Cooling Options – Evaporative Cooling
A common standard builder’s cooling option is evaporative cooling.
This is probably because they are relatively cheap to install.
They also have fairly low power consumption as you are basically only running a fan.
So whats the down side?
- Evaporative systems work best in areas of low humidity so they will be less effective in coastal areas where most of us Australians live.
- They can only cool up to the ‘wet bulb’ temperature. (Check with the Bureau of Meteorology to find out what this may be, it might be OK for you)
- To be effective you really need a door or window open in each room that you want to cool. Not too good if security is a concern, or you want to come home to a cool house.
- A central unit will use around 25L per day which might be a significant consideration if you are on tank water. You can however shut the water off and rely on the breeze alone on some days.
- There are some bush fire risks in having a large plastic structure on the roof. (DO NOT RUN AN EVAPORATIVE COOLER IF THERE IS A BUSH FIRE – It will suck flying cinders to the unit increasing the risk to your home)
Personally I am not a big fan of these units, because of the humidity they add I always feel a bit clammy. (In the USA they call Evaporative Coolers ‘Swamp Coolers’ for good reason!
If you have
- Good House Orientation
- A well Insulated house
- Solar cells on the roof (which generate lots of power on hot sunny days)
The power use of a refrigerated system should be largely offset.
For similar posts see Selection
More on the details for your new home including 24 pages of Check Lists in the ‘Selection/Pre-Start Guide’