My computer uses the same energy as a 40watt, a 60watt, and even a 90 watt light bulb. It's called AC.

That being said, the server room at Consumer Reports needs some clean up cable wise! You can make your own custom length patch cords for less than the store bought lengths.
I'll make sure to tell them that in October. My consulting fee is only a mere Lab Coat. I'll even throw in custom stress boots on any cables I make!

Oh the snark!
Still, is anyone surprised by these results?

I want to know how the Amish have whored out their good name to a company that seems shady at best.

And as far as how this unit works, I could put a fan in behind a bowl of ice cubes an approximate the same effect.

Btw, that "Chris" in the video isn't me. I am just as attractive, however.

@GitEmHomerJay!: Yes I thought it would catch fire.

@Chris Walters: I wasn't trying to be snarky! I mean to say that Video Chris is cute in a geeky sort of way, and so am I. I am also model cute and athlete cute and child pageant cute. Please stop reading this comment now.

In theory, this idea should work. Before modern day AC, places like my college (university at buffalo) cooled giant tanks of water, and simply blew water over the top. This product works on the same concept. In reality, if you can get the water cold enough, this should work.

@Chris Walters: Schoolboy crush cute, too ;-)

From the video it sounds like the test was it fighting with the air system for the test chamber...

@Yankees368:

I didn't watch the video, but it sounds like evaporative cooling. Google swamp cooler to see the downside of older systems.

So basically somebody re-invented the swamp cooler? Not gonna do much good in a humid climate.

I know they own consumerist.com, but I have really soured on Consumer Reports. They advertise that they "provide ratings and recommendations on the best models of traditional, umbrella, jogging, all-terrain strollers and double strollers." (see [www.consumerreports.org])

Needing a double stroller, I subscribed. However, it turns out that they DO NOT have ratings for umbrella, jogging, all-terrain or double strollers- just traditional strollers. I called and canceled, got a full refund and was assured that their teaser page would be corrected. Its no two months later and it still says the same thing..

I wonder how many people they have lured in with this type of bait & switch.

@Yankees368:

Consumers Union cools their building this way - to conserve - and gets something back from ConEd. Can't say it's the most efficient, then again, it was completed before the company sliced/diced offices - opened up additional floors... that lovely atrium gets mighty toasty as the sun beats down...

I was with 'em up until the $300 part. This (like a swamp cooler) would seem to be a cheaper, less effective alternative to a regular air conditioner. But even with supposed energy savings, I can't see how a glorified fan that you have to restock with ice packs could sell for more than $50.

How are they qualifying that price when you can get a more effective traditional A/C unit for half the price?

I don't see the problem with this. Who knows more about electricity and HVAC systems than the Amish?

@DarianAlcestis: slight correction: CU uses ice and blows air over the frozen water to cool. It's been a while...

@gaberussell:

They are suggesting it can replace that air conditioner and that you'll reap the money savings via reduced electricity usage.

If their claims were true, well, that'd be great. If you live anywhere that uses a "Humidex" to tell the temperature, this device is WORSE than useless.

@B:

@SupremeCourtNominee_GitEmSteveDave:

That's not a server room. Those cables are attached to the temperature sensors.

@SkokieGuy:

I don't think the Amish people can control the use of the word "Amish"

@Chris Walters:

So... you're saying you're attracted to the Chris in the video. Got it.

@Kyle Kienapfel:

That's what it seemed like to me, which isn't a fair test. But on the other hand Consumer Reports tests air conditioners, so I trust that they know what they're doing. It probably just wasn't clearly conveyed in the video.

@joos: Where is this that you speak of? The link you have says nothing of the sort.

Dang, I was gonna buy one but I missed the call-in time window for my time zone. I just know they are going to sell out.

@matt1978: "We also provide Ratings and recommendations on the best models of traditional, umbrella, jogging, all-terrain strollers and double strollers as well as travel systems."

Just do a search for the word "double". It's in the page, but it's not towards the top. It's in a large paragraph towards the lower middle of the page.

@larrymac: For comparison purposes, I'm cute too, but only in a ManBearPig kind of way.

This CR Bob guy is trying too hard to be Andy Rooney.

@SkokieGuy: It's just one Amish guy, and he's not really all that into it.

