Good Stuff for an Apartment
Written: Jul 03 '03
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Pros: Inexpensive, quiet for the most part, efficient and makes the place cold
Cons: A tad Bulky
The Bottom Line: For this price, you get an A/C unit to keep the place cool all summer without a spike in the electricity costs.
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| catchfire20's Full Review: Whirlpool ACM082XP Air Conditioner |
Since most of the people at our local Walmart either can't speak english or are just to weird looking to ask a question, I figured they would not have what I needed in the 10,000 BTU range. I, of course, thinking the largest retailer would keep a stock of all A/C units in the 90 degree weather in Chicago, was dumbfounded to find all they had left were some Korean crap that looked like it took a tumble of the back of a truck and made it on the shelves. Plus, they were only 5000 BTU. So, I went over to the Menard's next door, as they were about to close, and got in there to search for the perfect A/C unit to replace the electricity sucking thing I had before, which broke on the peak of the 95 degree day. After looking over some Goldstar A/C thing, I decided to go after the Whirlpool, as it directed the air with the 3 vents, looked to be made well for once, and had some "extra-quiet" jargon on the box. Plus, the employees gave me the glares to get the hell out as I was preventing them from closing up early. So, I threw it in the cart, which had a busted wheel, and paid $238 plus tax for it. I was worried though that it was a bit long to fit my in-wall A/C holder, but I thought that was something to decide upon brining it home.
After taking the heavy thing out of the box (we're talking maybe 50-60 lbs here, so I had my GF carry it most of the way), I saw it was wide enough by about 3 inches, but stuck out a little far from the wall holder (like 4 inches). I got angry, but I figured I am too lazy to return the thing, so I just dealt with it. I put it in the wall, insulated it with makeshift seals they give you with a little trimming, and I had a good seal and a unit that stuck out quite a bit. Oh well I thought, until I turned the thing on Turbo cool (the highest of 3 settings: Low, High and Turbo) and on the coldest level (1-7; 7 being coldest) and I tell you, it kicked the compressor on and wow, did it get Cold in the apartment fast. Kind of like the feeling you get walking up to your waist in a cold lake. It felt like that. I left it on turbo all night, and woke up and swear it was like a meat locker. Wow, I thought. I figured though since it has a EER rating of 9.8 for this A/C (the requirement minimum efficiency for this A/C unit of 10,000 BTU's) I figure I'll save more $ on it than the EPA violating unit I had before. It's not an energy star unit, and if it was, I'd save 10 bucks a year on it, but I figure it wasn't worth spending more on a unit like this just for an apartment.
The unit is rigid and built solid and not of cheap feeling plastic. It's got easy access to the filter up front with the push of two tabs, so you can clean out the crap on a weekly basis. All three vents can be directed left to right, so you can get a better air flow around the place. The Fan level is a little loud, but overall, on cooling, it is really quiet for the most part (of course comparing it to the old one I had). It doesn't make any weird noises, and really cools a 550 square foot, 2 bedroom apartment on LOW with a ceiling fan quite well. Don't know how much electricity it uses, but I think it'll be better than the previous one I had. A good, quality buy to make.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 238.00
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Epinions.com ID:
catchfire20
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Location: Chicago
Reviews written: 32
Trusted by: 0 members
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