window mounted A/C units

I have a very small unit and I do not see anywhere for the water to drain out like my older models had ? Are these newer ones designed to be this way maybe so they don't drip down on your neighbors in a high rise situation ? Went to move it to another room and got a flood of water running out of it onto the carpet.
Anyhow it now has drain holes at the rear like the older ones.

To keep it tractor related I use one of these off and on in my workshop. Loaned it to Mom and Dad for this extreme heat. After it flooded her carpet she would have no more to do with it.

The drain was probably plugged up with dirt.

The ones I have seen blow it on the condenser coils to help cool them. They hold a lot of water in the bottom.

The condenser fan has a slinger ring on it to throw the
water into the coils. It helps the cooling and keeps it
from dripping on the neighbors.
Make sure the drain from the inside to the outside is clear.

Steve A W

Right, the newer ones don't have a drain hole anymore.

A couple years ago we bought 3 new small window units... and I asked here on YT about drilling holes in the trays. Some folks said not to do it because, as mentioned below, the water in the tray helps keep the condenser coils cooled. So in the long run, it may shorten the life of your A/C unit.

So we did not drill any holes...
BUT I don't think these window units pull as much humidity out of the air as the old drip-styles did (Not even when run on the "dry" mode).

And having the air blown over warm dirty/stale water, then back into your rooms seems like a really bad idea to me.

And having the air blown over warm dirty/stale water, then back into your rooms seems like a really bad idea to me.

Click to expand...

That's not how it works.

The water is blown on the condenser coils. Interior air is blown over the EVAPORATOR coils.

I have about 5 cooling my 2600 square feet. Zone cooling, and the light bill attests to the fact that if your house is setup for it (which I built mine to cool that way) it's a money saver. I use LG and Frigidaire. HD sells LG and Lowes Frigidaire. Both work fine and have been reliable with no problems over the years with either. The best part is that they buy them in bulk and in the spring and fall you can get some great prices. I can replace all of mine for less than half the cost of a central condenser unit, and that's before you add in the installation! Oh, the other thing about window units is that they all don't break simultaneously. None of this mama is on your case because she's hot!!!!!!! What's that worth?

The beautiful thing about window units is that water sump. The efficiency is up in the 11s and to get that they use the "heat of evaporation" of sump water over the condenser coils to help and get it. None of the central units that I have seen have such.

The drains are positioned such that the sump collects the water that drips off the evaporator coils during cooling (glass of iced tea sweating in the summer for the physics of it) and routes back to the condenser fan where a slinger ring on the fan picks it up and throws it onto the condenser coil where it evaporates and takes a lot of heat with it in the process.

On the LG the overflow drain is at the rear and on the Frigidaire in the center bottom.

When installing there needs to be a slight tilt to the rear to ensure that the condensate (water) from the evaporator coil (in the house) flows to the rear where it can be collected in the condenser sump. Sometimes humidity gets really low here and with little in the house and not much outside, the sump can dry up. So when that happens and I see it, I just pour some water through the vents and "fill her up". Read your installation directions for the angle.

If you get algae or mold in your sump that can clog up the evaporator drain.....really humid areas, old units, just pour in some diluted chlorine bleach and it will kill the gunk.

If you operate in a dusty, pollen saturated environment, the crud in the air will make a matt on the inside of the condenser coil as a result of the water spray. HD carries an air conditioner spray (green can, yellow cap in the plumbing dept.) that does a great job of cleaning with out having to dismantle the unit. I use it and when it gets to the point where I feel air blowing out the rear is no longer uniform across the coil, I pull the unit, open it up and clean out the crud, usually a spring chore.

The water flows to the rear and the vapor (what's left after the water condenses going across the condenser coils, exits the rear into the outside. The fan in the house sucks house air across the evaporator coil in the house and blows it back into the house, 30 degrees F cooler than it entered. The water (sweat off the glass of tea) drops to the bottom and flows around to the condenser coil sump. In this manner the evaporator coil removes water from the air decreasing the relative humidity in the house.

If you are worried about germs, spray with Lysol or a similar house brand product that kills 99.9% of germs it touches. If you get mold spots, which can happen, spray with diluted chlorine bleach during your spring cleaning chores while the house is open or remove it manually when the unit is out for it's non-periodic cleaning.

You are right there Tex. My neighbor works on a lot of whole house units but not these little ones. He said the same thing with the water spraying on the condenser. Only problem is makes a mud puddle after a while and it is almost impossible to get it out. Just make sure you tip the unit just a little to the rear. Also remove the unit for the winter time. The less exposure to the elements the better. Now I had to replace my unit with about 8 years on it cause the axial fan crapped out. You can't get it out cause you actually need to take the unit apart. Split a tractor apart type repair. My windows are those slider type and I must have a special unit that is vertical. $525.oo 10,ooo BTU at Sears cause almost no body has them.

