Table of Contents
22 Ways You Can Hide Your Air Conditioner Unit Outside Build a Wooden Cover. Get Creative With an AC House. Hide It Behind the Bushes. Make a Box With a Door. Stack Planter Boxes in Front of the Unit. Place the Outdoor Unit Inside Aluminum Slats. Grow Vines Around Outdoor AC Unit. Create a Shed.
Can you enclose an air conditioner unit?
Allow Sufficient Airflow The most popular way we’ve seen homeowners hide their air conditioner condenser is to enclose the unit behind a fence, screen or latticework. Never box in your unit with a solid structure—you must allow ventilation through large lattices or screens!.
How do I hide my air conditioner unit?
12 Ways to hide air conditioning units inside your home Wall-mounted die-cut cabinet. Wrought iron grate. Shutter box. Die-cut wood & lace wall panel. Slatted wood panel. Wall mounted shelf. Metal grille mantel. Shutter register cover.
What should I put around my air conditioner?
Consider decorative fencing, lattice, or a trellis to hide the AC unit. Not only can these landscaping elements allow airflow to the condenser, but they also prevent leaves and plant debris from collecting around the base of the unit.
How do I cover my outside AC unit for the winter?
Put plywood over the top of the unit only to shield from snow and ice, weighing it down with bricks or rocks to keep in place. Install a wood awning or shelter attached to the building that covers the top of the unit. Plant shrubs around the unit to protect from wind and blowing snow.
Should I put rocks around my AC unit?
Here’s my big gardening tip for this post: landscape the area around your AC’s condenser with rocks and gravel rather than grass and mulch. A nice rock garden around the AC not only stops mulch problems, but it can also look beautiful as well.
What can I put under my AC unit outside?
You Need a Concrete Slab Under Your Outdoor AC Unit Because: It keeps your air conditioner from sinking: For an air conditioning system to function at peak efficiency, it is essential that it has room to breathe. It keeps oil from spreading: The compressor in your AC unit runs on oil.
Is it OK to put mulch around AC unit?
Cover the Ground Around the A/C In dry weather, the air whipping around the A/C unit picks up dust from the ground and sucks it up. Mulch, stones or gravel should cover the ground around the air conditioner.
Should you cover your outside AC unit?
Outdoor cooling units are built to endure these harsh winter weather conditions, which eliminates the need for a cover. Moisture (water) can freeze the air conditioner’s condenser coils, which can cause damage over time. However, there is no way to keep moisture out 100% of the time.
Can you leave an air conditioner in the window during winter?
We recommend you remove any air conditioner from a window location. During the winter months, heat could escape through the accordion extension panels on the A/C and the chassis; cold air could also infiltrate your home the same way. To avoid injury, move the unit with another person.
How do I landscape my AC unit?
How To Landscape Around My AC Unit Keep Plants 2-3 Feet Away. There should always be 2-3 feet of clear space when you landscape around your AC unit. Make Sure There’s Plenty of Shade. Create a Windbreak with Evergreen Plants. Stay Mobile with Large Potted Plants. Use a Trellis, Screen, or Lattice Cover. Try a Gravel Garden.
What should I plant in front of my air conditioner?
Best Plants to Hide Your Air Conditioner Flowering bushes like hydrangeas, roses, and rose of Sharons are all tall enough for great coverage. Vine type plants work well if you build a trellis or something they can climb on. Try roses, clematis, sweet pea, morning glory, and trumpet vine.
Can you put plants around air conditioner?
Make sure plants are at least 2-3 feet from the unit on all sides, and plan the landscaping so that the air conditioner is easily accessible for maintenance and repairs. If you have trees or other plants growing above the unit, trim regularly to keep a 5-foot clearance between them and the air conditioner.
How do I keep grass out of my air conditioner?
Make sure your unit is not running, then you can simply spray the inside of the unit through enclosed fan vent on top of your unit. Keeping grass, dirt and other debris from inside your AC unit will insure that your system runs at optimum efficiency.
How do you hide a generator on landscaping?
