Winterizing air conditioners

I could swear there was a thread about this not that long ago but I can't find it. We have some window air conditioners that were "professionally installed" -- the tops of the air conditioners are screwed into the windows, and there's silicone sealer around all the edges. My husband thinks they are supposed to stay in place permanently, but they are letting a lot of cold air in now, especially through the accordian-thingies on the sides.

Are they really supposed to stay in the windows all winter?

And if so, what do you do to keep the cold air out? I've seen those vinyl covers that you can put over the outside of the air conditioner, but I don't have a tall enough ladder to do that, and I don't think that would solve the problem of the cold air coming through the accordian-things (they don't have holes in them but the plastic is thin and the cold comes right through). Is there a way to deal with this, hopefully a way that is not too hideous to look at?

Check at some hardware/home improvement stores - there are insulated boxes that cover A/C units on the inside.

we put one of those vinyl covers on last year but apparently not well enough because it blew off over the holidays. no matter what we did we didn't seem to seal off everything well enough to keep the cold air out. we took ours in this year.

doesn't it seem like the unit would last longer if you take it out during the winter months?

Subject: AC

Yeah...honestly the old sure way to insure warmth is to take them out...that may be impossible with pro-installed ones, but it's the only 100% method. We've tried sealing with tape, plastic bags, boxes from the hardware...eventually we just gave up and took them out. (It also has the added benefit of reducing noise coming in.)

You can get quilted, insulated covers that you put over the unit on the inside - I've seen them in catalogs. But they don't cover the accordian thingies. And ACs definitely last longer if you bring them in.

I don't have any place to store an AC unit over the winter.

Same here, really. The unit is small, but still, in a small place with no closets it's one more thing I don't have any place to put. So it may have to just stay in the window.

laura wrote: You can get quilted, insulated covers that you put over the unit on the inside - I've seen them in catalogs. But they don't cover the accordian thingies. And ACs definitely last longer if you bring them in.

I have used the quilted ones before but like laura said they do not cover the accordian things - but if you use it along with a set of insulated curtains it pretty much keeps the cool air out.

You can also purchase a plastic coating that can be sealed over the window and a/c using a hair dryer. The only problem with that after a little while the air get trapped between the window and plastic and starts to make a flapping noise.

I've never dealt with a pro-installed a/c before, but your best option would be to simply take the stupid thing out. Buying and installing a cover, curtains, etc. sounds like just as much work as removing some screws and silicon. Plus, it's not like you need a license to add a strip of silicon to the unit when you put it back in next year.

If this weather keeps up, winterizing might become a moot point ...