What makes portable air conditioner very popular these days are not only caused by continuous heat during summer, but more than that, it’s based on the fact that most people in united states are living in apartment or houses which other forms of air conditioning unit is prohibited. whether by the regulations of their apartment manager, or because the building they lived are too old, or others circumstances that restraint them of implementing common types of air conditioner unit, whatever it is makes buying portable air conditioner is the best choice to get through summer without sweating.

However, there are many types of portable ac available. Which type is considered the best portable air conditioner? In this buyers guide, I will try to compare between single hose vs dual hose portable air conditioner, how they work and their effectiveness to get rid of summer heat.

Most people think that single hose is absolute winner since it’s easier to install single hose through window casement instead of dual hoses. It makes sense though, since you only do half work of what you need to do to install dual hose system. This is maybe the main reason why the selling number of single hose portable air conditioner is still high. However, in my opinion it’s not quite right. Read below.

Single hose vs dual hose portable air conditioner (how it works)

If we want to compare those two types, we need to understand how both works. For those who don’t understand the process, the different between them is only the number of hose they have in the back of their units. However these go beyond that, their system are also different. Single hose need to take in the air from inside the room, cool it through refrigerant which in its unit, exhaust the hot air through hose set up in the window to the outside of the room and blow the cool air back into the room.

If the air from inside room is taken in and exhaust out through the window, then the air inside need to be replaced with something else. The problem is starting here. the air from outside of the room, will be sucked in through the ‘leakage’ of windows and doors. New air is coming in to the room and sucked by single hose unit, and so on. This alone will prove ineffectiveness of single hose system, each time there’s always a new air needs to be cooled. Moreover, are you aware that single hose portable ac turn your room into an air vacuum, that can make other rooms outside become hotter as mentioned on http://homeenergypros.lbl.gov. To make you understand better, here is the diagrams on how single hose and dual hose portable ac works

taken from friedrich.com

Single Hose – taken from kingersons.com

Because of these weaknesses, the manufacturers of portable air con started to build new system which is dual hose portable air conditioner. This new system ensure effectiveness of cooling process, which make your room cool even faster than using single hose portable ac with the same BTUs rating. It is more energy efficient, since the air that conditioned is always the same (from inside the room itself).

The process will heat the machine, therefore the unit will draw air using one hose from outside of the window to cool down the compressor and condenser unit, then draws them back outside using other hose. The air from outside is not entering the room, it is used only to cool down the compressor and condenser unit, then it will be expelled outside.

By understanding the whole process of single hose and dual hose portable AC, I guess no one will question the effectiveness of Dual Hose system. This system will make your room cooler faster, and get you cleaner air, since air from outside that sucked in from leakage of door and window maybe contain bacteria or dust and other materials. Moreover, this system is energy efficient, which will lower your electricity bill at the end.

If you are interested to buy dual hose portable AC, I suggest you buy Whynter ARC-14S which have almost perfect Amazon rating. Check it out by yourselves. You may also check my other reviews on dual hose portable air conditioner.