One thing you can do is plant evergreen shrubs around the unit to create a screen that will hide your generator. You can also choose shrubs that will produce brightly colored blooms. To get a variety of beautiful flowers, consider the following: Azaleas – Phoenicia and Imperial Queen.
Why you shouldn’t cover your air conditioner?
AC covers don’t have proper ventilation which allows moisture to become trapped within the AC unit. Heavy moisture buildup can also cause AC components to freeze solid under freezing temperatures, which could result in serious damage if said components repeatedly freeze and thaw out.
What happens if you run AC with cover on?
Running an air conditioner with its cover on doesn’t allow for this exchange of heat and condensation. It will put undo stress on the unit, which can damage internal components that keep the air conditioner running. Leaving the cover on can cause the unit to overheat since the heat has nowhere to go.
Should I shade my AC unit in the summer?
We debunk this common myth. To sum up: Shading your air conditioning condenser alone is essentially ineffective. Some types of shadings and plantings around condenser units actually restrict airflow, causing heated air from the unit to recirculate and reduce the condenser’s cooling efficiency.
Will rain hurt my window air conditioner?
The simple answer? Rain is not harmful to your AC unit, whether it is a central system or window unit. Depending on your climate, there are certain weather patterns that you may want to prepare for when it comes to AC upkeep and maintenance.
How do you make a window air conditioner cover?
Method Measure. Measure the interior of your window where you’d like the cover to sit. Make a frame. Cut your four pieces of wood to size: two strips for the length you measured, two strips for the height. Cut and position the cloth. Staple it in place. Set into the window and admire.
Will AC turn on if it’s cold outside?
Yes, running your air conditioning system during cold weather will damage it to some extent. The outdoor unit of most air conditioners works best during summertime. Second, your air conditioner may have a low ambient sensor. This sensor will keep the unit from turning on in cold weather to avoid any damage.
Should you cover your air conditioner outside?
Outdoor cooling units are built to endure these harsh winter weather conditions, which eliminates the need for a cover. Moisture (water) can freeze the air conditioner’s condenser coils, which can cause damage over time. However, there is no way to keep moisture out 100% of the time.
Can you build a deck over an air conditioning unit?
Building A Deck Over An Air Conditioner Sometimes an existing air conditioning unit is installed in the location where you want to build a new deck. Most AC manufacturers recommend maintaining a minimum 60″ uninterrupted clearance above the compressor to allow for hot air to exhaust from the top of the unit.
Should you cover up your air conditioning unit in the winter time?
The first thing we should point out is that air conditioning systems are designed and tested to be exposed to all types of weather. That includes heat, cold, rain, and snow. So covering the unit isn’t required, nor is it going to provide that many benefits against these expected elements.
Should I cover AC condenser in winter?
If you’re like most homeowners, you might be tempted to cover an air conditioner condenser unit or a heat pump during the fall or winter months. However, this is generally not a good idea, and in some cases, you could risk significant damage to your home’s heating or cooling system by doing so.
How far from house should air conditioner be?
A rule of thumb is to maintain at least two-feet (24″) between the A./C compressor/condenser unit and any nearby obstruction such as a building wall, shrub, or fence.
Can a mini split condenser go under a deck?
The term “Mini-split” refers to a single system with one outdoor unit and one indoor unit. Outdoor Condensers can be hidden under a deck, porch, enclosure, or on a remote side of the building.
Can a heat pump be installed under a deck?
Can a heat pump be installed under a deck? No. Any installation that causes the air being discharged from the top of the heat pump to be recirculated back into the heat pump will cause a loss of capacity and efficiency in the heat pump.
What temperature should AC be set at in winter?
Set your thermostat to 68 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter According to ENERGY STAR, setting your thermostat to 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) when you’re home is the ideal balance of comfort and energy efficiency.
How do you destroy an outside AC unit?
Disconnect power. Swap the compressor common (“C”-usually black) with the compressor start (“S”-usually yellow or blue-thinnest of the 3 compressor wires). Reconnect power and start the AC. It’ll take about 3–5 seconds to burn the start winding out.
