Someone has kindly let me have their old portable air con unit, it doesn't have the vent hose with it, so I will need to order one, but what is the vent hose for exactly? and does one end of it need to go out of a window, although I was always lead to believe you keep doors and windows closed when using.
if you wont vent it it wont work. they work by removing the heat from the air. If you dont vent it the air will still be in your room and wont cool down
When you say "portable", do you mean "mobile"? I have a free-standing unit (on castors), so heavy it's definitely not portable, in the usual sense. The vent hose does indeed send the hot air elsewhere...either out of a window or door (just open enough for the hose)...ideally through a hole in the wall. If you have a just-open window, you can use a curtain to prevent warm air coming into the room.