Black + Decker AC Unit Exhaust Manifold / House Vent Cover

thingiverse

I just got a new AC unit for my office - don't mind the back wall, it's still under construction and will be painted soon. This room can get scorching hot with all my computer equipment and consoles inside, especially since there are no windows and only one door. To top it off, the air conditioning vent is situated directly above the furnace. Since I have cats that I'd rather not let into this room for their sake and mine, I keep the door shut at all times. This means I had to find a way to exhaust the AC unit's fumes back into the air duct instead of outside. To solve this problem, I designed a two-piece solution to print on my Ender 3 Pro that would replace the old vent and secure the new one in place. The oval cutout rim where the exhaust clips on is slightly too small, resulting in a tiny gap (about 0.1 inches) between the two pieces as it stands now. I measured everything carefully with a regular tape measure and made some adjustments to get it to work as well as it does. However, there's probably room for improvement if anyone cares. This design can easily be modified by someone interested in making their own version. I've attached the part file so that you can make any necessary adjustments if your vent or exhaust dimensions are different. As it stands, this solution fits snugly into the existing duct cut-out and works perfectly well. We'll use some weatherstripping under the flange to seal any air leaks caused by the uneven floor or warping in that flange on the print. I plan to replace the masking tape holding it together with some duct tape and maybe glue or another sealing agent, but let's be real - I'm too lazy to reprint the whole thing from scratch. This project required two prints, each taking around 40 hours (not counting a test print that taught me my design was off and led me to make modifications for these).