evaporative cooling for A/C condenser test with garden hose study - Page 2

warmwxrules · 07-09-18, 12:49 PM

wait... isn't this the same thing newer window AC units are achieving with the lack of drainage holes and allowing condensate to pool up and be splashed/sprayed all over? I have 2 units that both have this design. They become slime mold factories quickly and have to be washed often. The larger unit (8000btu) become so annoying i just drilled a hole and no it just leaks condensate into a bucket...requiring far less cleaning..but probably also increasing energy usage.

u3b3rg33k · 07-09-18, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warmwxrules

wait... isn't this the same thing newer window AC units are achieving with the lack of drainage holes and allowing condensate to pool up and be splashed/sprayed all over? I have 2 units that both have this design. They become slime mold factories quickly and have to be washed often. The larger unit (8000btu) become so annoying i just drilled a hole and no it just leaks condensate into a bucket...requiring far less cleaning..but probably also increasing energy usage.

the 8k unit i'm working on has some kind of thermostatic drain valve in the outdoor half.

Elcam84 · 07-09-18, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warmwxrules

wait... isn't this the same thing newer window AC units are achieving with the lack of drainage holes and allowing condensate to pool up and be splashed/sprayed all over? I have 2 units that both have this design. They become slime mold factories quickly and have to be washed often. The larger unit (8000btu) become so annoying i just drilled a hole and no it just leaks condensate into a bucket...requiring far less cleaning..but probably also increasing energy usage.

Haven't seen that happen here. Its hot and humid here with the highs 100+ mist days so the condensate doesn't hang around to slime up. Window units typically run 24/7 here as well so there is always agitation and airflow.

I have a 2 ton window unit in the shop which is way way undersized and it stays very clean. Its also out of the weather as its covered by a large roof.

What the OP wants to do is not use water directly on the coils but to use it in a swamp cooler style to precool the incoming air.

warmwxrules · 07-09-18, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elcam84

Haven't seen that happen here. Its hot and humid here with the highs 100+ mist days so the condensate doesn't hang around to slime up. Window units typically run 24/7 here as well so there is always agitation and airflow.

I have a 2 ton window unit in the shop which is way way undersized and it stays very clean. Its also out of the weather as its covered by a large roof.

What the OP wants to do is not use water directly on the coils but to use it in a swamp cooler style to precool the incoming air.

Maybe its all the bugs-spiders build webs/mosquitoes--that get into the inside of the AC unit. Probably just fuel for the slime molds. I would spray out thick snot like chunks of slime after a week or 10 days of straight running. I've been cooling the house with this one unit..so it would run nonstop most of the summer. Now i added another small unit to another room for during the real hot stuff. Just looking my 8000btu pulls about 730 watts on low with an outside temp in the upper 80Fs with dews in the upper 60Fs..so plenty of moisture in the air. Very very wet spring/summer.

oil pan 4 · 07-10-18, 07:53 PM

I really don't want to spray my condenser.
The water here is incredibly hard. It maxes out the water test strips I have.

u3b3rg33k · 07-10-18, 08:19 PM

lots of water in your rock, eh?

RO is probably the only way to get water that won't foul it. I'm sure they use cooling towers down in NM - what do they do to keep the fouling at bay?

Elcam84 · 07-10-18, 11:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oil pan 4

I really don't want to spray my condenser.
The water here is incredibly hard. It maxes out the water test strips I have.

What is the humidity there in the summer? Spraying with cold water will work anywhere but using the swamp cooler method to precool the incoming air wont be very successful with humidity over something like 25%.

I will never understand why they sell swamp coolers here as the humidity never lets them be effective here....

Looking at your numbers thats a drop of 5 amps and a decrease in vent temp which could be computed into even lower amp draw for comparison sake. Just doing some rough numbers in my head even if you were to spray the coils with water the energy savings would be more than worth it and end up in an actual lesser usage of water when you factor in the water needed to produce electricity.
A better use would be to use condensate water as it is much cleaner and essentially free in a way. Here we produce well over 5 gallons a day but you would need a tank and a pump.

But the issues of direct water on the coils like mentioned can be mitigated. However the other issue would be the runoff which over time would soak the ground around the condenser if not routed to the yard away from the unit.

Elcam84 · 07-21-18, 05:08 PM

Been reading a little here and there on the subject and found references to an old condenser that was like what the OP is wanting to do. It was basically a condenser coil with a swamp cooler wrapped around it. Sounds like it worked but had issues with rusting out.

