Frigidaire FRA065AT7 6000-BTU Mini Compact Window Air Conditioner

Full Overview

Amazon.com Product Description

Frigidaire's FRA065AT7 6,000 BTU Mini Compact Window Air Conditioner is perfect for small to medium size rooms up to 216-square feet. This unit features electronic controls and full function remote control. The antimicrobial filter reduces bacteria, room odors, and other airborne particles for a comfortable environment. And with Energy Star efficiency, this unit provides savings along with cool, quiet comfort.

Technical Details

- 6,000-BTU window-mounted mini air conditioner cools rooms up to 216 square feet in size
- 2-speed fan with 8-way direction control; low-voltage start-up; anti-bacterial mesh filter with tilt-out access
- Effortless Restart, Sleep Mode, 24-hour timer; electronic controls and full-function remote control
- Energy Star rated; 1-year full and 5-year sealed system warranty
- Measures 18-1/2 inches wide by 16-3/8 inches deep by 12-1/2 inches high; weighs 51 pounds

I have this unit installed in the bedroom. A very quiet unit, can hardly hear the compressor kick on. Perfect for the bedroom....12x14. The noise is less than a box fan. I leave it running 24/7 and surprisingly does not effect the power bill a lot, seems real efficient. I had to adjust the tilt of the unit after the first install because of a sloshing sound from the fan in the rear of the unit. This was caused by the fan sloshing the water. The unit needs to be nice and level. The buttons on the front are easily cleaned, and the remote is the same way with its flat design. The filter comes out and is cleaned with out any effort. The unit does not have a fresh air/recirculate switch as some of the larger models. From the large amounts of humidity it pulls from the room, I assume its only recirculate. After a few days without any rain in a small room over night, it can leave you with a dry throat and irritated sinuses from the low humidity in the room.

Before buying this Frigidaire, I'd purchased two portable air conditioners: one 7000BTU Danby and one 9000BTU Sunpentown. Both of those were totally unable to bring a 12x14 bedroom down by more than 3-4 degrees, even after running all night. They blew cold air but for some reason the room never got cooler. One night it was even warmer in the bedroom, with the AC running full blast, than it was outside when we woke up in the morning!

I didn't want a window unit because I work at home and wanted to be able to roll the AC back and forth between the bedroom and my office. In the middle of a major heat wave, I got desperate and installed this Frigidaire 6000BTU in the bedroom so I could get some sleep. I found that it cooled the room to about 72 degrees (100+ and humid outside during a major heat wave) within about 90 minutes. I was so amazed at how much better this works than the other ones that I immediately bought another one for the office. The total cost for these two vastly superior window units was about fifty bucks more than buying one portable.

Installation was a little harder with the Frigidaire window unit because I have vinyl windows and had to cut two wooden shims to anchor the AC so I wouldn't have to screw it into the vinyl itself (which would void the warranty). This is true with any window unit. But the slightly longer installation time is definitely worth it because the Frigidaire:

- is much cheaper
- is much quieter
- cools the room fairly quickly when the others didn't cool it at all
- is more energy efficient, which means it's cheaper to run--and as a bonus, the city where I live gives a rebate for EnergyStar appliances

I was a little psyched out about installing this unit with vinyl windows, but there are a bunch of good tutorials out there if you put Google to work, and in the end it was much easier than I thought. Total no-brainer. . . this appliance is fantastic and a great deal.

This unit is 14.7 inches high, not 1 as listed. If you have a standard window, that will not be a problem, but it could be a problem for smaller windows (ie., basements, bathrooms). I bought a different unit for that reason, so I can't comment on this unit, other than the size. If you need a 1 inch 6000 BTU unit, Amazon has the Frigidaire FAA064P7A for roughly the same price. I bought that and it went in my window perfectly and I am quite happy with it.

The first two days I fell in love with this thing. It cooled off the room within minutes and I couldn't hear much more than a rush of air as it operated with a slight hum.

So, on the third day I'm laying in bed and it sounds almost like the fan is grinding against something or rattling/scratching. I check everything out, all clear. Turn it on, and a few minutes later I hear the same sound. It's not a constant sound, but sort of pulsating and rather annoying compared to how quiet it was the first couple days. Quiet hum...rattle rattle...quiet hum...rattle scratch...It was definitely not like this initially and I ran it on energy saver for 3 days straight.

The other complaint I have is the packaging. The power cord comes in a long plastic sheath for protection I guess. Well, whoever packed mine at the factory wrapped the cord all the way up into the unit to where it was secured with screws. I had no way to get the plastic off without taking the thing apart, so I ended up cutting it off with scissors and HOPING it doesn't start a fire. I have no idea if they put the plastic all the way up into the electric contacts or what, but it's still embedded in the unit. I'd have to somehow take the entire front cover off and take the screws out of the piece of plastic securing the power cord to remove it. Why would someone do this? Was it the same person responsible for building my unit that now has a rattle?

Apparnetly I just got a lemon put together by people who don't care about their jobs. You'd think quality control would notice something like this, but I guess they don't care either. I gave it 3 stars because I'm sure there are people at the factory who do a good job and put out good units according to the other reviews. I wouldn't know personally.

EDIT: I got a replacement unit from Amazon, and the noise is even worse! It started making the scratching/sputtering sounds after the first 1/2 hour or so. My bedroom is completely quiet, and who the heck can sleep with that sort of noise? And this second unit also makes loud ticking. I assume it's water dripping or something. But every few seconds I ear...TICK...DRIP. At least the first one didn't do that. And the dripping sound is even louder than the scratching sound.

