We recently completed building my new Aviary and had to make the final decisions for lighting, heating and air conditioning. The Aviary is 8 ft. by 16 ft and would require air conditioning in the hot summer months here in southern Louisiana. I was more concerned with price since the unit will not run 24/7. I only needed the temperature to be maintained at 78-80 degrees for my breeding program. I found a unit that was perfect at Home Depot. It is the Hampton Bay Model HBLG5004 which was priced at $79.99. Sit back and relax and I'll tell you all about it!

Specifications

The Hampton Bay Model HBLG5004 has an energy efficient rating of 9.7. It is a 5050 BTU/hr which is perfect for my size of building. A 5000 BTU is rated for a 10' x 15' area or 150 sq. ft.

Hampton Bay Model HBLG5004 has an adjustable thermostat. It has 2 cooling speeds (high and low) with adjustable thermostat controls from 1-9. It also has two fan only speeds. This unit is equipped with a turbo fan with 2 way air deflection. The turbo fan provides higher efficiency at a lower RPM and features a quiet running motor. The air flows not only out from the front of this air conditioner but also out from the top vent providing even cooling. It also provides both horizontal and vertical vent adjustments. This was one of the features that sold me on this unit!

Hampton Bay Model HBLG5004 air conditioner fits any window from 21"-35" wide and 12" high. You will receive an installation kit along with the air conditioner to make sure your unit will fit properly into your window if it is larger than the unit size. Installation was very easy and was completed in about 30 minutes.

The filter is very easy to clean. It pops right out of the front of the unit and is washable. This will be a nice feature in case you don't have a spare one on hand, just rinse and let filter dry before replacing in the unit.

Electrical Requirements

The Hampton Bay Model HBLG5004 operates on 115 Volts AC, 15 Amps and draws 4.8 Amps of juice. It comes with a 72" grounded cord.

Warranty

This air conditioner comes with a 5 year sealed system warranty and a 1 year in-home service warranty. I felt this was a very fair warranty for this size unit.

My Experience With The Hampton Bay A/C

I thought I would have trouble adjusting the controls to maintain the temperature in the Aviary. I was so wrong! I made one adjustment during the first day of use and it has been set on Low Cool, #4 ever since. This temperature setting maintains the temperature at 78 degrees. This is exactly where I need it to be! I have not had any problems out of my new Hampton Bay Model HBLG5004 air conditioner yet, but I've only been using it for about two weeks now. I have read some other reviews from another website and most people had bad luck with them. I would have passed this unit up if I had read those reviews first.
I am going to keep my fingers crossed and hold on to my receipt!

My Recommendation

So far I've been 100% pleased with this air conditioning unit. For a small size room it cools perfectly. I would venture to say that you could even use it in a slightly larger area since I only use the low cool setting while getting a 78 degree reading. On high cool this unit would probably maintain at least a 68 degree temperature. If you have a room that doesn't stay as cool as you would like or need to add a small unit to a bedroom, this unit would be worth considering. I have to give this one 5 Stars at present.

~Thanks for reading and a special thanks to Helen (pogomom) for helping me to find this product in the database!

© 2004 Birdfeather

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 79.99