Disclaimer: This article has been refreshed in May 2023 with the latest information.
You might be here in search of a portable and ‘solar-chargeable’ air conditioner for your outdoor living spaces, right? You are in the right place, then. We have a detailed take on all the leading small outdoor air conditioners here.
A camper or an outdoor enthusiast will really be excited to have a full-fledged outdoor AC that runs on portable or solar power. EcoFlow, Zero Breeze, BougeRV, and EnjoyCool are some of the notable brands that offer impressive portable air conditioners of this kind on the market today.
The Zero Breeze Mark 2 portable air conditioner has been a great choice for a long time. Though it has no option to run directly from a solar source, you can easily run it from a solar power station.
The EcoFlow Wave has a built-in solar charging option, which is helpful in recharging its optional add-on battery at a rate of up to 200 watts. The BougeRV and EnjoyCool models also have no built-in solar inputs, but you can run them on your solar power stations.
Before the release of Wave, there were not many competitors to Zero Breeze with a true portable air conditioner. There have been only some water- or ice-based coolers from brands like IcyBreeze, EvaPolar, and other small-time brands.
By the way, in 2023, EcoFlow upgraded its Wave air conditioner with an improved model that has increased cooling capacity, heating features, and two times faster solar charging rates at 4000 watts.
Buy EcoFlow Wave 2 on EcoFlow Website
Buy EcoFlow Wave 2 on Amazon.Com
EcoFlow Wave 2 Air Conditioner
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The Latest News UpdatesUpdate 4 (Jan. 2023): EcoFlow has launched an upgrade to the Wave AC at CES 2023. It’s called the Wave 2, and it’s a smaller, more portable outdoor air conditioner that can heat as well as cool better (5100 BTU). The improved Wave 2 AC is expected for release in the middle of 2023. Update 3: BougeRV, a top company that makes eco-friendly products for RVs, has released a portable air conditioner that is cool. It is a 2899BTU RV AC with a lightweight and handy profile and lower noise. Buy it here. The Wave Pricing Update: EcoFlow Wave AC and the Delta Pro bundle is available at a discounted price of $4,299 off the MSRP of $5,199. The offer is available at the link below. Update 2: EcoFlow Wave pricing details have been announced. The Wave alone has an MSRP of $1499, and it comes to $2299 with the add-on battery. But both the Wave and bundles have limited quantities of Super Early Bird, Early Bird, and Pre-Order units for early comers at a discount of up to 40%. Thus, Wave has a price of $899, and Wave with the add-on battery comes in at $1399 for 100 units each. Go Here for Detailed Wave Specs and Price Details Update 1: EcoFlow Wave comes with an add-on battery of 1008Wh capacity, which can power the device for up to eight hours, which includes around three hours of cooling time and five hours in fan mode. You can also run it on EcoFlow’s Delta Max and Delta Pro with a DC cable for more cooling time. That is, you don’t need to buy it with the add-on battery if you are already an owner of the Max or Pro. |
Zero Breeze Mark 2 is basically a battery-based portable AC unit. It can work for three to five hours on its fully charged inbuilt battery pack, which offers a 24V supply.
As a true AC, the Zero Breeze needs no water or ice to cool down outdoor spaces like RVs, campervans, trailers, boats, remote cabins, and more. Meanwhile, both Evapolar and IcyBreeze work with cold water.
EcoFlow Wave Portable AC Original
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Zero Breeze Mark 2 Portable Air Conditioner
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BougeRV Portable Air Conditioner
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Evapolar Personal Air Cooler
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Table of Contents
EcoFlow Wave, Zero Breeze, IcyBreeze, and Evapolar ACs
If you are looking at buying a portable cooling system, these products are the best options available on the market today. EcoFlow and Zero Breeze offer real portable air conditioners in miniature sizes, while the other brands have water-based air coolers.
EvaPolar is the cheapest brand for you to get a portable air cooler. It has its product line at a price of around $100, whereas IcyBreeze has its more powerful air coolers at a price of around $300.
