Do You Have to Empty the Pan Often on a Portable Air Conditioner?

Identification

• A portable air conditioner is an air conditioning unit that stands on its own. In most cases, the unit will only cool the room in which it's located. Permanent installation isn't necessary, and you can move the unit from room to room. However, you must have access to a window so the exhaust hose can remove hot air from the room.

Considerations

• A portable air conditioner removes moisture from the air. As a result, you have to empty the unit's tank once it's full of water. According to Sylvane, some tanks require emptying every eight hours while others might require emptying only once in a month. An exception is a unit that automatically evaporates moisture when it exhausts hot air. Some units might also contain an additional pump and hose, which allows the water to drain out of a window or alternate location.

Warning

• Consumer Reports suggests using a portable air conditioner only if absolutely necessary. After testing several brands, results showed that portable air conditioning isn't as effective as central air and window units. Part of the problem is that the exhaust hose, which sends hot air out, often allows the same hot air to seep back into the room. If you must have a portable air conditioner, Consumer Reports suggests getting one with separate intake and exhaust hoses.

Misconceptions

• A portable air conditioner is often confused with a portable evaporative cooler. The units look similar, and both provide indoor air conditioning. However, the two units use different cooling methods. A portable air conditioner removes warm air from a room and recycles it back as cool air. An evaporative cooler contains a fan and moist pads. When the fan draws hot air into the unit from outside, the moist pads cool the air and send it into the room.