Now I have planted a couple mister heads about 3' from the condenser. I'm using a couple of drip irrigation spikes that have screw in heads. The mister nossles have the same thread so... They spray straight up. I am funning the water through a big commercial water filter from a wendys remodel. Its a triple filter with an ice machine clarifier that removes the vast majority of the minerals.
I wouldn't usually do this on my own unit that is only a couple years old but its been quite hot here. It was 119* the last two days and its 115* right now in the back yard.... Its 95* by 9am some mornings and still 100* by 10pm. So anything that might help keep the house a little cooler...

I have noticed a slight drop in amps even though my sprayers are further away but the water is being drawn towards the unit. Most is evaporating on its way to the unit cooling the air. Its only 1-2 amps but its a benefit and it does shut off for a few minutes here and there. However I have had to close off a bedroom which makes a marked difference on hot days. I only plan to run this from about noon till 9pm while its the hottest and until the extreme heat passes.

Will see how it goes. Oh and here is a link to my weather station. I just went out and checked it with a second thermometer and they are both reading the same, unfortunately my exterior temp is correct... https://www.wunderground.com/persona...d?ID=KTXAZLE23

I also let the water tun for a bit to see what the cold water temp was... The "cold" water temp rose to 88* after I let it run a few minutes...

Oh and also luckily we changed our electric plan last year. So last month was only about $155 where as on the old plan it would have been well into the 200s. Oh I cant wait till we move...

07-09-18, 12:49 PM	#11
warmwxrules Helper EcoRenovator Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: La Crosse, WI Posts: 78 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	wait... isn't this the same thing newer window AC units are achieving with the lack of drainage holes and allowing condensate to pool up and be splashed/sprayed all over? I have 2 units that both have this design. They become slime mold factories quickly and have to be washed often. The larger unit (8000btu) become so annoying i just drilled a hole and no it just leaks condensate into a bucket...requiring far less cleaning..but probably also increasing energy usage.

07-10-18, 07:53 PM	#15
oil pan 4 Land owner Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: NM Posts: 1,026 Thanks: 12 Thanked 127 Times in 107 Posts	I really don't want to spray my condenser. The water here is incredibly hard. It maxes out the water test strips I have.

07-10-18, 08:19 PM	#16
u3b3rg33k Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: Rustbelt, USA Posts: 114 Thanks: 5 Thanked 10 Times in 9 Posts	lots of water in your rock, eh? RO is probably the only way to get water that won't foul it. I'm sure they use cooling towers down in NM - what do they do to keep the fouling at bay?

07-21-18, 05:08 PM	#18
Elcam84 Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: TX Posts: 275 Thanks: 2 Thanked 31 Times in 24 Posts	Been reading a little here and there on the subject and found references to an old condenser that was like what the OP is wanting to do. It was basically a condenser coil with a swamp cooler wrapped around it. Sounds like it worked but had issues with rusting out. Now I have planted a couple mister heads about 3' from the condenser. I'm using a couple of drip irrigation spikes that have screw in heads. The mister nossles have the same thread so... They spray straight up. I am funning the water through a big commercial water filter from a wendys remodel. Its a triple filter with an ice machine clarifier that removes the vast majority of the minerals. I wouldn't usually do this on my own unit that is only a couple years old but its been quite hot here. It was 119* the last two days and its 115* right now in the back yard.... Its 95* by 9am some mornings and still 100* by 10pm. So anything that might help keep the house a little cooler... I have noticed a slight drop in amps even though my sprayers are further away but the water is being drawn towards the unit. Most is evaporating on its way to the unit cooling the air. Its only 1-2 amps but its a benefit and it does shut off for a few minutes here and there. However I have had to close off a bedroom which makes a marked difference on hot days. I only plan to run this from about noon till 9pm while its the hottest and until the extreme heat passes. Will see how it goes. Oh and here is a link to my weather station. I just went out and checked it with a second thermometer and they are both reading the same, unfortunately my exterior temp is correct... https://www.wunderground.com/persona...d?ID=KTXAZLE23 I also let the water tun for a bit to see what the cold water temp was... The "cold" water temp rose to 88* after I let it run a few minutes... Oh and also luckily we changed our electric plan last year. So last month was only about $155 where as on the old plan it would have been well into the 200s. Oh I cant wait till we move...