How to Choose a Good Air Conditioner
An air conditioner that is designed to be used in a single room is a self-contained device for cooling the space. Typically, these small room air conditioners are installed in a window area, but some people choose a slightly more permanent mounting by putting them through an exterior wall opening. They must be located in this way, with part of the unit being outside, in order to have the proper ventilation that is needed for correct operation. Room air conditioners are often a good choice for renters, since they can be removed fairly easily and can be reinstalled in a new location. The drawback is that these small air conditioning units tend to be quite a bit less energy efficient than a central air conditioning system would be. To encourage residential customers to make choices that will save on electricity usage during the summer months, there are many utility districts that have launched a "Be Cool" campaign. The purpose of this effort is to promote the benefits of buying room air conditioner models that are as energy efficient as possible. In some areas, the local power companies are even encouraging the residents to trade in their old air conditioners and replace these less efficient units with Energy Star qualified room air conditioners. The "BE COOL" challenge winner will be the participating community that gets the highest percentage of area residents to take part in the campaign. Recently, another advantage to using energy efficient air conditioning systems is a federal tax credit. Individuals who choose to install any type of air conditioning units, which are Energy Star rated, will be eligible for a federal tax credit of as much as $300. LG 6000 BTU LOW PROFILE ROOM AIR CONDITIONER LP6000ER
In most instances, this amount will more than offset the initial, higher cost of energy efficient, air conditioning units. On top of that, the energy efficient air conditioning unit will also continue to save money each year and make it more affordable to run. When choosing a room air conditioning unit, experts advise that it is best to purchase the best model that is affordable, but not necessarily the biggest unit. The unit should fit into the amount of space available, while taking into consideration the room size. Choosing a room air conditioner unit that is too big for the room that needs to be cooled is not going to be very energy efficient. This happens because the device has to continuously cycle on and off in an attempt to keep the temperature at the right level. In addition, this also puts a lot more wear and tear on the air conditioner parts.  Average Customer Rating: 4.0 Review (rating: 4): Although I have central air, I could not get the MBR on the third floor cool. I purchased this portable so that I wouldn't have to pick up a 300 pound machine and hope I didn't drop it out the window. The unit is great. It takes up very little space and rolls around easily on pre-installed casters. The venting system takes up about 6 inches of window height and can be installed with your window screens still in place. You can even open your window to take advantage of cooler weather without disconnecting the unit. Now that the season is over, it took 1 minute to remove from the window and roll it into the closet. I love the convenience of the unit but the one thing I don't like is how the thermostat works. When the air gets within about 4 degrees of the temperature you set on the thermostat, the unit slows down and you never really get to the desired temperature. To really get the temperature down to what you want it to be, you have to take it off "auto". This makes the AC cool continuously and the room gets too cold. Then you have to make manual adjustments again. Okay unless you are trying to sleep. The instructions for the AC are sparce--very frustrating! All in all though, I'm glad I bought it.  Average Customer Rating: 2.5 Review (rating: 4): I finally found a place to buy it. It's a hard item to buy because there are no waterbed stores where I live. They all closed down.  Amazon Price: $82.94 Used Price: $59.99 Average Customer Rating: 4.0 Review (rating: 3): I bought two of these Hunter humidifiers at the same time, and they did a good job of humidifying a 2000 square-foot house (1 upstairs; 1 downstairs). It seems like they operated non-stop during 4 very dry winters. Both units had similar problems during their 4-year lifetimes, but my issues weren't specified in the manufacturer's warranty so I never pursued replacement or repair. Since my cost-per-year (based on total purchase price) was $20/unit, I simply treated them as "disposables" and discarded them after the 4th year. This Fall I'll decide whether to replace both with the same models or choose a competitor product. This is not a "cool-mist" humidifier -- it is an evaporative unit with a fan. The motor turns the fan and also drives a simple plastic impeller pump that circulates the water. There is a float connected to a power switch that will turn the unit off when the water level in the pan is low. My problems: both NiteGlow lights stopped working prior to the end of the 1st winter. I had assumed that the units would use a long-life LED, but that obviously wasn't the case. During the 2nd winter, I had problems with one of the "float" systems, but was able to repair it myself. During the 3rd and 4th seasons, I had problems with the plastic fans rubbing the plastic case and causing noise - especially on "Hi" speed. For their last year of use, I could only operate the units on "Lo" fan speed. The fans would still rub the cases intermittently, and it was very annoying in the middle of the night or while trying to watch TV. On extremely dry days, the output capacity on "Hi" fan speed can truly be 3-1/2 gallons every 24 hours when the humidistat is on a high setting. Fortunately, the "Tote Away tank" is convenient to transport and easy to refill at a bathtub or deep kitchen sink. The fans were never "whisper-quiet" even from day-one, but you will tune them out as background noise after the first week of use. The digital humidistats worked fine until the 4th season when one died abruptly. They automatically turn the fan off when the pre-set humidity level is reached. For me, they sometimes stopped working temporarily after the units were cleaned, but they always started working again after the units had fully dried. I always had trouble with buildup of minerals on the filter, pan, and chassis, but this is presumably the price one pays for not having paper filters? The water in the bottom pans of the units tended to concentrate our local pinkish "Serratia marcesens". This could probably be overcome with diligent (i.e. weekly) emptyings and cleanings. On Lo-speed, the water doesn't seem to move fast enough to prevent mild stagnation in the bottom pan, and if you continue to use the unit once the ambient humidity naturally returns in the Spring then you may have trouble with moldy/musty smells since the water won't be cycling very frequently. The pan and filter frame do clean up easily by hand or in the dishwasher (after the PermaWick filter has been removed). I only had a single "overflow" onto the floor by one unit after 4 years of use. That should be physically impossible based on the design of the unit, so I don't know what caused it. I suspect that I was responsible for it in some way. Nevertheless, had an entire 3+ gallons spilled onto the floor (upstairs!), it could have caused some major damage. If I use these units again in the future, I may set them inside some large plastic storage boxes (or an unused bathtub) as a secondary overflow prevention. Positives: No paper filters! No white residues since the units are mist-less. The PermaWick filters lasted for 3 seasons, but they were inexpensive and easy to replace. The units are attractive in design, easy to use, and the non-moving parts (except for the nite-lite) are rugged. Ideally, the units should last for longer than 4 seasons, but at an average cost of approximately $20 per winter one can't complain too loudly about the limited lifetime. If Hunter builds added quality into the unit, then the market price will undoubtedly increase to match. | ||
US $155.00
US $155.00
US $56.00 (2 Bids)
The air conditioning units that qualify for
this tax credit are obviously costlier to purchase than
the ordinary air conditioners that consume more energy to
operate. However, calculating the tax incentive, along
with the savings in the cost to run the unit, clearly
shows that it is well worth it to install new units that
qualify. Even with a savings of just $10 a month on the
electricity bill adds up to $120 for a year. Add that
minimum savings to that the tax credit of $300, and the
net saving is $420 for the first year.
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