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If you live in a dry climate (I'm in Colorado), consider a swamp cooler. It's an amazingly simple and efficient machine: just a water pump and a fan, and peanut

If you live in a dry climate (I'm in Colorado), consider a swamp cooler. It's an amazingly simple and efficient machine: just a water pump and a fan, and peanuts in electrical costs compared to a full air conditioner. As long as you can establish airflow throughout the home, it feels just like A/C on days below 95F; you won't feel chilly on 95F+ days, but it's still quite livable.

bdamm 7y ago
They are cheap, but they are also frequent causes of rotting out the structural members around the cooler. Beware leaks!
- lukifer 7y ago
  Good to know.
- camhenlin 7y ago
  Yeah and to add to this, adding too much humidity inside of your home can cause mold and other rot issues, not just around the wet swamp cooler itself. AC is definitely most convenient, maintenance, and hassle free for most people, but swamp coolers can be good if you are attentive and diligent about maintenance and noticing problems before they get big
bhhaskin 7y ago
I have a swamp cooler in Reno NV, and on 95+ days if I leave it on all day on max the house will be 60-70 degrees. It works so well I rarely run it on max settings as it just gets too cold. Of course there are some draw backs like swelling due to the humidity, and if there is smoke in the air I can't run it.
- ulkram 7y ago
  curious why can't you run it if there's smoke?
  - bhhaskin 7y ago
    It pulls in air from outside. So if their is smoke in the air from a wild fire then it will just fill your whole house with smoke. So you can run it, just highly ill advised.
    - adrianmonk 7y ago
      What about dust storms? Seems like some areas in the American Southwest (AZ, NM, West Texas) are dry enough for swamp coolers, but they also can have these insane dust storms that are so intense you can't see to drive on the highway.
- hollerith 7y ago
  >draw backs like swelling swelling of what, my I ask? (My guess would be the drywall or plaster of the home being cooled.)
dreamcompiler 7y ago
Swamp coolers are ubiquitous in New Mexico too, but they're falling out of fashion for new construction. Partially because they require a lot of maintenance, but mostly because water is no longer being seen as free and unlimited here in the high desert. The maintenance issue could be remedied with better engineering. But the water issue will require lifestyle changes that include getting serious about recycling gray water and harvesting rainwater, both of which are basically illegal now in many parts of the West.
cortesoft 7y ago
I lived in a house with a swamp cooler, it was miserable. Instead of hot and dry, I ended up hot and wet.

bdamm 7y ago

They are cheap, but they are also frequent causes of rotting out the structural members around the cooler. Beware leaks!

lukifer 7y ago
Good to know.
camhenlin 7y ago
Yeah and to add to this, adding too much humidity inside of your home can cause mold and other rot issues, not just around the wet swamp cooler itself. AC is definitely most convenient, maintenance, and hassle free for most people, but swamp coolers can be good if you are attentive and diligent about maintenance and noticing problems before they get big

bhhaskin 7y ago

I have a swamp cooler in Reno NV, and on 95+ days if I leave it on all day on max the house will be 60-70 degrees. It works so well I rarely run it on max settings as it just gets too cold. Of course there are some draw backs like swelling due to the humidity, and if there is smoke in the air I can't run it.

ulkram 7y ago
curious why can't you run it if there's smoke?
- bhhaskin 7y ago
  It pulls in air from outside. So if their is smoke in the air from a wild fire then it will just fill your whole house with smoke. So you can run it, just highly ill advised.
  - adrianmonk 7y ago
    What about dust storms? Seems like some areas in the American Southwest (AZ, NM, West Texas) are dry enough for swamp coolers, but they also can have these insane dust storms that are so intense you can't see to drive on the highway.
hollerith 7y ago
>draw backs like swelling swelling of what, my I ask? (My guess would be the drywall or plaster of the home being cooled.)

dreamcompiler 7y ago

Swamp coolers are ubiquitous in New Mexico too, but they're falling out of fashion for new construction. Partially because they require a lot of maintenance, but mostly because water is no longer being seen as free and unlimited here in the high desert. The maintenance issue could be remedied with better engineering. But the water issue will require lifestyle changes that include getting serious about recycling gray water and harvesting rainwater, both of which are basically illegal now in many parts of the West.

cortesoft 7y ago

I lived in a house with a swamp cooler, it was miserable. Instead of hot and dry, I ended up hot and wet.