5 star34%4 star18%3 star11%2 star12%1 star25%This Swamp Cooler Works! But 100 Square Feet Cooling Capacity Overrated|First off, I will point out that this unit is a Swamp Cooler (also known as an Evaporative Air Cooler), ** NOT ** an Air Conditioner. I couldn't help but notice after reading through many Swamp Cooler reviews written by other customers that many people (1) simply don't know the difference between the two, and (2) don't know that Swamp Coolers will work well ONLY in DRY climates (where the relative humidity is 40% or less a good part of the day).Therefore, before I jump into the review on this product, I feel it's necessary to address: (1) the difference between a Swamp Cooler and an AC and (2) whether a Swamp Cooler will work in the climate in your area.If you're well-acquainted with Swamp Coolers, you may wish to skip the following sections titled "The Difference Between A Swamp Cooler and an AC" and "Will A Swamp Cooler Work For You?" and dive right into reading the actual product review under the section titled "Review of the Honeywell CSO71AE 15 Pt. Indoor Portable Evaporative Air Cooler."

-----------------------------------------------The Difference Between A Swamp Cooler and an AC-----------------------------------------------(i) AC:An AC cools air by using a refrigerant (older ACs/refrigerators use a CFC-based refrigerant called r-12, AKA "freon" while modern day counterparts use an HFC-based refrigerant called R-134A). The refrigerant, initially under pressure and in liquid form, is subjected to rapid expansion and turns into a gas. The gasification process causes the refrigerant to absorb heat and hence the air around it is cooled. The gasified refrigerant is then channeled into a compressor, which re-pressurizes the refrigerant back into a liquid -- and the cycle starts over. A window AC uses about 1000 Watts of power.(ii) Swamp Cooler:In a swamp cooler, outside air (dry air) is passed through a pad soaked in water. The air causes some of the water in the pad to evaporate. The evaporative process extracts heat from the air and hence the air temperature drops. The evaporative process also humidifies the air.

As opposed to an AC system, which can be a closed system (i.e. the expelled cooled air can be channeled back into the AC to be cooled again), an evaporative cooler needs to take in air from the OUTSIDE and the indoor air needs to be expelled outside (the expelled air, which has been humidified through the evaporative process, has to be directed away from the Swamp Cooler air intake to prevent it from being reintroduced into the swamp cooler). A Swamp Cooler uses about 50 Watts of power.---------------------------------Will A Swamp Cooler Work For You?---------------------------------To determine whether the area you live in is well suited for the use of a swamp cooler, all you have to do is look at the "relative humidity" or "humidity" reported by a weather forecasting service for your area. The relative humidity will vary throughout the day, so it will most likely be reported under the hourly forecast. In my area, for example, the relative humidity varies from 25% to 75% throughout the day.

Let's get concrete: To show you EXACTLY how much cooling you expect a swamp cooler to deliver when it's used in your area, I have uploaded an Evaporative Cooler Chart from an almanac to the Customer Image section on the Product Page. The chart shows you the precise temperature you would expect based on (1) Air Temperature (before evaporative cooling) and (2) Relative Humidity.For example, let's say the air temperature is 102 F. Using the chart, we can see that for a dry area where the relative humidity is 25%, a swamp cooler can bring the air temperature down to 77 F. vicks paediatric clean air hepa-type air purifierIf, however, the swamp cooler is used in an area with a relatively high humidity of 75%, a swamp cooler would only bring the air temperature down to 95 F!dalworth air duct cleaning reviews

(To view the chart from other sources, you also can Google for "Evaporative Cooling Chart" in Google Images.)With the lengthy explanation of how a swamp cooler works out of the way, I'll proceed with the actual review of the Honeywell CSO71AE 15 Pt. Indoor Portable Evaporative Air Cooler.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------Review of the Honeywell CSO71AE 15 Pt. Indoor Portable Evaporative Air Cooler-----------------------------------------------------------------------------The Honeywell is my second evaporative cooler. honeywell hht-145 air purifier reviewsI've had another swamp cooler before -- one made by NewAir -- NewAir AF-330 Evaporative HEPA Swamp Cooler. This one was almost totally ineffective! All it did was to cool the air temperature by a degree or two!Now this Honeywell is SWEEE...It's able to reduce the outside air temperature by 15 F to 20 F.

I have it hooked up to a homemade window vent so it draws only the dry air from the outside (another vent expels the humid indoor air out).Note that it is important for a swamp cool to draw air from the outside to keep it working at its maximum efficiency. You cannot expect this unit to work indoors in a closed environment because as the humidity builds up (the evaporative process needed for cooling introduces humidity into the air), the swamp cooler becomes less and less efficient. Remember the chart we talked about earlier? As humidity increases, the efficiency of the swamp cooler decreases.This unit works but it's by no means perfect. There are a few things I don't like about it:(1) Tiny Water Fill PortThe water fill port is only 2-1/2 inches across and on the back side of the unit. For maximum ease in filling the tank, you would want to use a container with a spout (such as a pitcher).(2) No Ice CompartmentThis unit has no ice compartment. You can still put some ice cube through the tiny water port (with a little coaxing, the ice cubes will pass through the port quite easily).

But block ice or "Blue Ice" is definitely out of the question!(3) 100 Square Feet Rating OverratedThe cooler is rated for 100 sq feet, which is overrated. The air flow (supposedly 150 CFM) is not as strong as I had hoped, even with the fan at the maximum speed (there are 3 fan speeds). It might provide a slightly smaller room with reasonably efficient cooling, but 100 sq ft seems like a stretch. (If you plan on using a swamp cooler for bigger rooms, consider Honeywell's 2 other models that have higher cooling capacities: 1. Honeywell CO25AE 52 Pt. Indoor/Outdoor Portable Evaporative Air Cooler with Remote Control and 2. Honeywell CO60PM 125 Pt. Commercial Indoor/Outdoor Portable Evaporative Air CoolerNow the pluses:(1) Saves You Money On UtilitiesThis particular unit uses no more power than a 50W light bulb! I can run it all day without worrying about racking up the energy bill.(2) It WorksIt works for localized cooling or for cooling a smaller room.(3) Portable And LightweightIts compact size (14" x 8-1/2" x 24") and its surprisingly light weight (when empty) makes it very portable!

(4) Reasonably PricedIt's reasonably priced compared some of the more expensive units (some of which -- I'm willing to bet -- don't work half as well as this unit!). It's definitely cheaper than my NewAir unit, which is virtually USELESS.---My biggest gripe about the Honeywell is the somewhat weak fan (and the overrated 100 Square Feet Cooling Capacity). But all in all, it isn't a bad unit. If you're looking for a swamp cooler for localized cooling or for cooling a smaller room, this one's definitely worth consideration.******** [Update 2013-07-14] ********I've had the cooler for 3 weeks now and I have kept it running most of the day (it almost never gets turned off). It's holding up very well and there's been no degradation in performance.Here are a couple more observations I wish to add:(1) No Low Water Alarm (↓)I have on several occasions run the water down until the tank is literally bone dry. I've never received a Low Water Alarm mentioned in the product description.It has been mentioned that this machine makes glug-glug noises.