The Window AC: An NYC Summer Staple

I bought my from Home Depot 5 years ago and it is still going strong. I bought it for close to $300. What is your budget like?

@BroadwayBK I actually sold a portable AC that I had bought from Home Depot for $300 on Craig's List last year so maybe you will find a deal there. We currently use two LG window ACs also bought from Home Depot for around $300- $400 a piece though one of them has a cut off thermo-stat function which is not very effective as it turns the unit off when it achieves the required temperature and then I wake up feeling really hot.

Mine was about $200 bucks and I always thought it worked great until this last heat wave. But, I don't know if any window unit can combat this week. The pain is just too strong!

@everyone I am thinking Home Depot and the $300 AC is the way to go....

There's another hurdle, though: whenever my roommate and I are running both ACs and someone turns on a vacuum, the fuse blows. I'm thinking three ACs might be killer.

@BroadwayBK: Why have two ACs. How big is your apartment? One AC should be big enough to chill down a nice studio apartment? Even if you have a one bedroom, if you have a nice size AC in the living room, that should be enough to chill down the entire apartment, unless of course the AC is old and only runs at low wattage. In that case it will only cover so many square feet.

One AC alone can draw up to nearly 10 amps of power, especially when used in full power mode. We keep our AC in energy saver mode. So the AC only comes on when the room is the hottest and shuts off when the desired temperature is reached, but then the AC turns on again when the temperature goes back up. It is referred to as a power cycle. When the compressor starts up, that is when I notice the lights dim a bit. Compressors are what draw power.

Ever drive a car on a very hot day and turn on the air conditioner, then step on the gas. Your car will not move fast. It will run sluggish. Why, because the compressor takes a lot of the engine's energy output just to start it. I used to have an old Chevy. My friend had a Chevy. I had no air but his did. In the heat of summer, he had to gas up his car twice as much as I did, and we both had the same size engine. In fact both cars were identical. The only exception was he ran his AC all the time. He complained and asked why he had to get more gas than I did, and yet, I ran my car more often than he did. I used my car twice as much as he did. I told him it was because of the air conditioner. He was amazed.

Why get a third AC. Just replace the oldest one with a better one. This way you still have two ACs but at least one will kick out more cold air than what you have now.

@hhusted I live in a three bedroom and do not benefit from the other two ACs, as they are in my roommates' rooms. Therefore I need my own. Obviously I wouldn't buy one if I didn't need it.

And having three units on did indeed blow the fuse - so this is a problem that we are going to have to compromise on, since all three can't be on at the same time.

Yeah, so due to last night's heat I finally caved in about getting an AC. It's getting delivered tonight. I can't stand the heat any more.

@BroadwayBK You just need to put one of them on a different circuit with an extension cord.

@NeverSleeps I dont know whether an extension cord can withstand the power load that an AC requires.
Btw can't believe the tough time Con-Ed is having keeping the lights on in NYC-
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/08/nyregion/08heat.html thought power shortages/outages were the plague in third world countries.

@NeverSleeps: Wrong idea. If BroadwayBK did that, she would cause a short and a fire for sure. Never, and I repeat never connect an air conditioner to an extension cord. The amount of amps the air conditioner requires would melt that cord quickly. Extension cords are not required to handle that much amps at once, unless it is a heavy duty outdoor extension cord. But even heavy duty outdoor extension cords can't handle too much of a load. When you buy an extension cord, read the label. It tells you the amps it can handle. It may even tell you how many watts you can feed through it. Too many fires occurred because someone decided to connect an extension cord to an appliance that was not proper to connect to.

I know because I worked as an electrician for 5 years. I not only wired homes, but I also was hired to wire extensions to homes, and replace electrical devices. Electricity is nothing to fool with. It can be your friend if you know what you are doing. But it can also be a killer for those who know nothing about it.

@BroadwayBK: I just remembered an idea that may help you. It may not work in your situation, but I'll still mention it anyway, just in case it does. Since you stated you have three bedrooms in your apartment, why not talk to your roommates, and compromise. Take the oldest air conditioner and ditch it. Buy a brand new one that can put out a huge amount of air and can cover a large square area. Place this one in the living room. During the day, have them keep their doors open while the air conditioner is running. By doing this, each room would be cool at night. I had as friend who tried this and found it worked like a charm.

