Fantastic & Inexpensive AC done "American Style"
Written: Aug 06 '02
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Pros: Small, unobtrusive, efficient IDEAL for apartments w/ power constraints!!!
Cons: No oscillation, otherwise none
The Bottom Line: Easy to install, small, efficient and works in special situations (window well) - an Awesome AC at a bargain price WITH REMOTE!!!
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| nick1326's Full Review: Sharp AF-R80BX Thru-Wall/Window Air Conditioner |
I couldn't help but stick the "American Style" in the title... I mean a few months back when I saw a ROOM FAN that came with its own REMOTE CONTROL, I nearly died laughing, thinking to myself; "God, we Americans really are a bit lazy..." However ironically when I bought this excellent air conditioner, the remote control wasn't even on my mind - there were other reasons (please read the review). The ironic and very funny part of the story is my fiancee (originally from Poland) always laughs that Americans are very fortunate to have many creature comforts that many other countries don't have.. (A great example is the FAN with a REMOTE CONTROL)....The punch line is that within 2 days of installing this AC my fiancee was the one addicted to the remote control saying "God, it's so great that this thing came with a remote control - we don't even have to get out of bed to adjust it during the night!!!!"
The bottom line is that the Sharp AFR80BX is a great little unit for many reasons... One of the main reasons we were turned on to the unit is because its compartively small size AND the fact that it runs on only 6.7 amps!!! This may sound irrelevant, but the people who showed us the AC were friends living in a basement apartment... Because they're apartment was a basement, the only place to mount the AC was in a small window which was not completely open = it was in a window well... In New York summers get hot (just like U2 says....) Sadly, a window well is small and confined and does not allow enough air to ventilate MOST AC units, and therefore causes them to overheat and shut down AND/OR trip a circuit breaker because they start to draw too much current to work properly, in light of the over-hot air which cannot ventilate. The AFR80BX worked flawlessly well in a window well since it was small and allowed more air to ventilate around it AND because it draws so little current.
In our application we picked the unit for our 2 bedroom condo. We use it in a side living-room window BUT it cools both the living room AND kitchen/dining area with ease, AND if we leave door open to the second bedroom, cool air will make its way into this room as well. The unit does NOT have an "oscillate" feature, however it doesn't seem to need it, and the 8500 BTUs is very ample to cool everything down (all rooms add up to substantial square footage as well (about 850 feet) and this includes the 100+ degree days we've been experiencing on Long Island.
The unit comes with a remote control with the ability to control power (on off), mode (1, 2 or 3 power levels for fan) plus econo-mode AND temperature cut-off (65 degrees and up) the temperature control works just like a thermostat; it does not adjust emitted air teperature, just the level at which the compressor cuts off. In economy mode the fan cuts off as well to save power PLUS the unit has a timer mode which allows you to make it cut out in your absence and go on in the same fashion. We purchased this unit for a very reasonable price of 249 dollars AND also received 75 dollars off for turning in an old non-functional air conditioner (PC Richard policy- great brick-and-mortar store if you know how to bargain) so we got a pretty darn good deal on this unit.
Sharp doesn't have the name that Frederich has, however from our experience this AC works extremely well, draws very little current (therefore making it efficient and cheap to run and operate) and considering how effective it is at cooling a pretty big area in no time, we are very pleased. Additionally, the small size makes it ideal for special situations (such as a basement apartment/window-well scenario - AND this is a critical issue - so I certainly hope someone benefits from this info, because it can be a frustrating experience shopping for an air conditioner efficient and small enough to do so- PLUS remember that you can't exactly "try out" and return an AC if you are in this situation and need a unit to function in these conditions. Installation is a snap (very easdy to lift and fit into the window) and it runs very quietly and is nearly unnoticeable. The Sharp works very well for us and I recomend it highly.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 249.99 - 75.
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Epinions.com ID:
nick1326
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Location: Long Island, NY
Reviews written: 232
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