Tim Taylor wrote:

I used a $78 window unit, and another, and another. Even with a good
filter system in a very small shop, dust is a killer on the window
unit.

Well, I'm in a small (11x13) shop with no dust collection other than a
homemade box with fan and filters to get the really fine stuff out of
the air. Half the time I forget to run it.

I've got a window AC (maybe $98) that I've been using for about 4 years
now. It still runs fine. I cut down a furnace filter and taped it
across the intake on the outside. Every time I vacuum the floor, I run
the vacuum over the filter. So far so good.

Note that I am a hobbyist and my four years of use probably doesn't
equal one year of full time use. But still, for that price ...

--
It's turtles, all the way down