saw a window house unit mounted under v berth in the bilg door would like to do that to mine but wonderd if that would be safe and thalt it would need heat exhaust for back what do ya all think

Man, not the best idea but, I've seen worse. An old 28 had a residential A/C unit mounted through the firewall into the engine room right under the steps leading into the cabin. The guy was so proud to have A/C on the boat. I should have taken a picture...

Just my opinion but, on stuff like that, I try to do it the right way even if it costs a few $$ more.

-Karl

Ever seen that photo floating around the Internet of the Lincoln with an AC unit duct taped in the passenger side window and a genset strapped to the trunk? Hilarious!

We have a 30 foot boat at our marina that has TWO window units installed in it, and both are running. Tempted to ask the guy if he "hangs meat" in there.

Jeff

Here is another idea. I was too cheap to fork out the $2000 to replace my marine unit when the compressor went. What I did was buy a 10,000 BTU free standing unit on closeout. It does a decent job self evaporating and it vents through what is basically a dryer hose. I have run the hose to the V-berth port hole and the whole thing works great. The unit itself is about 30 inches tall by 16 inches wide and 12 inches deep. It fits nicely on the "stand" between the V-berth and setee. Another bonus, it's quieter than the marine unit was under the V-berth. Good for lake Erie, but might not be enough power for southern waters.

Just another option, Scott

I have a 10,000 btu "portable" unit in the saloon opposite the settee. It has a 5" duct that vents through the salon window, using the window fitting that came with it cut down to fit the boat. There a lots of reasons not to do this, but it keeps the boat dry and has enough power to provide good sleeping at night. It is almost useless during the Florida day.

I was desperate for something I could afford and this unit was cheap and actually looks pretty nice. If I were living aboard, I would get a marine unit of perhaps 18,000 btu. This would be more than twice as good because the portable unit uses cooled cabin air to exhaust as hot air, and that cuts its efficiency. Still, it is a solution worth looking at. You can get the portable ac units at Lowes, home depot, Costco, etc.