and many others do.

It's actually amusing.

Okay. So you don't work security. Got it.

[Sportcamper]

The older box A/C’s can last for decades…But they need service which nobody ever does…A garden hose to dirty coils & Freon update can make the old units new again…

[mrsmaalox]

Central air is the way to go.

Does anyone here have radiant barrier? I've been thinking of doing this for a while now but not sure how great it actually works. I was also thinking of tinted screens or using home window tint on the windows that face East on my house. 2 of our bedrooms get pounded late in the afternoon because there is no tree to block the sunlight during the hottest part of the day.

I have solar screens on my house. I can't say they've ever made a significant savings on my electric bill, but they have definitely helped minimize the "hot spots" around the house; my bedroom got uncomfortable in the mornings (no sleeping in ever), and the kitchen and my son's bedroom were unbearable in the afternoon.

I had mine installed professionally about 8 years ago, and more than anything liked how they enhanced the appearance of the house. But when we decided to screen another house we own, we went the DIY route; very easy to make the screens and install them yourself.

[leemajors]

I have solar screens on my house. I can't say they've ever made a significant savings on my electric bill, but they have definitely helped minimize the "hot spots" around the house; my bedroom got uncomfortable in the mornings (no sleeping in ever), and the kitchen and my son's bedroom were unbearable in the afternoon.

I had mine installed professionally about 8 years ago, and more than anything liked how they enhanced the appearance of the house. But when we decided to screen another house we own, we went the DIY route; very easy to make the screens and install them yourself.

Solar screens make a huge difference, especially on western facing windows. Rooms in my house were at least 5 degrees cooler with them on, but this house is from the 50s and poorly insulated. I used the 90% UV blocking ones. Hard to see well out of, but who gives a shit.

[SpurinDallas]

I have solar screens on my house. I can't say they've ever made a significant savings on my electric bill, but they have definitely helped minimize the "hot spots" around the house; my bedroom got uncomfortable in the mornings (no sleeping in ever), and the kitchen and my son's bedroom were unbearable in the afternoon.

I know what you mean about not being able to sleep in. Our bedroom window faces east and even though the thermostat in the living room read 73 degrees, our bedroom gets hot, fast.

I like the DIY route and gonna look into it.

[leemajors]

I know what you mean about not being able to sleep in. Our bedroom window faces east and even though the thermostat in the living room read 73 degrees, our bedroom gets hot, fast.

I like the DIY route and gonna look into it.

just go to lowes or home depot, make sure and pick up some spline, spline tool, and an razor. and damn I wish I could afford to keep my thermostat at 73.

[Drachen]

just go to lowes or home depot, make sure and pick up some spline, spline tool, and an razor. and damn I wish I could afford to keep my thermostat at 73.

no shit. I put it on 74 for about 45 minutes right before I go to bed, then back up to 76 during the night 78 when I am at home and awake and 84 when I am away.

[CosmicCowboy]

The box units make great white noise for sleeping. I grew up in a house that just had the box units in a couple of bedrooms and those were only turned on when someone was in the room. Nap time in the summer was awesome...I almost looked forward to it because of the A/C.

[leemajors]

The box units make great white noise for sleeping. I grew up in a house that just had the box units in a couple of bedrooms and those were only turned on when someone was in the room. Nap time in the summer was awesome...I almost looked forward to it because of the A/C.

mow the lawn, balls facing the window unit when done

[Twisted_Dawg]

I just bought a box unit for my bedroom since my two sons are gone. I didn't want my central AC running all night cooling a 2200 SF house. I turn off my central AC at 11PM, and turn it back on in the morning when I wake up. The box unit was $149 with no sales tax for a 6500 BTU unit. Cools the room real fast and keeps it cold. When I get my electric bill in July, I will know if it saved me any money. It is on the side on the house and no one can see it and I plan to remove it and store it in the winter.

[gospursgojas]

Mouse is trying to be all chafa...Get central air and run it all day long at 65, like me.

[Capt Bringdown]

Window units are the norm here in Thailand. Why pay to cool the entire house?

[Jacob1983]

If you put those tented film covers on your windows, does that actually make a difference? Will it make your place cooler inside and save you some money? I've seen that crap at Lowe's but have always been suspicious. Even if you just place some towels and a sheet over your window, you can feel a difference. I did that to my bedroom and there was a major difference. I mainly did it because I cannot stand sunlight of any kind in my bedroom.

[Wild Cobra]

I have two box units. One is a larger capacity heat pump. In the winter, I use it to heat. The smaller one is in my bedroom window.

If you own, central air is the way to go as long as you can control individual rooms. Rentals, you are pretty much screwed.

[Wild Cobra]

If you put those tented film covers on your windows, does that actually make a difference? Will it make your place cooler inside and save you some money? I've seen that crap at Lowe's but have always been suspicious. Even if you just place some towels and a sheet over your window, you can feel a difference. I did that to my bedroom and there was a major difference. I mainly did it because I cannot stand sunlight of any kind in my bedroom.
I cannot attest to the films, but it makes sense that they should make a large difference. If you reflect back out the bulk of light, then you eliminate most of the "greenhouse effect" you would have. Windows are glass, and light that turns to heat/infrared (IR) doesn't escape back out of the glass. Glass reflects the IR back into the room. Therefore, the reflective material should be far better than a curtain, shades, etc. As your shades block the incoming light, much of it is turned to heat, and remains in the room since it cannot go back out the glass.

[mouse]

If you own, central air is the way to go as long as you can control individual rooms. Rentals, you are pretty much screwed.

But is Obama to blame?

[mouse]

Mouse is trying to be all chafa...


who wants to be half chafa?