Portable Air Conditioners

Don't sweat it - portable air conditioners provide fast and efficient solutions for cooling business spaces
By Jenni Simcoe, Writer Portable air conditioners can be a business lifesaver. If your company air conditioner breaks down during the sizzling summer months, it can cause production to lag and can send customers rushing for the exits. But portable air conditioning systems do more than simply fill in during times of crisis.

Portable air conditioning units can be used for numerous business purposes, whether you have an industrial warehouse, a retail store or an office. For instance, portable spot coolers can provide the following solutions:

1. Portable air conditioners can be used to cool computer rooms that need to be kept at very cool temperatures. Using portable air conditioning systems allows you to cool the computer room while keeping the remainder of your office space at a comfortable temperature.
2. Modular air conditioners can be used for remote job sites, such as construction trailers.
3. Portable air conditioners can be used during seasonal times when additional cooling capacity is called for.

Figure out what capacity of portable air conditioners you need

Like all air conditioning systems, portable air conditioners are measured in BTUs (British Thermal Units), a universal measure of heating and cooling. The square footage of the room or rooms you want to cool will determine how many BTUs are required to do the job.
Try:  Go to ACDirect to figure out how many BTUs your portable air conditioners will require. For a chart that helps you calculate BTUs by square footage, visit Abt Electronics.

Modular air conditioners provide multiple cooling solutions

Modular air conditioners provide a variety of space-saving alternatives for small hot spots. They can be mounted on shelves or hung from the ceiling. Some modular air conditioners can be stacked to add BTU capacity. Other types of modular air conditioners are used to cool modular rooms and buildings with quick wall installations.
Try:  Modular air conditioners like the CoolCube 10 are designed to cool small areas that pack a lot of heat, such as wiring closets, and to cool hot spots within large data or computer rooms. Fedders Corporation makes commercial modular air conditioners that can be wall-mounted in modular rooms.

Large portable spot coolers come through in emergencies

You never know when a storm, blackout or temporary power outage will affect your business and your air conditioning systems. You can minimize the inconvenience by renting portable spot coolers or portable air conditioning units and having backup generators to power them.
Try:  Spot Coolers provides 24-hour emergency service, seven days a week nationwide for temporary and emergency portable air conditioners. They also sell new and used portable air conditioners for non-emergency permanent solutions to cool your business. Topp Portable Air provides a variety of sizes of portable air conditioners for rent nationwide.

Purchase portable air conditioners for permanent cooling solutions

Even the best-built offices can have climate issues. The temperature can be five or 10 degrees different depending on which room you're in and the sun exposure during that time of day. This can make some employees warm while others shiver in front of their computers. Portable air conditioners can provide better climate control by spot cooling hot spots and leaving the thermostat alone in other parts of the office.
Try:  Kwikool Portable Cooling Systems offers unitary and split portable air conditioning units that can be used in computer rooms, office space or warehouses. Air & Water offers small portable air conditioners up to 16,000 BTUs that are perfect for office spaces.

• Some portable air conditioners need to be vented. Ask before you buy if they have a vent or exhaust hose. If so, they are not as easy to move around from area to area.
• Before you buy portable spot coolers, determine the unit's electricity requirements. Most offices are only equipped with 110/120 volt outlets.
• Ask dealers to provide you with the sound output of portable air conditioning units. If you are using the unit in an office, you'll need to make sure it is quiet enough to work and talk without excess noise. Most office-friendly portable air conditioning units are less than 47 dB and make white noise.