AC-Reviews.com – Your Source for Air Conditioning Reviews

Summer’s coming to a slow, easy end, and the need for portable ACs doesn’t seem as urgent as it did when it was peaking three digits. However, you should not store your portable AC away so swiftly, because the chilly fall months and winter cold will set in!

Although it may be easier to simply bundle up and wear more layers to stay warm, using a portable AC can prove to be very handy when chilly days set in. Most portable ACs can reach temperatures past 80 degrees fahrenheit and have a heater function installed right in. If that’s not enough heat, remember that models also operate with a thermostat, so heating your room is not only easy but economically cheaper, too.

Running your central AC during the hot or cold months can run you hundreds on your energy bill. With a portable AC, you only warm up areas that need warming, such as your bedroom at night or the living room during evening hours. Portable ACs warm up spots and rooms without needing to expend large amounts of energy to heat the whole home.

So when thinking of an economic, cheaper way to stay warm or cool this year, consider investing in a portable AC for its many easy benefits. What’s even more, you can take it with you for extra cooling or warming when your central AC breaks down (or if you simply do not have one!)

One of the problems with central air conditioners is that they’re not efficient for smaller areas. With these ACs, you end up wasting more energy than you need to. Portable air conditioners are great because they don’t require as much energy, and you can find the unit with a BTU rating perfect for your space.

Though it hasn’t really been too hot in Southern California (I think we have 60-something degree weather in the morning!), a PAC is still necessary during the afternoon. Recently I came across the Sharp CV-10NH 10,000 BTU portable air conditioner. Although they say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, I was mostly drawn to the CV-10NH because of the way it looks. This unit is so sleek, so sturdy-looking, I just couldn’t resist. Plus I called online retailer Air and Water and actually spoke to Luke Peters, who gave me some great buying advice on portable ACs (which lead me to this purchase).

Anyway, this PAC is perfect for areas up to 250 square feet. It cools quickly and quietly. A lot of portable ACs advertise its “whisper-quiet” operation, but many don’t follow through. Thankfully, the CV-10NH does. I barely even notice it’s on! What’s great about this appliance is that it also doubles as a dehumidifier. It can help you remove up to 60 pints of moisture from the air every day. The unit obviously has many more features, but right now I’m just going to focus on what I believe is one of the greatest: its bucketless condensate system. The Sharp portable AC connects to an exhaust hose, and the condensate collected throughout the day is released out the hose. This means that you don’t ever have to worry about constantly emptying buckets!

The Sharp CV-10NH is available at Air Conditioner Home and Air & Water.

Two months ago, I mentioned that I purchased a Port-A-Cool PAC2KCYC01 for my friend on Air and Water in hopes of cooling his large workspace without wasting money. I thought we were expecting too much from it, but boy, were we pleasantly surprised! This evaporative cooler is indeed a very “green” way to keep everyone feeling comfortable. I visit the space quite often, and it was really obvious how much the unit has helped his workers stay cool, especially since the temperatures have been rising outside.

However, my friend mentioned to me that the best part about the PAC2KCYC01 is that it doesn’t use fan blades to move the air, so operation is quiet and doesn’t bother his workers no matter how high it’s turned up. He loves that its water tank can hold 16 gallons, a feature that saves him time and effort when it comes time to filling the reservoir.

The only thing about the evaporative cooler is that it’s rather large and it weighs a lot. But that’s to be expected, since it is a commercial cooler, not a personal one. Well, that doesn’t matter. Because it’s built from molded plastic polyethylene housing, we know that it’s sure to keep all my friend’s workers cool and comfortable for as long as they’re there.

There’s a lot of talk about being “green” lately, and I admit I’ve fallen
into this marketing ploy.  One of my good friends owns an auto body shop
and needed a way to keep his employees cool without having to invest in anything
too expensive.  Plus, seeing as their workspace is out in the open,
standard air conditioning systems wouldn’t work anyway.

Being the Google expert that I am, I began researching cooling options for
his business and found that a lot of people rave about evaporative cooling.
Seemingly low-tech, evaporative coolers use water and a high powered fan to
reduce temperatures.  Because they don’t have compressors or use coolants,
they’re also considered very “green.”  Overall, Port-A-Cool evaporative
coolers seem to have a fantastic reputation that’s connected to residential as
well as commercial markets. Port-A-Cool
uses high powered blowers in their units as well as noise reduction technology
in their design. This has been a popular choice for evaporative coolers from
both residential and commercial clientèle for many years.

I called up their Texas office and spoke to a friendly sales representative
who was eager to answer all my questions about their product line.
Apparently they offer several evaporative cooler options in many sizes.
The representative on the phone specifically recommended some of their larger
commercial units for my friend’s business – specifically one of their newest and
budget priced units, the PAC2KCYC01 Cyclone 3000. This unit supposedly cools
areas up to 700 square feet.  At less than $800 retail, this looked a good,
cost-effective option for what my friend was looking for.