Mike, what everyone says is true, condensate will increase efficiency. It will increase how fast they rust. The dirt and dust in air along with the condensate will soon form a baked on mud on evaporator and will decrease efficiency more than you gained. I tahe covers off all my rental AC, clean with bleach. Drill 1/4 inch holes in corners by condenser. Cover outside of AC with aluminum window screen. In two months you will see all kinds of crap that would have choked the condensor.

Do central AC spray water on condensor? Drill holes. I've been working on AC since I was a kid. Just do it. Take yours apart annually. Postings pics what happens if you don't.
Black stuff is mold.

Window screen.

Interesting. It's nice to see manufacturers are making some attempt to improve window unit efficiency. We got rid of ours several years ago when I installed a ductless mini-split and haven't looked back. The old window unit did a good job of converting electricity to noise, not so good at cooling the room. The ductless is quiet and efficient. SEER 11 is pretty good for a window unit, but the ductless units start around 18 SEER.

Hello Mike M,

What happens is that the drain path from the evaporator to the condenser fills up with debris and the condensate spills into the house. That is what you need to clean. Having a small hole to drain the condenser side can only drain if the condensate gets there, but if the system is not draining back to the condenser the hole is useless. you will still get condensate into the room. So clean the through....................
Guido.

I would agree with George 100%. Regardless of the reason they don't drill weep holes in the bottom part of the housing, the benefits do not seem to outweigh the rust and other problems with the tray being full of water. It makes a real mess and the paint comes off, rusts like heck. I protected the copper tubing and drilled a hole on a '02 vintage Kenmore 8500 BTU window unit. You do have to clear the hole sometimes, but its been running with a weep for 5 seasons or so now. I have replaced 1 dual capacitor in it as well. The screening will protect the (evaporator or condenser - I can never remember which one is which LOL, but the fuzz that makes a felt like cover over the outboard fin tube thing on these, will make a compressor fail if I understand these correctly.

I find that pulling the cover and cleaning these thoroughly every season is well worth it, 14 seasons later that '02 Kenmore works like it did when new.

Black mold formed in mine, I had to clean all the interior duct in it. The cause was running it cold and shutting it off, too much condensation build up, far better to run on fan awhile before a shut down or just run thermostatically so it cycles, until you don't need cooling any more.

The photo shows the small area that was clear, that was years of build up, until I wised up and took better care of it.

Also, the unit needs to be tilted down towards the outside, at least mine is to drain properly.

Billy, agree with you 100%. I never open Windows and let in humidity. Removing moisture requires many BTUs. Never turn off, let thermostat do it's job. Running fan on high after you haves turned it off will suck moisture off evaporator, spray it on the inside. Then you have black mold. Leave it on all the time, use slower speed. Watch for mold.

Menards carries sliding window A/C units 8000 btu roughly 3-350 in season, 11% rebate this week also
go to Menards.com and see if you are close to one
my daughters are using one now
GOOD LUCK
Ron

(quoted from post at 15:47:56 07/26/16) You are right there Tex. My neighbor works on a lot of whole house units but not these little ones. He said the same thing with the water spraying on the condenser. Only problem is makes a mud puddle after a while and it is almost impossible to get it out. Just make sure you tip the unit just a little to the rear. Also remove the unit for the winter time. The less exposure to the elements the better. Now I had to replace my unit with about 8 years on it cause the axial fan crapped out. You can't get it out cause you actually need to take the unit apart. Split a tractor apart type repair. My windows are those slider type and I must have a special unit that is vertical. $525.oo 10,ooo BTU at Sears cause almost no body has them.

Click to expand...

I used to pull mine for the winter but I moved the one that was on the North side and the rest are under eaves. I get these slip covers at HD to cover them up.
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On the one I don't use very often, guest room, I too put screen over it (permanently) to keep the dobbers out.

(quoted from post at 18:38:21 07/26/16) Also, the unit needs to be tilted down towards the outside, at least mine is to drain properly.

Click to expand...

The tilt angle is in the installation instructions.

we have central air set at 68, and a window shaker in the bedroom set at 66

Hello Billy NY,

No.... they do not need to be tilted. The drain path flows towards the condensing coil. Its comical at times I see units tilted to the max! shooting for the moon I guess?

GUIDO.

ive put a ton of these window units in for people all over my county . NEVER EVER have I seen one that said to install level. most the time they give you a degree setting OFF LEVEL