Amcor AF8000E 8,000-BTU Portable Air Conditioner Review

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(More customer reviews)I can't say I've had as good an experience as others reported here...the main problem I've discovered is that the compressor only cycles on for about seven minutes at a time, followed by fifteen minutes during which the machine simply operates as a fan and blows in hot air from outside. Company info on their web site indicates that this is being done to prevent the compressor from overheating--unfortunately, this results in the compressor remaining cool while my small studio apartment (only 200 sq feet) remains too hot. I don't know if other units have similar limitations, but I would hesitate to recommend this product on the basis of my own experience. Hope this is helpful to anyone looking to make a buying decision...

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With a cooling capacity of 8,000 BTUs per hour, this portable air conditioner quickly and efficiently keeps rooms up to 300 square feet comfortably cool during the sweltering-hot days of summer. Its user-friendly control panel makes it easy to turn the unit on and off, to select from low or high fan speeds, to set the 1- to 12-hour timer (unit turns off after set amount of time has elapsed), and much more. It can even be used to dehumidify the air, helping to remove excess moisture that can lead to mold and mildew. Other highlights include 775 watts of cooling power, an EER of 10.3, a built-in washable filter, an adjustable air outlet grill for controlling the direction of air flow, a compact footprint, and smooth-rolling wheels for effortless transport from one room to another. The portable air conditioner measures 15 by 12 by 30 inches.

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NewAir AC-10000E 10,000 BTU Portable Air Conditioner With AutoEvaporative Technology Review

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(More customer reviews)I rated this 3 stars which Amazon defines as "It's OK" which is how I feel about it :)
* Size/Weight/Move-ability 10/10 -- I think the size and weight are fine, the unit is heavy (~50lbs) but not so heavy that you can't lift it from the box, it does have handles on the side to grab, and rolls in any direction on casters. It's not very large, about the size of a modern dehumidifier or mini-fridge
* Front Panel/Controls 5/10 -- The controls are straight forward and easy to use, the exception being that when you're in the "AUTO" mode you can not adjust the fan speed, it's a little odd. The big problem, and why I rate it 5/10 is that there are six SUPER BRIGHT LEDs on the front of the unit, as far as I can tell they serve no purpose whatsoever, they are simply there and they are on whenever the unit is on. When it's bright in the room it's not a big deal, but at night when you're trying to sleep this is a big issue, I'm probably going to have to cut out little wedges of electrical tape or something to stick over them. It comes with an IR remote that lets you control it as well. The display on the front will show the room temperature normally and when you are adjusting the temperature controls up and down it will change to show the desired temp for a few seconds. One note here is that the unit seems to stop cooling even when you're a good 5*F or so away from the desired temp--Example, it was 78* in my room last night and I set the unit for 73* it was running for a while but when the temp hit 77* the compressor shut off for a very long time and the room started to feel hot, temp went back up to 78* and it clicked back on... this may just be a quirk with my unit or something, but my window-mounted a/c will keep running until their ambient temp sensors equal the desired temp setting.
* Window Adapter/Hose 8/10 -- This is a single hose model, that means that it sucks air from the room to blow over the condenser (hot part) and then that air is blown outside; something to keep in mind is that you are sucking air from the room which means you are blowing your "conditioned" air outside as part of the normal process, as a result this unit will not cool a room as efficiently as a dual-hose model or a window/wall unit which both use outside air to cool the condenser--so this 10kBTU model will not cool a room as well as a 10kBTU window unit (it might be more comparable to a 7-8kBTU?). The window/hose adapters are decent quality, the only complaint I have is that I wish the adapter were "taller", my window sill is about 1" high, as a result the hose hits the sill before it the adapter hits the base, this isn't a big deal, but just wanted to note it. Another thing to note, some people complain about the window adapters not sealing very well--this one seems to do an OK job, the window just closes on the flat top of the adapter as a seal. The thing to keep in mind w/ these portable a/c's is that having a fantastic seal is not really expected or needed for the unit to operate, you get just as much air leakage around window mounted a/c's. The window adapter, hose adapter and hose are all well constructed and made of good materials--one tip: first screw the hose onto the unit, then screw the wide-mouth adapter thing onto the hose, THEN put the wide-mouth adapter into the window adapter, if you buy this you'll see what I mean :)
* Cooling/Air Output 10/10 -- Works great! Very cold air, and it blows the air fast out of the vent, much better then my window mounted units which feel like they just dribble out air sometimes
* Noise 7/10 -- First: It makes noise, all air conditioners do, if you need silence to sleep then you need another solution other then window/portable a/c's, I can sleep with the "white noise" of a fan/motor running. The unit is no louder then my 8kBTU window-mount unit when operating with and without it's compressor running; however, the reason I give it a 7/10 is that the unit tends to make more noise when the compressor turns on and off then my window unit does, in addition the compressor cycles on/off very often and for short periods, which exacerbates the issue. So far it has been waking me up, and that's not good, it remains to be seen if I can used to the noise, or this will become an awake-only unit.
* Draining 5/10 -- With low room humidity this unit should be able to exhaust most of the water out with the waste air, which means no draining... but with high humidity you need to drain the unit, this an issue on this unit because unlike other units it does not drain into a bucket which can be removed and dumped out. With this unit you need to put a "shallow pan", as the instructions say, under the drain cock and open it... well this pan needs to be really shallow (see my user submitted image) because the drain cock is only about 1-2" off the floor! I can envision this being a real nightmare to empty and I'm not looking forward to really humid daysOverall I think this is a decent portable a/c, and I'm hopeful that it will work out.
Summarized my main concerns are:
1) Does not have a bucket to empty, if it needs draining that will be very difficult w/o a bucket
2) Front Panel LEDs are super bright and always on, makes it difficult to sleep
3) Compressor makes more noise then expected when starting/stopping, this wakes me up at night
Summarized the pro's are:
1) Very good air output--lots of volume and pressure
2) Cold output! Great for spot cooling, move the unit near you and you'll freeze your butt off even if the rest of the room is warmer then you might like
3) Easy to move around on the casters
4) Reasonable price

