PACKA43 Portable Evaporative Cooler 350 CFM, Silver

I bought this with the understanding it would, as it claimed, drastically lower temperatures in my living space. I live in a tiny apartment that is actually supposedly within the size limit of the machine, and I live in a very dry climate, and used it while enduring a drought. Honestly? It worked a tiny bit, but hardly enough to fulfill its claims.Many of these evaporative cooler reviews tell you they'll only work well in dry climates (check) in small spaces (check) and even then are benefiting more from the power of the fan than the cooling offered by evaporation. Those reviews are at least partly right, except that this machine only works AT ALL in those conditions, and not well. I checked the guides, I fiddled with the settings, and I can say it barely cooled my living space by 2 degrees.The few positives I'd add are that the fan is powerful, having a remote and the ability to control it from far away is nice, and the machine's setup (wheels, relatively easy to fill, multiple speed settings and optional oscillation) are helpful. But if you want to truly COOL a space go find yourself either a better model with more power, or a more traditional air conditioner.Side note, the 'swampy' smell is dependent on the conditions you're in. Some coolers are especially bad about it, and this model isn't great about it. It's not unbearable, and if the water level and flow rate are relatively stable you might not have as much of a problem with the smell, but be warned that the smell DOES crop up from time to time.

I keep seeing bad reviews about this cooler on this site and others. My experience has been good.I genuinely appreciate my KuulAire evaporative cooler. This is my second purchase of this particular model; I bought one for myself and loved it, so I bought one for my mother this year. She loves mine, so I am fairly confident she will appreciate hers. It's a great product as long as you remember a few things.First of all, this is not a refrigerated air conditioning unit, and you cannot expect it to work as one. It cools you off with a cooler breeze than surrounding temperatures. If you are happy with a nice cool breeze for where you are sitting you may like this. I use this one in my small living room's TV grouping and it provides much relief, especially in the late afternoon, early evening when that room is in the sun.Second, this is going to help very little, if at all, in more humid environments. Rocky Mountain states and westward are generally ideal for this type of cooler. I live in Portland, Oregon, and it provides relief for most days that are hot. If you are in New York, Connecticut, South Carolina, Louisiana, just go get a fan or an air conditioner. Your air is too saturated with moisture to evaporate much water, which is responsible for the cooling.Finally, this isn't going to work as well as a window-mount or ceiling evaporative cooler, and it unrealistic to expect it to. The fan only provides 350 CFM, although it's a nice concentrated stream of cooled air. If you want to drop the temperature in a large area, please get a model with a connected water supply that mounts in a window or through the wall or ceiling. If you want some relief for the direct area you are sitting in, it's great. Make sure there's enough ventilation to keep the humidity from building up, and you are set to go!

Works well, I've had it for 6 months here in Las Vegas. Only problem has been the float sensor sticks once in a while, due to mineral buildup (Las Vegas tap water sucks!) You need to reach inside and move the float so the cool function works.This is a swamp cooler, and as such it requires some maintenance.1. Clean air filter often.2. Drain every week and fill with fresh water.3. Needs occasional "deep clean". Drain, disassemble and clean parts, fill with water and vinegar to remove scale and run for several hours outdoors, then drain and fill with fresh water.4. After sitting over the winter, the pump may stop working (due to calcium buildup) Remove the back and unscrew the pump, hit it a few times with a screwdriver handle. Put it back in and disconnect the hose, and let it run for a few minutes to flush the pump, then re-assemble. Should you need to replace the pump, you can find a similar replacement at your local Harbor Freight store.

don't waste your money this thing would not cool down more the 2 degrees as a matter of fact as the water got warmer in the unit the room got hotter this is a complete scam if some people want to believe it cooled them own that were already TOO COOL or they work for this company that sell them i can't believe amazon would even deal in such a waste we returned it

I purchased my Kuulaire PACKA43 just over a year ago when today, the power button finally quit working altogether (it has been intermittent all along but would start after some fumbling). Since the warranty was expired - with no hope of getting it fixed, I took off the switch cover which broke the plastic cover. After exposing the switches, it was obvious that it was integrated into the pc board and not accessible for any kind of repair or replacement. The ready light comes on, I tried resetting the control by disconnecting and reconnecting the cord - all to no avail. It must only be the switch that is malfunctioning. This is really disappointing since the unit would put out cool air in my small shop thus allowing a somewhat cooler environment over just using a fan. My recommendation is is avoid this product since the control system must be the weak link in this unit. I'm sure others have had the same problem. Now this unit is totally useless since there is no way to replace or by-pass the switch.P.S. The remote never did work but I never had any use for it anyway and just used the unit's control panel.