By the way, for a Zero Breeze, you need to spend around $1500. The EcoFlow River also has the same cost as a Zero Breeze, but it is available in many attractive bundles with the brand’s portable power stations, like the EcoFlow Delta Pro and Delta Max.
Anyway, let us have a look at all the products in detail in our take on the EcoFlow Wave, Zero Breeze, IcyBreeze, and Evapolar Portable Air Conditioners below.
EcoFlow Wave Portable Air Conditioner
The EcoFlow Wave is a 4000 BTU portable air cooling system with the brand’s battery technology in the D.N.A. The runtime of the air conditioner is up to 8 hours, which means it will be able to keep your outdoor spaces under 86 ft² (8 m²) chilled throughout the night.
When it comes to charging, the Wave will have the same idealogy as its solar power stations. It will feature a 1008Wh add-on battery, and you can charge it from multiple sources, including solar. Even when it is on, you can charge it from solar panels, a wall socket, a carport, and power stations.
Apart from the add-on battery, you can also run it from the EcoFlow Delta Max and Delta Pro via the XT150 port. If you are already an owner of the EcoFlow power stations, you can just buy the AC. By the way, the brand offers Wave in several options and bundles, with and without the power stations and add-on battery.
EcoFlow Wave Vs Zero Breeze Mark 2 Portable ACs
EcoFlow Wave and Delta Power Stations
As said above, the included battery pack is an attachable unit. You can easily snap the main body to the battery pack to realize easy transportation of the overall system.
Moreover, you can also run the Wave air conditioner on EcoFlow’s Delta Max and Delta Pro power stations via the XT150 port. It will give you an additional runtime of eight to 16 hours.
EcoFlow Wave Cooling Time on Various Batteries
Though initially touting an eight-hour runtime, they are not all cooling hours. The add-on 1008Wh battery can offer only around three hours of cooling time, and the rest is in fan mode. Similarly, the Wave AC has different cooling and fan mode hours from the other compatible batteries.
EcoFlow Wave Mobile App
You can have total control of the EcoFlow portable AC on your mobile device. Like the brand’s power stations, you can use the EcoFlow app to have full control of the air conditioner.
You can adjust the essential settings on your phone, like temperature and runtime, to ensure a comfortable sleep at night.
Moreover, the portable AC comes with a smart battery algorithm that can help regulate the temperature automatically throughout the night.
EcoFlow Wave Specs
The Wave is indeed a super cool product, with a size of 20.39 x 12.2 x 16.38 inches and a weight of 38.58 lbs. The AC has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, and the add-on battery is a 600-watt Max unit.
You can recharge the add-on battery via multiple options, including solar. The solar charging input of the battery is a maximum of 200 watts, and the AC charging is a maximum of 700 watts. Check out more specs in the table below.
EcoFlow Wave Vs. Wave 2: The Main Differences Unleashed
How does the new Wave 2 differ from its predecessor, the Wave Original? Yes, as you already know, the new Wave 2 is a more powerful and enhanced 5100 BTU portable air conditioner.
Carrying the same design and compactness attributes, you simply get an improved and “rather cooler” outdoor air conditioner that can cool down your outdoor living spaces rather quickly.
The second notable difference it makes from its predecessor is its heating capacity. With a 6100 BTU heat pump, the new Wave 2 can not only give cooling but also heating to your living spaces.
Faster solar-based charging is another attraction of the new Wave air conditioner. Compared to its original model, the new one has two times faster charging at 400 watts.
Zero Breeze Mark 2 Portable Air Conditioner
Zero Breeze is an incredible brand that has made a name for itself by making high-powered appliances smaller, more portable, and easier to use.
Mark 2, as its name implies, is the second generation of its much-famed portable air conditioner for camping and RVs.
Specs-wise, it is a 240W low-power air conditioner. It runs on a regular AC wall outlet with the included adapter or the built-in 24V, 35Ah, 840Wh lithium-ion polymer battery pack.
