Evaporative Water Coolers - My swamp cooler doesn't seem to cool well..ideas?
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caldesert
07-06-07, 09:51 PM
Every year around this time I feel like my evaporative cooler just isn't working as well as it should be, and I'm wondering if there is something wrong or if I'm just expecting too much of it.
For example: today it was about 115 degrees with 5% humidity. In my house, with the cooler running on high cool, it was in the mid 80's. From the information I've found, it seems like with that low humidity I ought to be freezing in the house, instead I am sweltering. Our cooler is a Mastercool MC63 and we have a 1700 sq.ft., single story house. We've checked and the cooler seems to be working properly (pads are getting all wet, etc) so am I expecting miracles from this cooler or does something seem wrong?
For example: today it was about 115 degrees with 5% humidity. In my house, with the cooler running on high cool, it was in the mid 80's. From the information I've found, it seems like with that low humidity I ought to be freezing in the house, instead I am sweltering. Our cooler is a Mastercool MC63 and we have a 1700 sq.ft., single story house. We've checked and the cooler seems to be working properly (pads are getting all wet, etc) so am I expecting miracles from this cooler or does something seem wrong?
mla2ofus
07-07-07, 03:43 PM
Are you opening windows to let air out of the house? The cooler is forcing air in and it has to have a way to get out. If a house has enough leaks in it the cooler will work well with all windows closed up to a point. 115* is extreme but at 5% humidity, it should still cool the house well if you have some windows open.
Mike
Mike
Sparksrick
05-27-09, 01:49 PM
Here in the Reno area we occasionally hit 110, and we found that swamp coolers generally lower the indoor temp by about 20 degrees at best, but depends on how you maintain and run the cooler.
We found that the kind of pads you use make a big difference, maybe five to ten degrees. We've used the green corrugated paper ones, the blue plastic ones that are supposed to be mildew proof, but by far the most effective kind is the shredded aspen over a plastic mesh.
Other strategies:
Make sure the vent back to the outside is at least as big as the cooler vent into the house. A double hung sash window should be open at least six inches. We keep the sliding window in the master bath at the back of the house open at least six inches.
consider venting the cooler air from the house into your attic, to push that hot air back outside through your roof vents. Prop open the access trapdoor into your attic with a pencil.
When it gets really hot and dry, our pump sometimes can't keep up with evaporation rate on the pads on high speed. Yeah, 85 degrees is usually about the best we can get in the afternoon. You might consider swapping out to a two-stage evap cooler.
We found that the kind of pads you use make a big difference, maybe five to ten degrees. We've used the green corrugated paper ones, the blue plastic ones that are supposed to be mildew proof, but by far the most effective kind is the shredded aspen over a plastic mesh.
Other strategies:
Make sure the vent back to the outside is at least as big as the cooler vent into the house. A double hung sash window should be open at least six inches. We keep the sliding window in the master bath at the back of the house open at least six inches.
consider venting the cooler air from the house into your attic, to push that hot air back outside through your roof vents. Prop open the access trapdoor into your attic with a pencil.
When it gets really hot and dry, our pump sometimes can't keep up with evaporation rate on the pads on high speed. Yeah, 85 degrees is usually about the best we can get in the afternoon. You might consider swapping out to a two-stage evap cooler.
sammy37
05-27-09, 03:41 PM
This thread is pretty old, I doubt that the op is ever going to read this but any added info is nice if someone else comes along to read it.
Hey Sparksrick, you say your pads dry out when it gets real hot, I have found that using a dump pump or a bleedoff seems to keep the junk out of the pads and help them stay wetter on a hot dry day.
I agree with you on the pads, aspen is the only way to go. I set up four identical coolers several years back and tested all varietys of pads and aspen beat them.
I have a two stage unit on my house and right now Vegas is in the high 90's with some considerable humidity but my cooler at the moment is blowing 62 degrees and the house feels dry!
Now that Adobe air is out of business, the only other company that sells a two stage unit is Champion and their model is VERY expensive and quite complicated compared to the model that Adobe air had.:)
Hey Sparksrick, you say your pads dry out when it gets real hot, I have found that using a dump pump or a bleedoff seems to keep the junk out of the pads and help them stay wetter on a hot dry day.
I agree with you on the pads, aspen is the only way to go. I set up four identical coolers several years back and tested all varietys of pads and aspen beat them.
I have a two stage unit on my house and right now Vegas is in the high 90's with some considerable humidity but my cooler at the moment is blowing 62 degrees and the house feels dry!
Now that Adobe air is out of business, the only other company that sells a two stage unit is Champion and their model is VERY expensive and quite complicated compared to the model that Adobe air had.:)