Per Alex’s recommendation, I placed my order with
Air-N-Water for the Port-A-Cool unit
yesterday.  While we haven’t received the product yet, we have high hopes
for this evaporative cooler and will definitely post our Air-N-Water reviews (or
complaints).
*Update: You can actually see a video of a Port-A-Cool in action on air-n-water.com ‘s YouTube channel.

There’s a lot of talk about being “green” lately, and I admit I’ve fallen
into this marketing ploy.  One of my good friends owns an auto body shop
and needed a way to keep his employees cool without having to invest in anything
too expensive.  Plus, seeing as their workspace is out in the open,
standard air conditioning systems wouldn’t work anyway.

Being the Google expert that I am, I began researching cooling options for
his business and found that a lot of people rave about evaporative cooling.
Seemingly low-tech, evaporative coolers use water and a high powered fan to
reduce temperatures.  Because they don’t have compressors or use coolants,
they’re also considered very “green.”  Overall, Port-A-Cool evaporative
coolers seem to have a fantastic reputation that’s connected to residential as
well as commercial markets. Port-A-Cool
uses high powered blowers in their units as well as noise reduction technology
in their design. This has been a popular choice for evaporative coolers from
both residential and commercial clientèle for many years.

I called up their Texas office and spoke to a friendly sales representative
who was eager to answer all my questions about their product line.
Apparently they offer several evaporative cooler options in many sizes.
The representative on the phone specifically recommended some of their larger
commercial units for my friend’s business – specifically one of their newest and
budget priced units, the PAC2KCYC01 Cyclone 3000. This unit supposedly cools
areas up to 700 square feet.  At less than $800 retail, this looked a good,
cost-effective option for what my friend was looking for.

Per Alex’s recommendation, I placed my order with
Air-N-Water for the Port-A-Cool unit
yesterday.  While we haven’t received the product yet, we have high hopes
for this evaporative cooler and will definitely post our Air-N-Water reviews (or
complaints).
*Update: You can actually see a video of a Port-A-Cool in action on air-n-water.com ‘s YouTube channel.

There are a lot of pitfalls concerning consumers when they purchase their very first portable AC. Here are a few tips to consider before you plug that air conditioner in and suspect it’s not working or not working hard enough.

1. Getting the wrong kind. A lot of consumers purchase a swamp cooler believing that it’s the same as a portable AC, which is simply not true. There are various kinds of coolers such as portable air conditioners, swamp coolers, dehumidifiers, etc. Call your manufacturer and/or seller to make sure you are getting the right kind of machine to do what you need.

2. Miscalculating BTU and room size. Although the product may say it can cool up to 600 sq. ft., it also depends on the placement of the room you want to cool. The BTU also helps you determine the power of the unit. If you are considering a portable AC for a sunny or warm room, consider 10% more BTU.

3. Exhaust. All portable ACs need an exhaust, unless you’re using a window fan (which is not the same as a portable AC). You must consider window size if it has a window exhaust, or a wall, or a drop ceiling.

If you follow these simple tips, you can save yourself a few headaches in getting the wrong item. Remember to call the products’ manufacturer or seller to get all of your answers clarified. Portable ACs are heavy pieces of equipment that may cost dozens in shipping costs. Save yourself the time, money, and anxiety by doing a bit of quick research and inquiry, and enjoy your portable AC!

Portable air conditioning units are more versatile than central AC units. They can be extracted away from a home and easily installed in another. They’re great for homes with poor insulation and apartments where the central AC system is malfunctioning or simply not enough. Although they cannot cool the whole house at the same time like central ACs, portable ACs offer you an economic alternative.

So let’s assume that you  have a central air conditioning system in your current home. Why would you need to throw $300 at a portable AC? During the hotter days, cranking up your central AC to cool down your bathrooms, bedrooms, and kitchen may seem like an unecessary thing, especially when you’re spending 8 hours in the living room! You are not only saving yourself a few dollars on your energy bill, but also saving the environment.

Electricity is mainly powered by unsustainable sources, like fossil fuel. Power plants can draw electricity from coal, petroleum, or oil. Recently there have been rennovations in the energy sphere, like wind-powered, hydro-powered, and solar-powered energy plants. However, 40% of the world’s energy still comes from fossil fuels.

Fossil fuels can take weeks to refine, but millions of years to make. The fuels are basically sludges of dead organisms that have been so thoroughly decomposed that there is nothing else that can be gained from it. Within a human lifetime, it is impossible to sustain the same amount of fossil fuel. We ultimately use more than we can produce.

