portable air conditioner - portable air cooler -- WHICH ONE TO CHOOSE!

Hey, there is a big difference between a portable ac and an air cooler (aka Swamp cooler - aka Evaporative cooler).

A portable air conditioner uses Freon to cool and require ventilation for the motor, and it uses an adjustable length hose to duct the air away from the room that is being cooled. The hose itself is similar in size to a standard clothes dryer hose (about five inches across). Basically, its portable but needs to vent that hot air - see my last post.

Evaporative coolers or swamp coolers are different. An evaporative cooler produces effective cooling by combining a natural process - water evaporation - with a simple, reliable air-moving system. Fresh outside air is pulled through moist pads where it is cooled by evaporation and circulated through a house or building by a large blower. As this happens, the temperature of the outside air can be lowered as much as 30 degrees. So a swamp cooler is totally portable and does not need venting like a portable air conditioner.

But, in reality, a portable air conditioner will give you the most cooling and a portable air conditioner will work in all humidity situations. A swamp cooler is best suited for hot dry areas - if its over 90 degrees and under 50% humitity you will get cooling