Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2000 06:21:41 -0500
Reply-To: "Thomas D. Hanlon" <hanran@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: "Thomas D. Hanlon" <hanran@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject: Re: Portable Air Conditioner
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Listees,
Since I live in an extremely expensive cost per kilowatt hour area, we have need of
isolating individual rooms for air conditioning in our high temperature summers,
especially bedrooms at night, or a monthly electric utility bill could reach $700 for a
home with a pool and an old, inefficient central air-conditioning system, such as I
have. A recent heat index reading in Palm Springs, (combination of heat and humidity)
was 138 F. So, a one-time investment is a wise move. Our winters are spring-like,
however, and that is the trade off. since we are not confronted with high heating
costs.
I have two units of this type referenced, one a TOYOTOMI which I bought two years ago
(a 4000 btu version) and one, Home Depot's exact version of this "Our-House," a
Feddars-manufactured (in Spain) 6,500 btu unit. The TOYOTOMI, a "dinged" marked down,
item, made by Toyota cost, two years ago, about $900 through Damark. An similar
condition 8,500 btu unit sold then for about $1,250, at the time. Both prices were
about 20 per cent less than retail. The HD version cost, this spring, $599. At the end
of year clearance, in July, the same model was marked down to $499. In very "rough"
figures, half the price and twice the power of the original TOYOTOMI
I've used the small TOYOTOMI three times in my Westy, poptop down, and the ambient
temperature was 110F, or so, outside and 75 F inside, and we had to "open " the window
to let some heat in. We lashed the unit to the back of the passenger sea via the seat
belt anchors and vented it through the passenger window, with a cobbled together window
fixture. It's base dimensions are about 10" x 13" and the height is about 24". Weight,
I'd guess, about 30/35 pounds.
As a Westy accessory, at any of the prices listed, the cost, to me is prohibitive for
the limited use the unit has had, but as an adjunct to home use, it is a Westy luxury.
Tom Hanlon
Palm Springs, CA
84 Westfalia
"Joe L." wrote:
> This is the first time I have seen something like this. Take a look at this
> PORTABLE Air Conditioner. Rolls around on wheels and can be set up like a
> simple fan as long as there is 110 volts and someplace handy to hold the
> water and exhaust the heat. Incredibly overpriced but shows how small these
> things are getting.
>
> http://www.ourhouse.com/cgi-bin/prod_detail.jsp?BV_SessionID=@@@@1999712228.
> 0967722672@@@@&BV_EngineID=dgalijjefhejbedcjfcfcje.0&level=detail&pg_name=pr
> od_results&root_prod_id=2213315-0001&target_page=detail&oid=9991
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