Cooling a House with Water

[Rick]

In the early sixties, I traveled to California to visit an uncle. He lived in Fresno. As I recall, he didn't have air conditioning but had a water cooled "chiller" that was a set of coils water was pumped over and a fan that blew the cool air inside the house (this is all strictly by memory). I was wondering if anyone has a similar type setup in their home and how it works.

We talk a lot about staying warm in the winter but staying cool in the summer can be an equal challenge and sometimes life threatening.

[Ken]

Rick, you thinking about a "Heat Pump?"

http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/.../mytopic=12610

Installed one with a friend - his place, not mine. New England weather's not quite suited for them, but even here they help a little.

[crashdive123]

Here's a homemade one that sounds like what you're describing. http://www.instructables.com/id/Home...r-conditioner/

[Rick]

No. I have a heat pump. It was just water over coils if I remember correctly then the air was sucked off it by a fan. Big wooden box looking thing outside. It just cooled and humidified the air as I recall.

Crash - that's an ingenious little contraption. That's an air conditioner extraordinaire! If you were off grid that should not be a lot of drain on batteries. One fan and one pump. Solar panels should keep up with that.

Maybe instead of water over the coils, maybe the water was pumped through them. Hmmmm.

[crashdive123]

The first car air conditioner that I saw was a neighbor that basically had a swamp cooler mounted on the window. A cylinder sat outside the window - air intake in the front of the cylinder - vent over the window that held it in place. Inside the cylinder was a water reservoir at the top and there were a series of fiberous baffles below it. Driver would pull a cord, releasing a small amount of water. Air rushing across the baffles - quick evaporation (heat exchanger) forcing cold air into the car.

[BraggSurvivor]

On the pig barn in the hot summer, I drape burlap in front of the open barn door and run a drip hose above it. The barn is noticeably 10 degrees cooler easy.

[crashdive123]

I don't know about the brand, but these are pretty popular down here - http://www.coolingline.com/

[dragonjimm]

i think youre referring to a evaporative cooler see one here http://www.backwoodssolar.com/ look under appliances dc

built one for the dojo using a large radiator and a buried drum to hold water
it works great especially when youre working out in a metal building in july air temp averages 25 to 30 degrees cooler . in the winter circulate through a water heater and get warm air off it.

[Alpine_Sapper]

built one for the dojo

Your dojo? Do you teach, or do you simply have it for your own training?

[wareagle69]

back in pheonix we called it a swamp cooler

[dragonjimm]

my bff teaches brazillian jui jitsu and MMA, i get the lifelong friend discount.

[Rick]

Thanks, DJ. I'll bet that's what it was. It looks a lot like what I have a memory of. His sat outside and blew air down a hallway. Wasn't cold but was a lot cooler.

[dilligaf2u2]

Swamp Cooler! I have one to cool my house! Sears for $449 about 5 years ago! Keeps the hole house about 20 to 30 degrees cooler. It is 80 outside now and 60 in the house with overcast Sky's and the cooler on low!

Water runs over a mat of straw and air is sucked threw the mats cooling off the air. The squirrel cage fan sucks the air our of the cooler and forces it into the house! This draws air into the box threw the water.

Don

[Chicago Dan]

In the early sixties, I traveled to California to visit an uncle. He lived in Fresno. As I recall, he didn't have air conditioning but had a water cooled "chiller" that was a set of coils water was pumped over and a fan that blew the cool air inside the house (this is all strictly by memory). I was wondering if anyone has a similar type setup in their home and how it works.

We talk a lot about staying warm in the winter but staying cool in the summer can be an equal challenge and sometimes life threatening.

Well had them really.
This was a semi popular convenience in Hotels, Luxury residences, YMCA's, Movie theaters etc. many years ago.

I last one I saw was about 20 years ago in the basement of an apartment building(4 unit). It was not functioning but was intact. The basic premise is as you described: Water, coils, fan. Many were taken out for space or scrap many moons ago as Chicago intuited metered water(except single family homes). You see the key was the "cool" city supplied water that was left on constantly to feed the system. After it passed thru the coils it basically drained into the sewer. I can't imagine what daily usage at say the Drake(very large hotel) was in a single day. Anyhoo, metering and more efficient A/C quickly put an end to it.
Old timers I’ve talked to about it pretty much dismiss it. Yes you could cool the ambient temp a little but the corresponding humidity in the basement(where they were always located) just skyrocketed and their was always a problem of mold. In fact I bet there are ordinances against them now. Maybe if you have a creek or stream you can tap into close to your residence but I doubt many will fit that criteria.

Nice idea Rick, Big star for reaching back for that one.

Note: Another popular method used ice instead of water but that has even less value in this Forum.

[dragonjimm]

in modern terms it is called geothermal, basically drill a hole and run the pipe down and back up water is cooled as it passes down the hole and back up.
the other method is to dig a ditch some 25 yards or longer and layer youre pipe in at least a half mile of pipe.
the method is fairly popular further north as means to heat the house. where 40 to 50 degree ground water is warmer then the outside temp.

[dragonjimm]

the one i helped put together moisture was not a concern and water was circulated under ground to a couple of drums we had buried we also treated the water with the same stuff used in waterbeds.

[Rick]

DJ - Good tie in. I guess geothermal is the modern equivalent. And much more efficient, obviously.

[Chicago Dan]

in modern terms it is called geothermal, basically drill a hole and run the pipe down and back up water is cooled as it passes down the hole and back up.
the other method is to dig a ditch some 25 yards or longer and layer youre pipe in at least a half mile of pipe.
the method is fairly popular further north as means to heat the house. where 40 to 50 degree ground water is warmer then the outside temp.

the one i helped put together moisture was not a concern and water was circulated under ground to a couple of drums we had buried we also treated the water with the same stuff used in waterbeds.

I have always wondered what the btu trade off was between air that was cooled and the heat generated by pumps/fans. I bet your really not gaining that much.
Then again if you can locate those heat sources outside then I guess it would not be a problem.

Also the problem of moisture here was not due to it being an "open" system as it was not. The problem was due to the condensation on the "cooled" pipes. I guess if your located in a dry/arid part of country then this would not be a problem. Here in the big windy where humidity was 96% yesterday(no lie) it is a pipe dripping mess. I have a dehumidifier running in my basement right now trying to get it down to reasonable levels.

[Rick]

Yeah, a bit of humidity problem around here as well. Evansville has had 7 inches of rain and it continues to fall. I suppose that blub, bluble, glub...........

[BraggSurvivor]

Yeah, a bit of humidity problem around here as well. Evansville has had 7 inches of rain and it continues to fall. I suppose that blub, bluble, glub...........

Flooding problems with 7" of rain? Are the farmers getting their crops in?