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Honeywell RTH111B Vertical Digital Manual Thermostat Review

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(More customer reviews)I replaced one of the old round bi-metal spring thermostats with the Honeywell RTH111B. The Honeywell works great and keeps the temperature where I set it. It has no "bells and whistles" as you'd expect for the price. Only thing I did not like is that the slide switch for Heat-Off-Cool is quite small and it's not always obvious at which position it's set.

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Basic digital nonprogrammable thermostat. heat and cool. Temperature range on heat is 40 to 90 F.; on cool 50 to 99 F. Sleek 1 piece design with all control buttons on the face of the unit. Vertical positioning for easy upgrade from standard manual thermostat. Soft touch buttons. Use with most gas, oil, electric, forced warm air, hot water, and 750 millivolt or steam. Precise temperature control with accuracy of + 1 F. Requires (2) ''AAA'' batteries, not included. Approximate size: 4.7'' H. x 2.9'' W. x 1.1'' D. Premier white.

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Lux Products TX9000TS Touch Screen 7 Day Programmable Thermostat Review

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(More customer reviews)BOTTOM LINE:
Took about 45 minutes from removing old unit to new installation and completing programming. It works great!SYSTEM:
4 wire Gas heating and electric cooling.OLD UNIT:
Honeywell Electronic C9825 - bought in year 2000. Has weekday, weekend, 4 periods per day and adaptive recovery. Replaced as temperature override and 'Hold' features work erratically.TOTAL EXPERIENCE:
1 WeekREVIEW:
The TX9000TS is the 3rd electronic thermostat I've owned and is probably the most intuitive of them all. Lux has provided a generous sized display and a very responsive touch-screen. The back light is a pleasing blue. The unit is 3 parts - the main unit, a back plate where you connect the wires and an optional accent plate that provides a .75 inch border to provide a finished look.
I had read the earlier reviews on Amazon and had decided that I will not read the instructions prior to the install to determine how intuitive this system really was? The only exception I would allow myself was if the wiring was significantly different from my old unit - which it was not!
The setup was relatively simple. Removed the old unit and replaced it with the new back plate and accent bezel. No new holes to drill. The accent bezel is the closest piece to the wall and is held up by the back plate. I straightened the old wires, inserted into the corresponding clamp and tightened the screws - Total time of 15 minutes.
I inserted 2 new alkaline batteries (And NO, I did not use the recommended Duracell or Energizer!) and the unit came to life. I clicked on the time and it started beeping. I could see arrows on the right and intuitively touched them to set the time. Did the same to set the day. Touching the 'Menu' got me into the programming mode for the unit. I touched "SCROLL" to skip to the next feature, and "NEXT" for the next step in the feature programming. I do admit I took a few iterations to get used to the programming logic. Also 'YES' to accept settings is a little different from the colloquial "ENTER" we are used to in a computer literate world!
This unit is programmable for every day of the week. I, at most, need one setting for all week-days and one each for Sat and Sun. While programming the days, I noticed that they had a "COPY" function. I was sure that this was to copy my settings - every time I touched it, it went over to the next day. I thought that the data was being copied over and I did verify it after I completed my first iteration of programming. By the way, once you are in the programming mode, setting the start time for any period and/or setting the temperature is as simple as touching the time or temperature and using the up/down arrows. Could not be simpler!