Not to mention the air pollution these power plants emit. Due to our growing need for power without sustainable resources, the Earth is coughing up CO2. This is not even mentioning the amount of vehicles and other mechanisms that use oil, petroleum, or coal on a daily basis.

If anything, you should use a portable AC to conserve more energy and to also live comfortably. Remember, humans have lived in all sorts of climates without air conditioning technology! You can be both frugal and Earth-friendly by purchasing appliances like a portable air conditioner to reduce your energy usage.

I realize that window air conditioners have not had as much spotlight as the portable air conditioners, but I believe it’s now time! I have not had as much of experience with window ACs, other than while I was living quietly in Tustin several years ago. The apartment complex didn’t have a central air conditioning unit, although it offered central heat.

Window ACs are typically more powerful than their portable AC units. They may seem quieter, also, but keep in mind that half of the unit is sticking outside the window! Although I prefer portable air conditioners, I also believe that window ACs has its strengths, as boasted on a Walmart product site.

The 22,000 BTU Frigidaire has an Energy Star rating, which means that it operates with at least 10% less energy than other window air conditioners. It also can cool rooms up to approximately 1,435 square feet, which is the size of some two-bedroom apartments. It includes a reusable, washable filter as well as an energy-saving option to keep it from running up your energy bill while you are away.

One of its reviewers, “HotToCold”, quoted, “With the energy saver it turns off and on as needed, so when we aren’t home, and the temperature stabilizes, in the home it saves me tons of money, which I have seen on my first electric bill already.” The Frigidaire window air conditioner’s performance and exceeded the reviewer’s expectations. It should also be noted that the unit has almost paid for itself in savings, so the hefty pricetag should not be a detterent.

It seems that Sunpentown portable ACs have been priced just right for consumers looking for an economic way to keep themselves cool…however as I go along looking for reviews on Sunpentown brands I find a common demoninator, you either love it or hate it.

Take the reviews on Target’s online store, for example. One reviewer raves about how a Sunpentown AC had lasted him 2 years and another is simply “not impressed“. Overall the Sunpentowns have several outstanding reviews and one with three stars or less. It must be either great or unsatisfactory, and one way to uncover the true quality of the brand is to simply research the company.

Sunpentown is an international company that specializes in home products, from portable ACs to infamous bidets. While Googling Sunpentown company information I stumbled across a website that gave more information about the company than its own webpage did! However, I was still left with several questions:

• Where is Sunpentown from?
• Do they have great quality in any product in particular? (Like how Mitsubishi makes electronics versus cars)
• Why is it cheaper than other brands?
• What makes them bad or great?

With a little more research I used the chat function on the above website and was pleasantly pleased that they wrote perfect English.

After that brief chat, as you can see, their products are from China. Not to down the Chinese, but the bidet and body massage mechanisms should’ve been enough to convince me! Most Sunpentowns are not advertised as “Made in China” due to the bad reputation Chinese-made appliances have accumulated over the years. However, this could definitely explain the love/hate reviews its products have been receiving. Most Chinese products are inconsistent in quality. On one hand, you’d get a great product that could last you years, but on the other hand some factories that manufacture its products may not abide with the strict regulations it needs to follow.

So there you have it, Sunpentown is made in China and imported to our shores. Consider how much you will use your portable AC and how much you are willing to invest in one!

When one thinks of Sharp, we often think of televisions, semi-conductors, and other electronics that implement the latest technologies. Recently I looked into the specs of their most current air purifiers, and found them listed on their website. The first thought that crossed my mind upon reading the descriptors was “What is this Plasmacluster business?”

The site offers video testimonials and plenty of information on their products. If you search up Sharp purifiers you may come across this comprehensive informational site. Unfortunately, my audio was not working and all I could look at were its informational pages. I learned a lot reading on Sharp air purifiers, and I part my knowledge here for the average consumer:

* Sharp air purifiers use a Library Quiet technology that is as low as 41 dB. In comparison, 41 dB is about the same noise level as a whisper quiet library, and normal conversations at 3’-5’ away are 60-70 dB.

* Sharp air purifiers monitor, cleans, and treats your air.

* Plasmacluster is actually a fancy name for an ionizer. I know, you might be thinking, “Oh but it’s really awful for the ozone!” But Sharp air purifiers also produce positive ions, not just negative!

* Uses true HEPA filtration, so all those nasty pet dander fluff is gone.

* “When the lights are green the air is clean” simple motto that helps you determine when your air’s clean. Let the system work for you!

All in all, it seems like Sharp has done extensive research and development in their air purifiers. I am thoroughly impressed with its presentation, but I’d like to throw out a question the consumers out there to the e-world, “Have you guys tried a Sharp air purifier?” and “Is it really as good as they present it?”