Friedrich EP18G33B Window Air Conditioner, 18000 Btu, White

When the contractors installed this as part of my garage renovation in August , they were simply amazed at how well and how quickly it cooled the space. Over the winter it has kept the 2 car oversized garage at 60 degrees and hasn't made much of an impact on my utility bill. I don't have exact numbers but I was fearing a high electric bill but that didn't happen... and I let it run. It was a great choice. The only thing I don't like is that the lowest temperature setting is 60 degrees... which is higher than I need for the garage during times when I am not using it. If I could set it to 50 degrees, I would make sure that fluids such as paint didn't freeze but not have it running so much. But... aside from that...perfect. Every single member of the crew working on my home renovation projects asked where I got this beauty. I sent them the link. I will be moving soon...which means I'll have to put one of these put into my next garage as well...there will be no compromise!

We are using this unit to heat and cool the 150sf screened porch we converted to a home gym. Since it was new construction, we wall-mounted it at the recommended height above the floor and installation was very simple (we are handy). We kept our original outside door intact in case the unit didn't heat well, but we have been able to leave it open to the new room all the time because we are finding the unit maintains temperature very well. It is quieter than I thought it would be (not sure about the AC yet since it's winter). The unavoidable downside of using a unit like this is the air it blows feels cool, and I don't think it would be comfortable to have cool air blowing on me in the winter if I was using this as a primary source of heat in a living space. However, if you are away from the direction of the vents the overall temperature of the room is very comfortable.

We used the air conditioner setting off & on in late summer & it worked fine. Then, the weather cooled & we started using the heater setting. Everything was fine for a while, but then, the air sweep stopped moving. Shortly after, the heater started kind of struggling - weird noises, kept shutting off. Checked the manual for troubleshooting tips - no help. So, my husband called Friedrich's & left a message. When my husband tried the heater again - nothing. It wouldn't turn on.A week later, my husband called customer service again, because they hadn't returned his call. They gave us a number to an authorized dealer. We called the authorized dealer & were told that they do not do warranty repair for Friedrich units, because they have trouble getting paid. So, we called Friedrich's again & were asked if we knew anybody. My husband told him the name of our heating & cooling guy. Friedrich's called back & said our heating & cooling guy would do it, but wants us to pay him & have Friedrich's reimburse us. What? We paid for the air conditioner & now Friedrich's expects us to pay an unknown amount for warranty work & hope we get reimbursed? If the professionals don't think they'll ever see their money, I have no reason to put my money on the line.So, when told that we could not pay for our own warranty work, the customer service rep said he'd find somebody & get back to us. Days later, my husband called them again and was told they'd e-mailed repair people in our area & they're waiting for responses. Haven't heard anything today either. I checked the unit again today, & the heat kicked in. I turned it off, because I I'm not upstairs to turn it off if it 'freezes up' or whatever it was doing before it completely stopped working, & I have no idea if it's safe to use. We've asked if we can just trade this unit in for a unit that's not a lemon, but instead my son, husband, and I are stuck sleeping in unheated bedrooms. Yes, this was our primary source of heat for the 2nd floor of our home at night. Our older home doesn't have standard air vents upstairs - it has vents that allow a bit of air from downstairs to rise. It's winter, it's cold, & we've had to resort to space heaters. I feel extremely unintelligent for paying this much money for a unit, only to turn around & use space heaters - which is what we were trying to avoid by spending this much money. You might be thinking, well, you still have the air conditioner part of it. Yeah, but for how long. And we already had an air conditioner upstairs - We removed it and gave it to my nephew when we replaced it with the Friedrich unit.We don't know what to do. We're just waiting for Friedrich customer service to do something to make this right. But, It's starting to look like they really don't care about their customers. I'll change my review if they honor their warranty, but until then, a broken unit that comes with poor customer service doesn't even deserve the 1 star I was forced to give it.Update: No change. Nearly a month has went by & we still do not have a working unit. Friedrich's customer service is evidently not worried about our heater in the middle of an Iowa winter. They keep saying they'll call us back, but that it's difficult for them to make outbound calls from a call center. Well, I'm sorry that their faulty unit & poor customer service is inconvenient for Them! We're not giving up, but in the meantime, we are worried about having the space heater we've been forced to resort to in our disabled child's bedroom - Safety is a major issue, which is why we'd spent so much on this window unit to avoid those hazards. I still would not recommend this unit to anybody & I hope that anybody that purchases this does not need to use the warranty. I don't like giving one star reviews, but this unit is still not deserving of even that. I hope others are more fortunate.

I'm going to separate the quality of this air conditioner, very good, with the quality of the delivery: horrible.The air conditioner is an absolute monster, and is probably the largest window air conditioner I have ever seen. I purchased it with the idea of getting the largest that would fit into the window next to the 230V outlet and didn't think about how deep it is. So putting this into a window is a 2 person chore.Once there, it does an admirable job blowing chilling wind into my front room. Even my beautiful wife, who grew up in China and is used to living with heat appreciates the wide area of cool down this delivers, and my son can often be seen in the couch underneath the unit as an arctic gale rushes over his head enjoying the sensation. So, I am gratified with the capacity of the unit.We don't have an awning for it, although it is mounted in the shade of the front door's small porch, so it has been rained upon without issue. It does drip a lot while in use, there is often a steady stream of condensed water coming out the back end. (One of the reasons I wanted a new air conditioner was to retire the one in the kitchen which dripped into the bricked in back porch.)The remote is useful, and makes turning on and configuring it easy.I am concerned that the unit is not home automation savvy. I've been adding HomeKit enabled devices this year, and a HomeKit enabled AC would have been a home run, allowing me to control it from other parts of the house.Because of the weight and depth of the unit, I had to install a support under my window, which involved getting one from Home Depot and using masonry screws to attach it to the brick facade of my house. No issues after that though.Have not had cause to try the heater, nor am I likely to given the expense of heating with electricity. I'll be doing my heating with cheap, plentiful natural gas. I just couldn't find a good deal on the version Friedrich makes without the heater.Now, as for the delivery, I should have refused delivery on seeing the torn up state of the box. The outer shell is beaten out of shape and many radiator fins are smooshed. Everything works, but I paid for a new unit. Perhaps, I could get a replacement shell from the manufacturer?

Quality unit. Meets all expectations. Not made in the USA. Not sure how you would ever get service - if needed - since the parts come from so far away.

Great little unit for 4 season use. Easy to install and easy to use.