In previous posts, you may have noticed we have a window air conditioner in our playroom.
While we have central air in our house, the ductwork to the upstairs was probably not original to the house and the airflow isn’t the strongest. The window air unit makes the room much more comfortable during the heat of the summer.
Last fall, we tried to take out the unit for the winter, but the air conditioner wouldn’t budge, and so it stayed. A couple of weeks ago, I discovered it was bolted in place. I guess we could still take it out, but who wants to mess with moving that every spring and fall? (Especially on a second floor window.)
Because it was staying, I felt it necessary to insulate it a bit from those icy drafts that could sneak through. I added to the spray foam insulation around the outside of the unit, then I cut a piece of bubble wrap to fit inside the front grill.
Last year, I put a freebie fleece blanket over the unit and it seemed to work pretty well. But since we’ll actually be using the space this winter, I wanted to do something a little less obnoxious-looking. I bought a yard of white fleecy material. I had an idea about making some fancy fitted cover, stuck on with magnets. But in the end, I folded the fabric in half and tucked the edges all around the unit, and it worked way better than I thought it would.
Yeah, it looks a little cocoon-y. I have no illusions that this completely camouflages the ugly AC, but it does prevent me from having to look at that beige plastic all winter.