I was fortunate that I had the program settings available from my old unit - once I went through a few iterations of errors (not using "YES" to accept settings!) the unit was programmed - Total time of 15 minutes
I spent another 10 minutes setting the 'Filter Usage' and 'Swing settings' and reviewing the 'Temperature Calibration' and 'Energy Usage' monitor. The Swing settings only went upto 2.5 degrees in 0.5 degree increments (One of the other reviewer found that it went upto 3.0 degrees???)
I did not see the 'Smart Recovery' option and thought that it might be a switch on the circuit board like my last unit. It was 1.30 in the morning and I did not feel like reading the instructions. I attached the TX9000TS and it kicked off instantly.
The instructions did have the following options that can be changed with the small slide switches towards the back of the main unit -- 12/24 hours time format, Smart Recovery, Degrees in C or F, and 2 or 5 minute interval between restarts.OTHER REVIEWER'S CONCERNS
Some of the other reviewers have concerns that the unit does not automatically switch between heating and cooling to keep the temperature constant. This is done intentionally!
In the summer, our ideal temperature is 74 degrees. When we leave for work, our "DAY" period is set to 82 degrees so that the AC does not cool the home while we're out. In an auto switch between heating and cooling, the heat would take over and get the temperature to 82 degrees and maintain it - which is NOT the intent!! We do not want the AC to cool any below 82. I can, of course, see the gentleman's point if one spends 90% of their time at home and is OK with the associated heating/cooling cost.PROS:
* TX9000TS is rated #1 by Consumer Reports
* Cheapest in its class for display size and features
* Very easy to program
* Love the LARGE display and the accuracy of the touch zones.
* Very nice Backlight and fantastic positioning of the backlight switch.
* Like the "CHANGE FILTER" feature. I used to use a Sharpie on the filter and then try to read the date through the grill
* Like the "Low Battery" alert.
* Power Usage also seems like a valuable feature...will find out in the near future! I did manage to find it by pressing menu and scrollingCONS:
* Lux could have done a better job with the programming terminology and could have improved the user experience with regards to the programming. For e.g., if you had to program day and time, it continues to loop when you click "NEXT"...to exit the programming you need to use "MENU".
* Another feature I miss from my old Honeywell is the "RUN PROGRAM" button which when pressed would clear the "OVERRIDE" functions and run as per the program. The TX9000TS unit achieves this either by touching the temperature and using the arrow keys to bring the temperature to the programmed value, OR, by touching "HOLD" twice. Minor inconvenience.
* The tabs, on the top of the base plate, that hold this unit are very small and I am in constant fear of breaking them off. My old Honeywell had a very robust design.CONCLUSION:
I do agree that the TX9000TS is not completely intuitive, but it is nowhere as unintuitive as others claim. I do like to play around with stuff that I get...if it were all super-intuitive and easy then it'd be no fun! ;o)

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Efficient. Easy. Economical. That's why you'll love the Lux Products TX9000TS Seven-Day Programmable Thermostat. This clever device gives you complete and accurate temperature control at the touch of a finger. And compatible with a variety of heating and cooling systems, this thermostat incorporates do-it-yourself installation, a responsive touch screen, and a large lighted display for straightforward programming and operation.
Customize Your Home's Heating and Cooling ScheduleWith the TX9000TS it's easy to set a daily heating and cooling schedule for your home, which can ensure your comfort and potentially reduce your utility costs. With easy-to-use menu-driven programming and intuitive touch-screen commands, this thermostat allows you to program up to four different time and temperature settings in a 24-hour period (morning, day, evening, and night).