Of course, with a Zero Breeze, you no longer need to keep your gas generator running to cool down your outdoor living spaces. By the way, the brand has its own solar generator, the ElecHive 2200, with a dedicated 180W outlet for Mark 2.
Anyway, with 1/5 of the power of a regular air conditioner, you can run a compact and handy AC in your outdoor spaces like a campervan, RV, tent, boat, houseboat, and more.
It can produce a decent cooling capacity of 2300 BTU. Thanks to its powerful compressor, it is enough to reduce the outlet air temperature by 20°F/11°C in under ten minutes.
Zero Breeze Mark 2 History
Zero Breeze had its birth in 2016. The first-generation Mark 1 outdoor AC unit attracted millions of people across the world when it was launched on Kickstarter. It could collect $574k from nearly 1200 backers to become the world’s first portable air conditioner.
Mark 1 was actually a portable AC with a combination of a nightlight, a Bluetooth speaker, and a phone charging station. It could cool a space of 50 square feet down to 44 ℉ in a few minutes.
The Zero Breeze team upgraded its portable AC to Mark 2 in 2019.
Obviously, the new model received a lot of new features to make it a better and more reliable battery-powered air conditioner.
Launched on Indiegogo, it could gather nearly 1M USD from over 1000 backers. Currently, we have Zero Breeze Mark 2 available at a price of around $1400.
How Solar Power Runs Zero Breeze Mark 2
There is no way you can recharge the Mark 2 with a solar panel directly. However, you can charge its battery pack from a solar output in two ways.
The first is to use the optionally available DIY cable that comes with a GX16-4 connector. This can help you easily transfer power from a 20- to 36-volt solar output to the dedicated Mark 2 battery. The cable costs you $20.
The second option is to use a solar-chargeable battery to back up Mark 2’s battery pack. In this case, you need to use the recommended cables and connectors as per the output and voltage of the secondary battery you want to connect.
If you have a 24V battery, the same cable with the GX16-4 connector is fine. If the battery is a 110 or 220V unit, you will require Mark 2’s own AC/DC adapter to establish the connection.
For another voltage, the brand offers an exclusive transformer to make sure the Mark 2 battery gets 24 V. We have all the required accessories and their specs in the table below.
Zero Breeze Mark 2 and ElecHive 2200
ElecHive 2200 is Zero Breeze’s entry into the portable solar market. This is a midrange 2400Wh solar-based power station for all your off-grid and emergency power needs.
It comes with a 2200W inverter, which is the best in its class, and a number of charging ports, including four AC sockets, as well as multiple DC and USB ports.
The notable thing with ElecHive in connection with Mark 2, as said above, is its integration of a dedicated 24V connector to run the air conditioner off the grid.
That means you get yet another way to recharge the portable AC from a solar source.
ElecHive 2200 comes with a 12- to 30-volt, max 240-volt MPPT Anderson input to let you charge it from a solar panel. The brand also offers a four-fold solar charger with a higher conversion.
With the maximum solar output, you can charge the ElecHive 2200 fully in four hours and utilize the backup to run your Mark 2 in the wild.
How Cold Does It Get?
The Zero Breeze Mark 2 portable air conditioner is not meant to cool a full room like regular ACs.
It can cool down the area in front of its fan so that one or two people can sleep comfortably or get away from the hot summer sun. The air in front of Mark 2 will have a 10°F lower temperature than the ambient climate.
Price and Availability
Zero Breeze Mark 2 has a base price of about $950 as of the time of this writing. A unit of the battery costs $1400. You get the product in multiple bundles, with and without batteries.
A two-battery bundle is available for $1800. Getting it with two battery packs is a cool idea for outdoor use. When you use one battery, you can keep the other one charged.
Zero Breeze Competitors
There are actually not many competitive models for Zero Breeze Mark 2. Though a handful of innovators introduced some models, the challenges of portable air conditioning seem to have eventually set back their efforts.
