Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I have had numerous swamp coolers over the years and after buying this unit and reading most of the reviews here, let me summarize the key points and respond to some of the complaints... I’m pretty sure the guy who complained about the fan and motor missing probably got a unit someone had returned. This has happened to me numerous times with Amazon. Yes, it’s frustrating but Amazon is great about correcting this by letting you return the unit or exchange it. They also run interference with the manufacturers to get you help, if need be. That’s what I like the most about Amazon Prime. Free shipping, free returns, customer service. Some of these bad reviews are 5 years old. There have been improvements to the design, from some of the reviews I read. ‘It’s plastic’. Yes, it’s primarily all roto-molded plastic. Every unit I have found elsewhere in this price range is also mostly plastic. Until you get into the $4-500- range, most are all plastic and even the more expensive ones have a lot of plastic and plastic parts. Every metal one I have had has started rusting somewhere from day one. They are heavy to move around. So, plastic. With this administrations attack on oil, plastic is getting expensive, like everything else. Gas prices go up? Plastic goes up. When parts fail, they are also less expensive to replace. The first, most likely, mechanical part that fails is the pump. Swamp cooler pumps are super cheap and easy to find and replace. If you get 2-3 years out of yours, good deal. Keep the unit out of the direct sun, store it indoors during the winter. Wide and extreme temperature swings wreak havoc on plastic. When u get the unit, open it up immediately and check for damage. Don’t wait until the first hot day to open the box and be surprised that something is amiss. You’ll be mad AND hot 🥵. If it looks good, plug it in and briefly check everything works before filling with water. Open the box upside down. Then u can easily access the panel hiding the wheels and parts, screw the wheels in and then turn it right side up ⬆️ and lift the box away. Keep the box. Cut the bottom flaps off before you turn it right side up and now your empty box can be used as a cover. You can also use a large plastic trash bag over the box to keep it dry and hide it from thieves. VS the $40.00 nice cloth one they sell with Hessaire emblazoned on it. Flatten the box and it stores easily. When u put the wheels on, do not over tighten them and strip the plastic out. If you do, go to hardware store and get the next largest size screw and it will be fine. Open the back panel, look inside and make sure everything looks ok. Give a little tug on on the wire connections and the media, pump and hoses, etc... Stuff comes loose during shipping. Look for cracks where leaks might form. Make sure the float arm moves freely and is not hitting the media. If it is, cut a little of the media away so it can move freely. All swamp coolers of significant size are noisy at highest settings. This one is no different. At low and 6-10 feet from me it’s entirely acceptable and I can have a normal conversation and hear my music playing. Same on high at 20 feet away. If your concerned about hard water there are inexpensive anti scaling dry tablets and wet solutions to add to your tank water. These will make your media last longer. Smell. Yes, at start up you will detect a discernible smell from the media as it gets wet but like others have said it goes away quickly. However, within a few days you may begin to smell a different funk emitted. A teaspoon of bleach or some bactericide for humidifiers solves that. Oil and water do not mix so I’m not a fan of putting essential oils in my humidifier. There are fragrant solutions made for that purpose, however. Keep in mind, people, like me, may be turned off or sensitive to smells. I hate the smell of vanilla and lavender scents. So, if company is coming or you use in a business environment, you might consider that. When your media wears out, buy synthetic media for replacement. Lasts longer, less smell, drys out more quickly when unit is turned off so bacteria is less likely to form. Dump a bag of ice into the tank before filling for parties or personal pleasure and it makes a huge difference. Put a pressure reducer on the garden hose if your going to use that feature for continuous fill. They are only about $5- at Home Depot. You will find them in the plumbing drip irrigation section. This way you don’t have to fiddle with the hose bib to get the flow you want and the tank will fill slower and cause less splashing 💦 which hits the fan and gets expelled onto you if you have really high water pressure. Hope some of this helps others...