Customer Reviews

Friedrich Compact Programmable : CP06E10 6,000 BTU Room Air Conditioner

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I like to have a very quiet window air conditioner for my bedroom. This unit is great - it cools and dehumidifies, but most importantly it is very quiet. There is only a slight change in the decibel level when the compressor is running versus when it is not. If you value quiet in a window air conditioner get this one. I've tried many brands and have been disappointed by most. This one reminds me of my old Panasonic unit - whisper quiet.

Bought this A/C because of Consumer Report recommendation.
The unit is ok, easy to run & cools very quickly, But---
Not as quiet as I would have liked. Mounting is terrible, Manuel is poorly written & lacks a lot of information. The unit is designed to mount in a wood frame window but they want you to drive 8 screws into your woodwork. I didn't have to do that since I have a Vinyl window, I did get it installed but I had to use rubber shims between frame & wherever it touched the window to cut down on noise & vibration. The side curtains & bezel are very flimsy. The sleeve was supposed to be 13-5/8 H, & my window opened to 15 in H but the unit barely fit. I would have returned the unit but since shipping was around $35, when I bought it & another $35. to return it & probably a restocking fee I decided to keep it. It's just okay. Not as good as I had hoped. It's okay to buy on line but I recommend on something this big you go somewhere to see it physically & know exactly what you are getting. Would I recommend this to a friend? NO

Days Later

The Unit is still very noisy. As was stated by Warren the grill vibrates. Solution, Remove it as I did. The thing that makes this unit quite at times is the Low Fan Speed. The Compresser still comes on with a thud. Next season I will try to mount it better & hope to eliminate some of the vibrations & noise. If you have vinyl windows, DON'T buy this unit

I bought this thingy cause my old bedroom air conditioner, a.k.a. "The Bazooka", when it turned on in the middle of the night it scared the bejezuz out of my half asleep mind. (and dog). (and fish). So, this thing earned every one of it's stars because it doesn't scare me awake. It's actually rather quiet. Not whisper quiet, but especially when it's on the lowest fan setting - it is most definitely bearable. Beware, however, it does make slight water swishing noises, which the manufacturer claims are normal.

It was an absolute nightmare to install (and I consider myself gifted in the art of putting stuff together). It would have been SUPER HELPFUL if the folks at Friedrich wrote in BIG letters somewhere not to attempt install in hot temperatures. Gee, I wonder who would buy and install an air conditioner in cold weather, but maybe that's just me. The problem is the air conditioner has to come apart first from it's metal "cabinet" shell in order to get installed on the window. But, the air conditioner "insides" are made of a different metal than the "cabinet" and so when it's hot enough the metal inside expands at a higher rate and is practically "fused" to the metal cabinet. This, ladies and gentlemen, I figured out after huffing and puffing over this monster for 3 hours at 94 degrees weather. Finally, light bulb: I reinstalled The Bazooka; cooled the room down to 83 degrees; and boom it slid out like they were buttered.

2-Week-Use Update:
The "money saving" mode turned out to be very useful - it makes the AC turn itself on and off in order to maintain the desired temperature, while saving me big bucks. The "timer" mode is evil because it keeps raising the temperature on you, without you wanting it to. Overall - not sorry I bought it (once I had some time to forget the horrible install experience.)

I bought this to replace an old window unit in my bedroom. the old one was quiet but was too old to cool the room. This new unit does a great job, its very quiet and cools down my room, avg size room, but with very tall ceiling, and the air revolving function works great.
I'm very happy with this and would recommend it to anyone who wants to cool a bedroom with a quiet air conditioner.
I didn't have to install it myself so i cant speak to that aspect.

First: I admit to being very hesitant about purchasing this AC, but the decision was final when I heard Friedrich's is based in Texas. Buying USA products is extremely important to us. We were also informed most of the AC's on Park Avenue are Friedrich's.

Second: As noted by Duke, the instruction manual is poorly written & lacks information. 15 minutes into the installation, hubby informed me that he would most likely not have the unit up and running 'till the next day. An hour later I thought installing AC would be grounds for divorce. (Much worse than blinds!) The Frame guide is the piece that had hubby stumped. The illustration is not clear but hubby shrugged this off telling me we don't live in a perfect world. After quite a few attempts placing the piece in different places, he got it right. Warren's comment "about being tedious to install" is an understatement and putting it quite nicely.

Mounting was not a problem in our 75 year old Anderson windows because the unit rested on the bottom frame of the storm window. However, I warned hubby not to drive holes in to our Chestnut window stool! Turned out this wasn't necessary as the unit is quite sturdy with brackets in the top window frame.
After a late and hurried supper, hubby experienced the same problem venetian girl encountered attempting to get the AC unit in to the sleeve or cabinet. Once it was in, however, hubby glowed with the accomplishment and the easy part of running it was left to me.

We appreciate the energy saver (errr.. Money Saver) as it surely will keep a bit of $$ in the bank for taxes.
However, the timer is one option we probably won't use as, indeed, it raises the temperature. My only real complaint is regarding the Air Flow. The vertical adjustment does not direct the air over our heads while we're seated. Even so, the Auto Swing is a nice feature!

The Friedrich's AC is extremely quiet compared to our 15yr. old Kenmore. (See veneitian girl's description of "The Bazooka." ROFL) In fact, I would agree with D.Berkland that Friedrich's is whisper quiet. However, the rattle in our old windows is most annoying. But, Hey, "this is not a perfect world."

Bottom Line: The Friedrich's is whisper quiet and easy to operate. The 6000 BTU unit cooled our 13 x 22 room very quickly and we could actually hear the TV without blasting the speakers!!! So, not only does it save $$$: it saves our hearing!

Aside from being tedious to install, the unit is terribly noisy. The compressor is not bad but the cheap plastic grill rattles to the point that you want to kill someone. I've tried every means to get it to stop, but nothing works. My experience is confirmed by others at consumerreports.org, who have also experienced this rattle. Considering that this unit is $50 more than a comparable unit from other manufacturers, it is a total waste of money. There is very little of friedrich's vaunted quality in this unit.

Having researched AC units on Consumer Reports, we confidently chose this unit. It was billed as one of the most quiet out there.
The first unit we purchased had a very distracting and loud rattle. So did the replacement that Friedrich provided after a very long year of inattentive customer service. Now they have offered to "buy it back" but I am still waiting for follow up from their customer service.

We wil not be purchasing another Friedrich.

It was a challenge for my husband to install, which we had surmised from reading prior reviews. He had to make major changes, as our house does not fit the model which is assumed. BUT - it is quieter than our old one, and actually does cool off our west facing upstairs bedroom - a vast relief after years of never quite getting cool enough to be comfortable AND having to put up with major noise.
So - it works great, is relatively quiet, but unless you have someone with a mechanical bent to install it, you might want to look elsewhere.