The sudden onslaught of summer and 90+ degree temps has made life at Chez Petite quite uncomfortable. Our early 1800's house has central AC, but there are no return vents upstairs to suck the hot air out. That means the downstairs stays cool while we steam on the second floor. I slept in the basement on a futon the past few nights, which was hellish. My back has been bothering me and the futon does not help. Luckily, we found a solution!
This portable ComfortAire 10,000 btu air conditioner has solved our problem. One of the contractors TBG asked, said the simple solution would be to put a window unit at the top of the stairs, to pull the cold air up from downstairs and pull out the hot for upstairs. Having removed the old cabinet, we had an opportunity to use the window. Unfortunately, the window is just 23 inches wide and most "window rattlers" (as they are called in the trade) are 28" or more. I suggested one of the portables that vent out the window with a small kit. TBG gets them at cost so this unit, which retails for $309 at Wallies, was ours for two hundred bucks.
We did have to cut down the panel that fits in the window as it was way too wide. Next, we packed foam around the hose and the borders. I covered that with cardboard that I secured in place with packing tape. The curtain covers it well enough, I still have room to sit on the bench, and we can still get to the linens in the chest. I had wanted to set the unit on the bench, but it took up too much space and was too heavy to lift anytime I needed to get to the sheets or towels.
The unit does take up space and doesn't really add to the decor, but that is a small price to pay to sleep in comfort. The unit doesn't block access to the stairs either. The only thing we'll need to do is empty the water/condensation tray once a day. While it's not a perfect solution, the upstairs is now cool and it didn't cost us a ton of money. Best of all, we could install it ourselves without having to pay for a technician.
We have hit a cool spell so tonight the windows will be open. That will be nice -- but it's even nicer knowing that I don't have to dread waking up drenched in sweat. I know, Americans are spoiled -- but I like to have a good night's sleep so I can be more productive during the day. For now, we are hoping not not need any window units upstairs -- so the outside of the house will look better too. It's a win-win!
Glad you found a solution since living in a Historic Home is so Wonderful that updating systems can be quite a challenge. When we had a Historic Home we converted it to air conditioning during our ownership of it, had to get creative to get the ductwork into a 100 year old structure built during an Era they didn't even have air conditioning, even tho' this is the Desert, we forget that early Settlers had to be tough as old boots and didn't have such luxuries!
ReplyDeleteOops, what I meant was living in a Historic Home is so Wonderful BUT updating systems can be quite a challenge! LOL
DeleteBut I understood! We wanted to go up the old chimney when we converted to a direct-vent hot water heater. Then we found the liner was wrapped in asbestos -- something done when the house was moved in the 50's. So over the years, some modernization can do more harm than good -- which increases the challenge! But it doesn't negate the charm :-)
DeleteGreat solution! We don't have central air but our house is well insulated and we have concrete in a large portion of it so it's pretty cool. We do have one of those portable a/c units though and use it when it gets beastly hot usually just a few days of the year. Plus, we can move it around if necessary.
ReplyDeleteI like the portability factor. Our basement is always cool and the lower story does well if we keep the blinds down during the day. It is the upstairs that really gets hot. Buffalo never gets above 97 degrees thanks to Lake Erie, but when it gets near, it is not fun!
DeleteSo glad you have found a workable solution that means you will be more comfortable at night.
ReplyDeleteI wish we had thought of it last year!
DeleteWhen the heat is stifling, the décor is my last thought! We just cracked windows a bit in the upstairs and that seemed enough to let out some of the heat. However, it did nothing for sleeping comfort. I have seen those units and wished they had them back when I had to visit in-laws up north who did not believe in ac since it was only hot for 3 months, which is when we had to visit.
ReplyDeleteWe tried using fans to drag the hot air up and out and I kept my bedroom window opened a bit at night -- but you are right, it isn't enough to sleep comfortably! I am glad we have this option now.
DeleteThat is an early hot snap. We had the heat a few weeks ago but it has since cooled off and even rained which is appreciated since our fire risk was increasing. Stay cool!
ReplyDeleteWithin the last 30 days, we have had record highs and record lows. Freezing to steaming! I hope you get sufficient rain this year, I hate reading about the wide-spread fires out West.
Delete