Another alternative is to contact ConEd, and request a second electric box be installed near your bedroom. The electrician could bring a cable over from the power line and bring one or two lines into your bedroom, where he can install surface-mounted receptacles. This will cost money, which could be added to your monthly bill. At least you will have your own line and can connect an air conditioner to it.

Um. I have an extension cord that can handle 13 amps. My AC is only 6.2 amps. This is something that I actually had to do last summer and nothing melted and no fires started. Heavy duty extension cords exist, people. And on top of that, my dad is an electrician - who owns his own business and wires huge commercial buildings for a living and he said it would be fine under the circumstances. I actually looked into it before I did it - it's not like I'm some jerk who is unaware of possible electrical dangers.

Just like BroadwayBK, all the ACs on our circuit were triggering the breaker and the only way to use all of them at once was to put one an a different circuit. Short of rewiring the house, an extension cord was the only fix. Not everyone can afford to call up ConEd and have their house rewired. This could also be a problem if you rent rather than own.

Electrical fires are only caused - in the case of extension cords - when you use one that can't handle the power load. Get one that can handle the power load and it will be fine. DUH. Wire gauge is also important - if you're using a heavy load on a cord, then you should get a bigger gauge wire - my own personal electrician recommended a No. 14 wire, but it's hard find anything bigger than a No. 16 unless you hit a hardware store. (The numbers go down as the wires get bigger.)

Believe it or not, hhusted, there are people in the world besides you who know a thing or two. And it's really interesting that you've had a job working in every profession that's ever come up on these forums.

@NeverSleeps Too true.

@uptowngirl: sadly, no, with the third world only power problems. When I was about 16, the entire state of California and parts of Utah, Nevada and Colorado all lost power for TWO DAYS! It was awful. Yeah, there's nothing to do and that was atrocious. But, the real problem was that we were having an unprecedented heatwave (it was about 103 degrees where I was) and the traffic in Southern California is already out of control -- having no traffic lights made it the end of days. Just bonkers. And, I remember the power came on in the middle of the night and it was heart attack inducing. It's about 3 am and all of a sudden, everyone's TV, radio, appliances, lights, etc all blasted back on at once. I shot out of bed like a rocket.

@JenMac Wow, two days?! People can actually die from that kind of heat.

@JenMac that must have been truly awful. Our modern lives are so dependent on power aren't they?In power strapped cities in India, they have something called 'load shedding' where for a few hours every day the authorities 'switch off' the power supply to conserve energy. Most homes in these cities have their own generators which are powered with diesel and they come on then to at least power up the fans etc for otherwise it is quite horrible to live with that stifling heat.

@uptowngirl Hah! Can you imagine spoiled Americans having to do "load shedding"?

@Uraniumfish never in a million years, you know I have always wondered why office blocks in NYC never shut off their lights at night? I know we all talk a lot about conserving energy but if you drive around in NYC after dark you almost always see the office buildings with all their lights on way into the night. Its not as if every office worker is working way till late , shouldn't lights be turned off after people have left for the day?

@uptowngirl Would make sense, no? Also, since those lights probably add up to a lot, you would think it would be instituted into company policies for the tenants of the office buildings. Then again, judging by what I've seen of corporate America, it's all so much waste!

@Uraniumfish so true!!

@uptowngirl Nah, I guess load shedding isn't likely to happen in a town as self-centered as NYC!

Anyone have problems with mosquitoes? Not loads - just one! I was up all last night because a single mosquito decided to buzz in my ear and wake me up whenever I drifted off to sleep. Drove me CRAZY

@NeverSleeps: First of all I am glad you have a father who is an electrician. This way he can give you advice on how to handle such electrical concerns. I do not appreciate your talking in a condescending way to me, especially since I do not know you, nor your background. I was merely trying to help, since you spoke about using extension cords. And the fact, I worked as an electrician as I said, and know a lot about it.

As for having ConEd do rewiring. What's the big deal. I had it done once. I contacted my landlord and he gave me permission to do it. No sweat. It cost me an additional $25 per month for about 6 months, but that was it.

