My first attempt at a swamp cooler was based on this: http://www.appropedia.org/Burning_Man_Evaporative_Cooler I used some washable furnace filter mounted vertically in a painter's bucket. The vast majority of the dust fell to the bottom of the bucket, and as long as I emptied it daily, I didn't even need to clean out the filter. That was with a ~300cfm fan though, which is about half of what yours puts out. Looking at your cooler, that might not be an option because your intake isn't a duct, but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway.
On Tue, Aug 3, 2010 at 10:57 AM, Tony Beletti <[email protected]> wrote: > Zippy > I'm not sure there is a good way around your filtering problem. The more > you filter and seal around your cooler, the hard its fan/motor have to work > and the less efficient it becomes. The wet media will naturally filter dust > out of the air that enters your yurt, but the pads are the filter and will > fill up with dust regardless. I will be using my DIY trashcan cooler and > just plan to only run it when the wind and dust are at a minimum. I also > plan on wrapping the cooler up with something when not in use to prevent > excess dust from lining the media. > Tony > On Tue, Aug 3, 2010 at 11:28 AM, Zippy <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> I just ran my first trial test with a swamp cooler in my hexayurt. It >> worked well, however, the dust on the Playa adds a confounding factor >> that I’m unable to trouble shoot in advance. My goal is to develop a >> system that is fairly resistant to dust influences. I’ll illustrate >> my idea, then maybe others could throw in some feedback. >> >> I’m using a commercially available swamp cooler: >> >> http://www.symphonycomfort.com/cooler_surround.html >> >> The Design: >> >> I’ve installed this cooler through one of the walls, sitting on the >> ground. I have cut two 6 inch exhaust ducts in the roof near the >> peak, with collapsible foil dryer tubes leading out and down the >> outside of the roof, with residential dryer check valves on them, to >> hopefully eliminate backdraft of dust through the exhaust vents in a >> storm. I tested this system over the weekend and all is well. >> >> One thing remains. How can I manage the dust that gets sucked in to >> the swamp cooler in a dust storm? The simple answer might be “Shut >> down the swamp cooler when the dust blows!” But the point of the >> swamp cooler is to be able to sleep through the day, and if I’m >> sleeping, I'll be unaware of the situation outside. So I am hoping to >> build a system that could operate through a dust storm, at least >> within reason. As a first line of defense, I’ll ask neighboring >> friends to cut my generator if they see it running in the storm. >> >> Proposed solution: >> >> I am building a totally sealed dust box around the outside of the >> swamp cooler with the RMAX, with a furnace filter intake panel. This >> sounded like a good plan until someone told me that furnace filters do >> not filter playa dust! Questions ... >> >> • Is this true? >> • If true, are some furnace filters better than others, i.e. does >> buying the highest grade make a difference? >> • Would two furnace filters work better, or only restrict airflow, >> putting stress on the fan? >> >> Thanks to any and all feedback! >> >> And then ... there is generator protection ... <sigh>. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "hexayurt" group. >> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to >> [email protected]. >> For more options, visit this group at >> http://groups.google.com/group/hexayurt?hl=en. >> > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "hexayurt" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/hexayurt?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "hexayurt" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/hexayurt?hl=en.