Maybe if someone has this unit in a room with lots of noise they won't notice as much. But in this small, quiet room it's completely unacceptable. I imagine that's where most people will put these. The plastic bag over the power cord is also all screwed up inside the unit and I can't remove it, just like the first one. They must have come from the same lot. They were probably on the same pallet. The person assembling them just embedded the plastic bag up inside the unit where the electrical wires attach, which can't be all that safe. Crazy.

This thing is going back also. I'm never buying another air conditioner by Frigidaire again. I think I'll try a small Kenmore even if it's more expensive since the big one in my living room has never given me these kinds of problems. I would delete this review and repost with only one star but I'm not sure if they'd let me put a new one up. Don't get this scratchy, drippy thing unless it will be used in a noisy room.

EDIT: I recently got the Kenmore 5200 BTU model from Sears (which is pretty much identical to this unit in design with subtle differences; they must have the same manufacturer), and after 3 days I'm not experiencing any annoying sounds. No loud scratching or sputtering. No dripping of any sort. Just a consistent, quiet hum when in the cooling cycle. I'm very happy with this unit. I guess the two Frigidaires I had were duds. The Kenmore is a little more than I paid for the Frigidaire at the time, but it's definitely worth it. I wish I saved myself the headache and got that to begin with. It gets my room just as cold and I can sleep! Too bad it also has that loud beep when changing settings, but that I can live with.

This unit was purchased from Amazon.com as a result of a 10000 btu GE air conditioner that had failed in less than 12 months in our new 10' x 20' office and storage building. Due to the late summer time (still 100 degree) temperatures local suppliers did not have compatible replacement units and GE did not have parts available for the failed unit. After considerable research and reading many reviews we selected this unit for both the automatic qualities and the promise of expediant delivery. The new unit came in about 3 days but was damaged apparently by ware house handling. We immediately contacted Amazon customer service (about 5:30 pm our time) and they provided us with instructions for returning the unit. By the next morning we had received email confirmation of the handling process and that a replacement unit had already been shipped!!! The unit arrived a couple of days later. The unit was quickly unpackaged, set up with temporary spacing in the old GE opening and plugged in. The unit was much quieter than the GE unit had been but it is also smaller. While it did take about 5 hours for the unit to initially cool the building and contents (prior 100+ degrees)to about 80 degrees - again the unit is 6000 versus 10000, it did so quietly. The noise level is about that of a small vibration free fan set at the slowest speed. We later made the installation semi-permanent since this building is heavily insulated with out windows and this unit sufficiently maintains the temperature down to 70 degrees inside with the outside over 100. Again the unit is very quiet, easy access and cleaning of the filter screen which is in the front, automatic features work very well as listed and expected. One super feature is the automatic cycling of the fan every few minutes to draw room air over the temperature sensor so you get an accurate reading of the room temperature and cycling of the conditioner if necessary. This has resulted in a much more comfortable and consistant temperature control than other units we have had experience with. This result is a reduction in electric consumption and the elimination of 10 degree mis-readings of other units. This unit should be a consideration for anyone looking for a quiet and efficient unit but do make sure that you choose a size listed for your individual application and condition.

Shippped this unit to my son at college in new york city.. he said it works great (and new york summers can be brutal - and he's on the 4th floor!). His room is 10' x 12' and it keeps it nice and cool.

Great product for the price - shipped right away - he had it within a week.

I like this air conditioner so much that this is the first review I've ever written for amazon.com, and I'm buying another! It has all the bells and whistles, digital thermostat, programmable to increase temp in slight increments through the night, remote control, is quiet and is an Energy Star. It's not quite as compact as I hoped, but it's far from the behemoth it replaced!

fit in my small window and really works well. The side pieces that block the gap in the window do not fill in all the way and we need to find another solution for the cold air getting through in the winter. The unit itself is great and very user friendly.

I own the Frigidaire LRA074AT7, the 6500 BTU model found only at Lowe's around here, and they are out of stock. Based on my experience with that model, I just ordered this unit from Amazon. They look exactly alike, and it should work the same as its big brother model. The 6500 BTU model is not silent, but is very quiet, and does a great job of cooling down my living room and part of the dining room. The remote is great, but the best part is the timer! I just set the timer to start the AC just before I get home from work, and the room is already cool! We have new, vinyl double hungs and don't want to put holes in them, so we just put the unit in the window, closed everything up, and use a wooden slat on each side of the top window to keep it locked in place, and it works like a charm. Easy in, easy out.

I have this unit in my guest house which is about 400 square feet. Although the Frigidaire 6000 is apparently designed for a smaller area it works just fine most of the time. I like the small, compact size of this window mount unit. It mounts easily and the filter is easy to access and clean. One small thing that I really enjoy is the remote control. It allows me to turn it on, set the temperature, the fan speed, etc. I don't use the timer but it seems like a nice feature.

My only caveat is that I should have purchased a bigger, more powerful unit for the scorching South Texas summers. The 6000 does the job when it is in the high 80's and even the low 90's. But when we have day after day of 100+ heat it just doesn't get it done. Still, I can't blame the unit for that, however I can blame the salesman at the home-supply store for telling me that it would be fine for my needs. I should have checked it out here first. Live and learn.