It's been a while since I have taken Thermodynamics, but wouldn't chilling the ice packs in the freezer produce more heat than the corresponding cooling effect from the Air Cooler? That is, there should be a net heating of the house from using this thing.

I suppose some people would be OK with a slightly warmer kitchen in exchange for a slightly cooler bedroom.

@matt1978: It's in fine print at the bottom. To make it larger for all of us I'll post it here:

"We also provide Ratings and recommendations on the best models of traditional, umbrella, jogging, all-terrain strollers and double strollers as well as travel systems."

@edbro: I hear ads on the Radio, every day, about buying houses on the cheap. "Call today for information if your name begins with A-K, tomorrow for L-Z."
But everyday I hear it, It's always A-K, and tomorrow never ever comes.

Sweet Jesus ,are people this fucking gullible to buy one of these things ? I don't have any HVAC certifications ,but this would seem to be the most inefficient way imaginable to cool air. And change the ice packs every 4 hours ? Are they serious ?

Look , I will believe that this is a miracle product when I see poorly photoshopped pictures of real Amish workers assembling these things and strapping them to the back of their horse and buggy to ship out to customers.

@Chris Walters: Too bad you don't do the comment of the day thing around here. Hand's down, this is it.

@joos: I suppose maybe they added it recently, but the "Latest Traditional Stroller Ratings" link on that page goes to a page that has ratings for 8 side-by-side and 3 tandem double strollers.

@Cant_stop_the_rock: Yeah. I think he knows that.

It's a swamp cooler with ice-packs, and it's far from being a new idea. That might actually work in a very low-humidity climate if it were really, really big, but here on the East Coast where relative humidity often hovers well over 90% in the summer...fuhgettaboudit!

Buy a $20 desk fan and hang rags soaked in cold-water in front of it. That doesn't really work either, but you'll save $280 and you can still use the fan.

I have to say this is one of the worst ideas ever. If consumer reports had located the freezer in the same room as the cool surge, they probably would have seen that it actually HEATS UP the room. You must understand how a freezer/refrigerator/air conditioner works. In laymen's terms, they remove thermal energy and put it somewhere else. For the freezer and fridge, the energy is moved into the air mass of the surrounding room. For the air conditioner, it is moved outside. The net energy on this $300 paper weight is zero... actually less than zero. The compressor in the freezer gets hot from friction and releases even more thermal energy. This is of course assuming a homogenous temperature throughout the room. Some people are too gullible.

The Cool Surge Portable Air Cooler is nothing more than a rebranded Tatung TWAC-0806 Air Cooler, with a flashy mirrored decal in the front, marked up 500 percent. Don't believe me? Check it out here at Newegg: [www.newegg.com] I bought one last year and had the same disappointing results as the tester.

It'd be nifty to work in a place if they played that sort of music whenever you wheeled something down the hall.

@SkokieGuy: Actually, this was featured on the make blog, if I'm not wrong. It's basically the same thing, only homemade (and likely better).

@wrjohnston91283: Im in Utah and live in a desert area for a place that has about zero humidity swamp coolers/evaporative coolers are awesome!

@Cant_stop_the_rock: I love how the cooler is made in China. The heater commercials show these supposedly Amish people assembling the heaters.

@Cameron Brooks: Oh wow your right.

LOl why not just keep the blinds closed during the day and keep the windows open (make sure you get good airflow). No electricity requried.

@Yankees368: We have friends in Tuscon who use some system of water-filled pipes on the roof. Seems to work very well. Of course they're not Amish so the marketing just went out the window.

I just find it funny Consumer Reports spent money to buy one and then spend money to test it. It's a fan with a freaking ice pack! DIY at home for whatever a fan costs or just buy a AC already for half the price and cools MUCH more then the 10 degrees this thing claims.

I would like to think the average person that knows how to access this Consumer Reports video online is smart enough to figure out this is crap all on their own. But if the last few years have taught us anything then if you give hype and media attention to something the ignorant masses will flock to it.

@SupremeCourtNominee_GitEmSteveDave: you just stole that woman's soul. way to go. are you proud of yourself now?

@Julius Seizure. (Lackey Position Avail.): It's the same music as the intro/outro music from howstuffworks.com's Stuff You Should Know podcast. I wish I knew what song it was.

/not a shill, just a big fan

@Applekid: That's a BearPigMan!