Air cooler fans better than air con?

[RandolphGB]

I've seen a couple of shops using air coolers instead of air con. They said they were much cheaper to run and when I was inside it felt just as cool as a room with the air con switched on.

Has anybody got experience of these? I've seen a couple from Hatari that look OK and are about 4,000thb - 5,000thb to buy. (http://hatari.co.th/en/products/aircooler-3.html)

[bkkmick]

Seen them but I always had the impression that they were just moving the air conditioning in the shop and not actually cooling themselves. I could be wrong.

[roamer]

Totally useless in a humid climate. At best they can lower temps by 2 to 3 degrees. In a humid climate they just introduce more water vapour into the air.

Btw. Had one in the UK for "hot" summers, ended up on the rubbish tip.

Edited May 11, 2016 by roamer

[sipi]

I have seen the argument that they are only adding water to the air.

They work on evaporation. If you wet a face cloth and spin it around (or put it in front of a fan for a little while) then put it on your face, it will feel quite cool; even in humid climates. Try it.

Evaporative coolers work exactly the same way.

[daoyai]

Humid climate? for the last 2 months here in Chiang Mai the afternoons have been about 15 percent humidity.

[lust]

I bought one for 9,000baht. Totally useless in Bangkok. It made my room feel extremely humid. The ones that you see in the department stores work well because they are inside with dry air conditioned air already. Waste of money.

[impulse]

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/906597-evaporation-cooler-any-good/

Lots of historical threads in the topic.

[Eclipse]

Every topic that has ever been started about these things have come to the conclusion that they are rubbish and a waste of money.

[chrisinth]

I have a room at home that already has a 18,000 BTU aircon installed, but it was under calculated for the area. It still works, but the compressor runs for most of the time it is on,

Do you think one of these coolers would be an option of extending the efficiency of the aircon, or better to replace the existing one for bigger?

[Naam]

I have a room at home that already has a 18,000 BTU aircon installed, but it was under calculated for the area. It still works, but the compressor runs for most of the time it is on,

Do you think one of these coolers would be an option of extending the efficiency of the aircon, or better to replace the existing one for bigger?

if the compressor runs most of the time the calculation was correct.

forget any coolers!

[ChristianBlessing]

In the desert southwest in the US we refer to these as "swamp coolers". During the driest parts of the year when humidity is under 40% they work well. During the monsoon season when humidity rises above 60% the evap cooler goes off and we flip on the air-conditioning to both dry and cool the air.

[thai3]

if they were any good people would not bother with A/C last one I looked at in a shop was pumping cool air at the front and emitting hot air from the back. They seem good in a shop, that's where they should stay!

[Naam]

if they were any good people would not bother with A/C last one I looked at in a shop was pumping cool air at the front and emitting hot air from the back. They seem good in a shop, that's where they should stay!

may i assume that you are a learned engineer?

[kannot]

I have a room at home that already has a 18,000 BTU aircon installed, but it was under calculated for the area. It still works, but the compressor runs for most of the time it is on,

Do you think one of these coolers would be an option of extending the efficiency of the aircon, or better to replace the existing one for bigger?

if the compressor runs most of the time the calculation was correct.

forget any coolers!

Bloody useless in Thailand, its been done to death, heres the chart showing the figures for the useless things.......if u really want cheap air cooling go stand in a shopping mall all day

Edited May 12, 2016 by kannot

[thai3]

but are you an engineer kannot?

[kannot]

but are you an engineer kannot?

I dont have to be, anyone who worked in the nuclear industry is good enough an engineer for me

[HerbalEd]

They work OK if you are near and directly in front of them. Otherwise, they won't cool a room.

What really concerns me is the quality of water used in these fans. If there is live bacteria, mold or viruses in the water then they will be vaporized into the air for you to breath in.

[Koosdedooes]

but are you an engineer kannot?

Very obvious by you posts...your not

[Koosdedooes]

They work OK if you are near and directly in front of them. Otherwise, they won't cool a room.

What really concerns me is the quality of water used in these fans. If there is live bacteria, mold or viruses in the water then they will be vaporized into the air for you to breath in.

But if your living in BKK the bacteria and virus may improve the air quality LOL

[nongsangcity]

A Friend of mine bought one last month....ok in the shop as its in an air con cooled shop.....brings it home into a very warm bedroom....totally useless....think he paid around 5500-6000 bht...............i bought a brand new Samsung Aircon in Macro last year....8500 bht ...ive got to chip the icicles off the wives nose in the morning its that cold..........

[noosard]

They are better than just a fan but not as good as an aircon

They can not be used in a closed room unless you want a sauna or growth on the walls and ceiling

[Jedsada3]

Hello,

I've seen some air cooler with a "frozzen gel cartidge" at HomePro (the cartridge looks like the one you use in the coolbox)..

The guy said that depending of the temperature of the air sucked by the fan, the air coming out wll be cool between one and three hours.

Those coolers don't add water in the ambient air. They just cool it down,.. but you need a lot of cartridges (around 150 THB) and stay up to change it after 1-3 hours!

[Koosdedooes]

Hello,

I've seen some air cooler with a "frozzen gel cartidge" at HomePro (the cartridge looks like the one you use in the coolbox)..

The guy said that depending of the temperature of the air sucked by the fan, the air coming out wll be cool between one and three hours.

Those coolers don't add water in the ambient air. They just cool it down,.. but you need a lot of cartridges (around 150 THB) and stay up to change it after 1-3 hours!

A cooler box, and the associated blue "ice" blocks and a fan and some 4" plastic plumbing pipe will do the same thing

[NoshowJones]

You have to remember that the air in the shop is already cool because of the air condition, but

this is a good topic, and I will be very interested to see how it goes.

[AlQaholic]

I have one of those. Completely worthless. You put ice in a box of water and the water circulates and evaporates, cooling down the room and also adding a shit load of humidity. The humidity adds to the heat effect. Plus they make a hell of a lot of sound which you cannot hear in the shop due to all other surrounding noise.

[denby45]

if they were any good people would not bother with A/C last one I looked at in a shop was pumping cool air at the front and emitting hot air from the back. They seem good in a shop, that's where they should stay!

You were looking at an AC unit. Not a cooler. You have to lead the air from the back outside by use of a hose. Failing to do that and you are just recirculating the air inside the room and wasting electricity.

Den

[Paul Laycock]

Agree with AlQaholic, my wife purchased one and ended up giving it away.

[willyumiii]

I thought they worked well in the shop too.

Then I realized that the shop was air conditioned.

My experience out of the shop is that they do increase the humidity.

So, if Thailand is not humid enough for you, it may be a good purchase.

[little mary sunshine]

Only work in dry climate desert . In this climate

Nothing but more mold and mildew. Unhealthy

To say the least in Thailand

[rethaier]

Just bought one for 5300 baht for daughters room. Absolutely useless.