What kind of window air conditioner would I need to cool a 600 square foot apartment?

Question

What kind of window air conditioner would I need to cool a 600 square foot apartment?

Answer 1

A 10,000 BTU window air conditioner would do the trick.  However, one unit cooling the whole place means you'll have to leave doors open, and it may not cool every room very well.  Also, you'll be paying to cool the whole place all the time.

You'd be better off buying two of the smallest type of window units (probably about 5000-7500 BTU) and put one in the bedroom and one in a centrally located common room.  Then you can run one during the day, and the other at night, and be more efficient overall.  Typically, two tiny units will cost you no more than 20% more than one mid-sized unit, and you'll make that up in energy savings in a month or two.

Answer 2

A unit's cooling power is calculated in BTU's. Here's a handy chart:

http://forum.doityourself.com/showthread...

Other features to consider:

- How many vents it has and are they directional?

- Does it have an extendable drain line so you can tell the water where to go?

- How easy is it to clean the filter?

- Will it fit your window?

- How noisy is it?

Good luck!