Ya exactly, after hanging duct a few times you'll be a pro at laying it out right. Its more efficient to pull the air than push it, but pushing air will keep the smell In your basement instead of your yard.
What I do is pull ambient cold air from the basement thru the lights and lines and dump it out the crawl space vents. I think by dumping your hot air into the basement you are just kicking yourself. Think hard on it, if u can get the hot air out of your space all your problems will be solved. And yes, def straighten the lines as much as possible & use duct booster fans around corners you can't straighten.
Where were you dumping the AC's exhaust? I'm assuming u had a portable unit... With those you want as SHORT a run as possible for exhaust, and I use duct boosters or an inline to help the air exhaust faster. VERY IMPORTANT - insulate the exhaust duct from AC, home depot sells pipe wrap and duct insulation sleeves. You'll be shocked by what a difference this makes.
What I do is pull ambient cold air from the basement thru the lights and lines and dump it out the crawl space vents. I think by dumping your hot air into the basement you are just kicking yourself. Think hard on it, if u can get the hot air out of your space all your problems will be solved. And yes, def straighten the lines as much as possible & use duct booster fans around corners you can't straighten.
Where were you dumping the AC's exhaust? I'm assuming u had a portable unit... With those you want as SHORT a run as possible for exhaust, and I use duct boosters or an inline to help the air exhaust faster. VERY IMPORTANT - insulate the exhaust duct from AC, home depot sells pipe wrap and duct insulation sleeves. You'll be shocked by what a difference this makes.