Non-Toxic Portable A/C Units for the Chemically Sensitive
Non-toxic portable air conditioners: is there really such a thing?
Well, as discussed in my ridiculously extensive article on non-toxic window air conditioners, the answer is a resounding "no!"
When it comes to portable air conditioners, my experience is far more limited than in regards to window a/cs, but as always, I'm happy to share what I know!
As always, this is not to be considered to be medical information or advice. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, mitigate, or otherwise address any symptom or diagnosis.
We recently received the following email via the contact us form on our website, and as it's a topic I've received multiple questions regarding, it is high time I share my knowledge and experience publicly:
Hello, I am so happy to find your site. I need a portable air conditioner, and my windows will not accommodate a window A/C. My problem is I bought a Westinghouse portable A/C and it has a strong smell of burning plastic. Other people smelled it too. It made me dizzy and nauseous. I need to find a A/C unit that does not have a chemical smell. You mentioned Frigidaire in your post. Did yours have any chemical odor? Do you know of any other brands that don't have a chemical odor? I would greatly appreciate your supply as it is getting very hot here! I will try to help others in return :)
My response:
I'm so sorry you're reacting to your portable a/c! The experience I have with a portable a/c is odd.... but I have a little experience. We had a GE brand portable a/c unit, model APCD08JASWG1 in a rabbit coop for a couple of months when it was particularly sweltering, prior to getting ventilation into the coop. I manhandled it into the coop, set it up, and was around it regularly. But this wasn't in my home.
Portable a/cs definitely expose you to more plastic and parts than window a/cs, but I certainly understand that window a/cs don't work everywhere!
I was fine around it. But, things are increasingly toxic in this world by the day, so I can't say that GE would necessarily be any better in regards to off-gassing than Westinghouse these days.
Personally, I stick to Frigidaire and GE typically as I find them most tolerable, and Frigidaire in particular often is found to be more tolerable in general (across products) than many other manufacturers, when it comes to those who know they are chemically sensitive. As to why that is, I'm not sure.
Unfortunately, everyone who is chemically sensitive is different, so there's no one-size-fits-all product for we humble human canaries!
Hopefully this helps a bit. It's tough financially to constantly have to replace things that become intolerable, but just remember the issue isn't you. Rather, it's this toxic world!
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