"Reed" wrote in message
ink.net...
James "Cubby" Culbertson wrote:
Hiya,
Well I'm considering biting the bullet and changing out my swamp cooler
for a refrigeration unit.
Before I even bother with getting quotes, one question keeps nagging at
me. Do these units use
recirculated air from the house or are they pulling all the air from the
outside? If they recirc, then
I might as well not bother as there's really no viable (monetarily and
aesthetically) way to add a
return air duct to it. It's clear I don't have a good understanding of
how these units work (I've been
in swamp cooler land for 25 years!). Just curious.
Thanks much,
jlc
Do you have forced air heat system ?? If so, the AC fits within it and use
same existing ducting. Yes, it recirculates inside air, otherwise would
run continously and cost a fortune to operate. You normally close all
doors and windows, which can be its own problem re "stale" air etc. I've
had both systems; if swamper has been OK (ie dry climate like Denver), you
won't like AC.

--reed
And of course in Phoenix, the humidity of the monsoon season will make you
glad you've gone AC in July and August. If you don't have forced air heat
with a return air system now, there are AC units that mount a somewhat
attractive unit on the upper wall of a room and run two small refrigerant
tubes outside to the condenser. I think Mitsubishi is one manufacturer.
This was one possible solution for my Mother's house which has hot water
heat and no ductwork of any kind. The other was what I think they called a
high pressure system which had a series of small round vents installed along
the outer edge of the ceiling and connected by flexible hose to one large
duct that ran down the center of the attic. One large return would have
been cut into the ceiling in a central hall area. Ended up purchasing a
portable AC unit that connected to a window with flexible vent tube. She's
84 and can't be convinced that air conditioning isn't inherently bad for the
health. She'll only turn it on once or twice per season.