How To Install An Air Conditioner Bankrate Caret RightMain Menu Mortgage Mortgages Financing a home purchase Refinancing your existing loan Finding the right lender Additional Resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Bank Banking Compare Accounts Use calculators Get advice Bank reviews Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Credit Card Credit cards Compare by category Compare by credit needed Compare by issuer Get advice Looking for the perfect credit card? Narrow your search with CardMatch Caret RightMain Menu Loan Loans Personal Loans Student Loans Auto Loans Loan calculators Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Invest Investing Best of Brokerages and robo-advisors Learn the basics Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Home Equity Home equity Get the best rates Lender reviews Use calculators Knowledge base Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Loan Home Improvement Real estate Selling a home Buying a home Finding the right agent Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Insurance Insurance Car insurance Homeowners insurance Other insurance Company reviews Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Retirement Retirement Retirement plans & accounts Learn the basics Retirement calculators Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content
On This Page
TokenPhoto/Getty Images May 17, 2022 Laurie Garrison Laurie Garrison is a contributor to Bankrate. Troy Segal is Bankrate's Senior Homeownership Editor, focusing on everything from upkeep and maintenance to building equity and enhancing value. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
At Bankrate we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. While we adhere to strict editorial integrity, this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here's an explanation for how we make money. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
Founded in 1976, Bankrate has a long track record of helping people make smart financial choices. We’ve maintained this reputation for over four decades by demystifying the financial decision-making process and giving people confidence in which actions to take next. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. All of our content is authored by and edited by , who ensure everything we publish is objective, accurate and trustworthy. Our banking reporters and editors focus on the points consumers care about most — the best banks, latest rates, different types of accounts, money-saving tips and more — so you can feel confident as you’re managing your money. Bankrate logo Editorial integrity
Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. Key Principles
We value your trust. Our mission is to provide readers with accurate and unbiased information, and we have editorial standards in place to ensure that happens. Our editors and reporters thoroughly fact-check editorial content to ensure the information you’re reading is accurate. We maintain a firewall between our advertisers and our editorial team. Our editorial team does not receive direct compensation from our advertisers. Editorial Independence
Bankrate’s editorial team writes on behalf of YOU – the reader. Our goal is to give you the best advice to help you make smart personal finance decisions. We follow strict guidelines to ensure that our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers. Our editorial team receives no direct compensation from advertisers, and our content is thoroughly fact-checked to ensure accuracy. So, whether you’re reading an article or a review, you can trust that you’re getting credible and dependable information. Bankrate logo How we make money
You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers. We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money. Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. As summer nears, you know, at some point, it will be so hot you’ll need an air conditioner. Whether you live on the southern tip of Florida or the northern tip of Washington, you’ll want relief from the heat and humidity. There are basically three choices for cooling your home — , window AC units or portable air conditioners. If you live in a place that doesn’t have central air conditioning, a window unit may be the way to go. And you can install such an air conditioner yourself, even if you’re not the most experienced : It mainly takes a buddy, some basic tools and a little heavy lifting. Here’s how. How to install an air conditioner
Before you purchase and install a window air conditioner, you want to know what type of window you have — standard windows that open by lifting them up, slider windows that open to the side or casement windows that crank open. Second, you need to measure the opening of your window. Armed with the type and size of your window, you can then figure on which sort of window unit is the right air conditioner. What do you need for installation
You only need a few basic tools and materials for window air conditioning installation. In addition to the unit itself, you need: Tape measure Drill L-shaped bracket Screwdriver Screws A/C foam insulation weather strip Scissors Support bracket (optional) AC installation steps
Allow for enough time — If this is your first time installing a window air conditioner, it may take longer than you think. It’s best to be on the safe side and plan for about two hours. Prep the window — Make sure there’s no rot damage around the window. If you see any, shore up the window frame so it can hold the weight of the air conditioner. Remove any debris that may be on the window frame. Remove the storm window or screen if it could interfere with your unit. If you don’t think your window can handle the weight of the air conditioner, you may need to attach a support bracket. This will transfer some of the unit’s weight off the window and reduce the chance of damaging the window. Prep the air conditioner — Slide the accordion panels on each side of the air conditioner. These are adjustable and can be opened or closed so the air conditioning unit and the accordion panels fill up the window’s width. Place the air conditioner — Put the air conditioning unit in the open window and rest it either on the bottom of the window frame or the support bracket (if you installed one). Due to the heaviness of window air conditioning units, it will take two people to complete this step. Then center the unit in the opening. Secure the air conditioner — Lower the window to the top of the unit, so the unit’s flange, or upper lip, is in front of the window sash. Use screws to attach the unit’s flange to the sash. Using additional screws, attach an L-shaped bracket to connect the bottom window sash to the top window sash. This will prevent the window from accidentally opening. Attach the accordion panels — Pull each accordion panel out to the edge of the window. Screw them into the window sash so they stay in place. Add insulation — Many window air conditioners come with a foam insulation strip. If yours is old or you can’t find it, you can purchase one at most hardware stores. Cut the strip so it is as wide as the window. Place it between the upper and lower window sash so it fills the gap. Once you’ve followed these seven steps, your window air conditioner is ready to be plugged in and turned on. Temporary vs permanent AC installation
Window air conditioning units are usually installed for a certain period of time — the hottest months of the year. When summer ends, you can easily remove the air conditioner and, once again, be able to open and close the window. Of course, you can leave the window unit in , though that’ll impede your being able to raise and lower the window. Individual AC units can also be installed into an opening cut into a room’s exterior wall. Common in motels and older apartment buildings, this sort of arrangement is more of a permanent solution: The unit stays in place, even when not in use during the winter. However, installing a “through-the-wall” air conditioner is more difficult, and more of a project for a to do. What does it cost to install an air conditioner
If you don’t want to install your window air conditioner yourself — or you’re able to go with a through-the-wall unit — you have options. If you’re purchasing a , you could have it installed by the retailer. Conversely, you could hire a handyman to install it for you. costs vary by location. But generally, the average range is between $140 and $500 for each unit being installed, according to HomeAdvisor. Here’s how the price breaks down. Cost to Replace Window Air Conditioner Source: HomeAdvisor Remove Old AC $40-$120 New Unit $150-$1,100 Installation $60-$200 Disposal $25-$50 Total $275-$1,470 The final word on installing an air conditioner
While the thought of installing a window air conditioner yourself may be intimidating, it is definitely a do-able that two people working together can achieve — saving as much as $500 (not to mention the time waiting around for an appointment with a pro). Simply go step-by-step through the above points and you’ll soon find yourself in cool comfort during the hot summer months. SHARE: Laurie Garrison Laurie Garrison is a contributor to Bankrate. Troy Segal is Bankrate's Senior Homeownership Editor, focusing on everything from upkeep and maintenance to building equity and enhancing value. Related Articles