One of the perks that comes with writing a blog is that occasionally I am approached to write a review about a product that a company feels would work in the tiny/small house world.
Recently, I received a big package in the mail with a NewAir AC-14000H Air Conditioner in it. It had been recommended to me for use in a small house. To be honest, I was surprised at the size of the box as it seemed huge. I opened it and found that it was double boxed for protection and was a little smaller than I first thought.
The NewAir AC-14000H Air Conditioner is a 14,000 BTU portable air conditioner with a built in heat pump. It produces serious air-conditioning for an area up to 525 square feet. Perfect for a small house. This particular unit also heats but I have not tested its ability in that area yet.
The unit has adjustable air louvers, allowing you to direct the air where you want it. It also has a remote control so you do not need to get up to make changes but can do it from where you are sitting. It also has a built-in ionizer that removes airborne pollutants, thus allowing you to breathe cleaner, healthier air.
It is built of high quality industrial design so should last well under normal use.
Here is my experience with the unit. It was well packaged and had all the components it said it should. It is not a small unit so it takes a little hefting to get it out of the box. It does have wheels so will roll around fairly easily once out of the box.
Setup of the unit was a little difficult. The hardware supplied did not adequately allow for the connection of the window unit to the adapter for the air exhaust. I had to find a few tiny bolts to hold it together. I also had some difficulty connecting the air pipe and am still trying to make it hold securely. It needs some type of hardware to make this connection more secure. I contacted the company and evidently a couple of pieces of hardware were missing in my shipment so this should be covered.
The unit seems to work quite well and cools fairly quickly. In the last couple of days on average it has been 96 degrees outside, while inside the unit keeps it at 75. The unit seems to hold its own in quite hot weather. We do not have the humidity out west so I don’t know how it would do with high humidity.
The unit does collect water in a tank that occasionally needs to be emptied. It has worked for me two afternoons and so far does not need to be emptied. You drain the tank into a tray and the unit beeps and shuts down when the tank is full.
The company does supply a drain and you can set this up if you plan to leave it in one room. However, that limits the portability of the unit if you choose to move it to another area of the house or if your tiny house is on a trailer and moves frequently.
I would recommend this air conditioner if you have a small home. It is too large for a tiny house, such as a Tumbleweed on wheels. But, it cools well and can be used as a small heater.
To learn more and decide if this unit is what you have been looking for visit the Air and Water, Inc. website.