You also have the option of setting a different program for every day of the week.

Environmentally Friendly, Wallet-Friendly ChoiceThe TX9000TS can be an energy-efficient, environmentally friendly choice that can save your family approximately 33% on energy bills.

It comes pre-programmed with a default energy conserving heating and cooling schedule that's designed to save up to $180 in energy costs over one year.

And thanks to the keyboard lockout feature, the TX9000TS is great for households with small children or other potential unauthorized users.

User-Friendly Features and Operating SimplicityIncredibly user-friendly, the TX9000TS boasts a range of helpful features to simplify both programming and everyday operation. First, a large blue electroluminescent display is easy to read--even in low light--and clearly shows the current day, time, temperature, and filter status.

Additionally, audible touch confirmation indicates that your choices are being registered, while snowflake and flame icons indicate cooling or heating mode. For further convenience, a filter-usage monitor allows you to set filter limits from zero to 720 hours of use, and a 'replace' icon will appear when battery power is running low.

What's in the BoxTX9000TS programmable thermostat, mounting hardware, and manual.

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01013 Dielectric Heat Trap Review

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(More customer reviews)I can only give the Heat Traps 4 stars because I haven't installed them yet, my bad. One thing that I didn't know about the Heat traps before I ordered them is if they have "Check Balls" in them. They do and the description needs to have that information added.

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Takagi T-K Jr-LP Liquid Propane Flash Liquid Propane Compact Tan Review

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(More customer reviews)I am a general contractor and have used an on-demand tankless water heater in my 3200 square foot home since I built it in 1984, when few people in the US had tankless water heaters. That first LP heater served my family well, but it required a pilot light that was always on and it used a rubber diaphragm to turn the heater on. The diaphragm had to be replaced every three or four years. That heater was made in the UK and getting repair parts and someone who could do the repairs was problematic. About three years ago, I replaced it with a Takagi T-K Jr-LP Liquid Propane Flash Liquid Propane Compact Tan. It uses a different sensing method and it ignites using an electronic starter. Installation was fairly simple for me, so I did the ventilation, plumbing, and electrical work myself. The only complication was the addition of a 115 VAC outlet to the heater closet because the Takagi T-K Jr LP requires an electrical hookup to power its computerized controller. The heater also must be properly vented to outside air, so, to meet building code where I live, I also had to buy and install a stainless steel vent through the roof. The venting materials can cost almost as much as the heater depending on where the heater is installed. NOTE: More than likely, you should hire a licensed contractor to do the installation to ensure that the job is done correctly (according to code requirements where it is to be used) and for safety. The Takagi T-K Jr was definitely a very good buy and I have confidently recommended it to my friends and will continue to do so.

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Excel 110v Compact Portable Clothes Tumble Dryer Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a great little dryer for small spaces. You don't need a vent for this little electric dryer, but it does need to be about 4 inches away from the wall for the hot air exhaust to function properly. The dryer isn't really noisy but it does sound like an AC running; after a while it fades into background noise. There are only two settings: Soft and Normal. These functions adjust the heat setting. The dryer also uses a timer setting like a toaster oven and ranges from 10-160 min. of dry time. The drum is small and the manual recommends only 2.8 lbs of clothes. This is about the equivalent of two towels or a change of clothes. I gave this a three stars rating because the dryer setting is not as hot which means you may have to run it a little longer for desired results. Also the door reminds me of doll house plastic; it's flimsy so be careful with it, and sometimes annoying when trying to close. I also gave it three stars because the price could have been a little lower based on its performance. None of these things are major problems but it is enough to lower the rating. It's about the size of a 19" TV (not a digital flat screen...think older model). It can be wall mounted with brackets but you'll have to purchase those because they aren't included. The outside stays cool to the touch. Overall, for such a small dryer it does a decent job.

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