Thursday, April 19, 2012

Danby Premiere DPAC12010H 12,000 BTU portable air conditioner with heater- Euro Grey

First note: This item is HUGE. It is very nearly the size of a dorm refrigerator...possibly taller.
Second note: This item is loud, but NOT in a bad way. It has the steady fan-generated-white-noise thing going on. If the unit is between you and the exhaust, it seems quieter, but if you can see where the exhaust exits (re: window fitting) you will hear both the unit and the air in the exhaust pipes.
Third note: It is not immediately clear whether you\'re supposed to use the drainage hose in AC mode, or JUST in dehumidifier. As luck would have it, the answer is yes...you need to drain while cooling.

That being said, I am completely in love with this big lug. It was over 95 outside when I brought it in. It was over 90 *inside* when I tore into the box. It was roughly 10 minutes of girl-reading-instructions-holding-screwdriver after that. Ten minutes later, I turned it on, and let\'er rip.
Roughly 60 seconds later, the air coming out was COLD.
The first couple degrees dropped rapidly, downgrading the entire first floor of the apartment from \"broiler\" to \"huh, it\'s kinda hot\" in about 5 minutes. The next couple degrees happened more slowly, over about an hour, taking the whole first floor from \"hot?\" to \"not hot\" and finally to \"comfortable\"...about 75 degrees.

This is only the first day, so I will post follow-up reviews later.
I would definitely recommend the unit, though.

For whatever it\'s worth, I previously owned a Royal Sovereign that I was overall happy with.

Danby makes great products. This air conditioner came with all the parts needed for all possible installations, and if you use it as a dehumidifier, it has a drainage hose that you must attach. It comes with enough panels for sliding door installation.

The unit itself is MUCH quieter than the Royal Sovereign, and while I\'m sure it\'s noisier than a window unit, I\'m thrilled that it is as quiet as it is.

It\'s also slightly smaller than the RS was. I was nervous about the white plastic outside, but it is a shiny, easy to clean surface.

The air conditioner output can be directed up or forward, but side to side is not variable. This unit also has heat.

One funny thing though is that the air conditioner has a remote, right... but you can\'t see the settings on the air conditioner because the indicator lights are on top!

The thermostat works extremely well. This air conditioner does not turn off when the desired temperature has been reached and this seems to be common with portable units.

In 2005 Consumer Reports said if you buy a portable unit, get one with 2 hoses because it will work... the single hose portable units do not work. They were right. Get your portable with 2 hoses.

This air conditioner is overpowered for my space, so I cannot review it on strength, but it was as strong as the RS unit that was also the same BTU.

Please feel free to comment on my review if you have questions I can answer for you.

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