Anyway, we would like to have a rundown of some of the models that could challenge Zero Breeze Mark 2 in the portable air conditioning market.
IcyBreeze Portable Air Conditioner
IcyBreeze is an innovator of portable air conditioners and coolers. Apart from multiple variants of its water-based evaporative air conditioners, IcyBreeze offers a Golf Cart Cooler Rack and a handful of other products for RVers, campers, and other outdoor enthusiasts.
The brand offers its portable air conditioner in two variants: IcyBreeze V2 Pro and IcyBreeze Platinum.
Both variants are not ideal replacements for traditional air conditioners, and neither is the Zero Breeze Mark 2 air conditioner. They are actually water coolers that are capable of cooling down smaller spaces like RVs, camping tents, and more with the consumption of less power.
Not Available on Sale
When it comes to the air conditioner, the machine features a three-speed, high-performance fan to quickly cool down your outdoor spaces. The built-in 12V battery gives it a life of up to 6 hours on the lowest fan speed.
To add to its portability, the air cooler features large wheels, ergonomic handles, and more. The outer shell of the machine is made of durable and solid plastic for longer life.
Zero Breeze Vs EvaPolar
Next, we have EvaPolar.
EvaPolar is a leading maker of incredible portable air coolers, not air conditioners. It offers a range of cheaper and more reliable evaporative coolers for outdoor use. Most often, Zero Breeze is compared to EvaPolar’s coolers.
As you see, a cooler is indeed a totally different product. It works by using water or ice to cool down the air just in front of its outlets. EvaPolar has multiple variants of its much-touted air coolers for outdoor life, including RVs, campervans, small cabins, and more.
Links To Buy: EvaChill – EvaLight Plus – EvaSmart
EvaCHILL is one of its best-sellers and is the base variant of its series. It is an ultra-portable air cooler that you can easily take anywhere by holding onto its handle. A removable water tank lets you ensure cooling for up to nine hours on a single refill.
As a 7.5-watt machine, you can charge it from a power bank, a power socket, or even from a laptop’s USB port. It has a limited cooling capacity of 340 to 1190 BTU per hour in a coverage area of up to 2 to 2.5m² just ahead of its fan.
EvaPolar EvaChill features a size of 6.69 x 6.69 x 6.77 inches and weighs just under one kilogram.
EvaPolar also offers two top variants for the model. EvaLight and EvaSmart are models with 10W and 12.5W capacities, respectively. They can respectively cover an area of 2 to 5 m² and 2.5 to 3.5m² with BTUs of 340 to 1190 and 340 to 1360 per hour.
What to Buy?
In the comparisons, the Mark 2 is surely the best pick for someone who is looking to buy a portable AC. Though a bit pricy, Mark 2 is worth trying. After listening to all former complaints, the company has engineered the new Mark 2 with the latest technologies and better cooling.
By the way, EvaPolars and IcyBreeze, as you see, are not true air conditioners but air coolers. If you want an air conditioner, Zero Breeze is your choice. To run a cooler, you need to refill the water in it once in a while. Plus, as you see in the specs, EvaPolar coolers offer far fewer BTUs compared to the Mark 2.
Final Thoughts
That has been our take on the Zero Breeze, IcyBreeze, and Evapolar Portable Solar Air Cooling Solutions.
We have covered all the aspects of the device and compared it against its top competitors. It is not practical to run an air conditioner directly on solar power as it requires more power. It is where the Mark 2 is a fine choice; you can charge it from a solar source, though in an indirect way. Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Vahid Vee is a full-time blogger who is highly passionate about off-grid and sustainable power systems and is an expert at researching and exploring new topics, checking facts, and presenting things in simple language. As an avid observer of the global off-grid power and battery market, he is really excited to share with you the latest trends, fresh products, and other developments in the markets. #Contact Email @ veevahid@gmail.com – LinkedIn – Full blog profile.