It is when people become ignorant is when problems occur. I have seen and heard of way too many fires occur because someone decided to use an extension cord to connect a device or appliance that used more load than the extension cord could carry. I have also seen first hand a situation where someone decided to connect an extension cord to an appliance that had a short in it. The appliance was used, there was a spark, and before long, not only did the appliance catch fire, but the extension cord, as well as the wall receptacle caught fire. That fire became a three alarm.

@NeverSleeps: You said, "Believe it or not, hhusted, there are people in the world besides you who know a thing or two. And it's really interesting that you've had a job working in every profession that's ever come up on these forums."

I never said you didn't. You talked about using an extension cord. I was merely bringing out the dangers of doing that since you did not mention it. I was only adding to the conversation. What is wrong with that.

As for the jobs I've held, that is not of your concern. Yes, I worked as a plumber, electrician, carpenter, phone installer, burglar alarm installer, TV repairman, auto mechanic, maintenance mechanic, and newspaper reporter, all before I reached 30 years of age. My father told me to be diversified and know how to do many things. He wasn't joking.

In some cases, I worked in three areas at the same time. For example, in my early twenties, I worked for a carpenter where I was in charge of installing plumbing and electrical work. I also helped him take down walls and created walls from scratch. I helped him tear apart the inside of a house and remodel it. I worked as a mason for him where I laid down cement to build the back porch, driveway, and sidewalk.

I've done nearly everything to a house except the roof. He hired a professional roofer to handle that part.

@ajadedidealist that's precisely the reason that I have mosquito and fly guards for every window in my home.. I cant stand mosquitoes/ flies and thankfully havent had a problem just yet.

@hhusted have not had gnats as yet...in fact ever since I moved to NYC I have been relatively mosquito free. When I lived in the tropics I was always getting bitten but not so much here in NYC thank god.

@Uptowngirl: Good for you. Those pesky things bite hard sometimes. I got bit one year by a mosquito when living in NJ, and itched in that spot for a few days. The only thing that helped was using peroxide, rubbing alcohol, and anti-itch cream.

@hhusted I'm really not interested in your professional life. The next time you offer help, maybe it's a good idea to not assume that you have some information that others are completely unaware of - that way your "help" won't sound so condescending and insulting and provoke responses that you don't appreciate.

@ajadedidealist We have those bug lights that attract and burn the mosquitoes to a crisp. But the other day I was reading in the backyard, and I kept getting bitten by some kind of little gnats. So annoying! I lit one of those candles that keeps the bugs at bay and they stopped biting me after that.

@hhusted Though my husband swears by alcohol swabs for bites, eradicating pimples etc I find it way too harsh for my skin and usually use perfume (though I know its alcohol based) or calamine lotion that I usually store in my fridge to calm down insect bites.. am a total bug magnet and since I travel a lot in Asia have to be extra vigilant. My bottle of OFF always travels with me no matter what.

@uptowngirl Doesn't alcohol just dry up your skin? I guess that's why it would work, but it sounds so painful. I have a bite on my hand that could use come calamine lotion, though. That's what mom always used to give us. That and OFF! I guess when it comes to bug bites we all use the same remedies.

@NeverSleeps: I would appreciate it if you keep your comments about me and what I say to yourself. It would make things better for everyone concerned. This is a forum to help others not pass insults to each other.

@Uptowngirl: Most often I use alcohol on a mosquito bite right away. If the skin gets broken from scratching, I'll put peroxide on the spot. I will only use calamine lotion if I get poison ivy or oak, which I haven't gotten since I was 17.

If my girlfriend itches, she will use anything she can get that will stop the itch.

@BroadwayBK my skin reacts very badly to bug bites which tendbecome huge and red and I cant help but itch them though when they have run their course they often leave a scar.. I was bitten by one such critter last fall when I was in Singapore and I still have the mark on my right, upper arm so now I slather on OFF when I am out and about in the tropics for I feel that's the only thing that keeps them at bay.

@uptowngirl Jeez. A scar?! That's terrible. Thank goodness for OFF!

@BroadwayBK: I remember when I was a kid, my mother sprayed OFF! on me before I went outside to play at night during the summer. Wow that was so long ago.