Topic: how can i beat the heat!!

[wannabridin]

i think it's because the cooling effect is so close to you.  it's just a small stream of air, and there's a relatively large amount of water to cool the small stream of air directly in front of you.  hell, even 20 degrees would be great!  it's either this little fan, or the sharper image neck cooler, but from the reviews i've read about this, this is the most effective and easiest!

[Gordon]

i think it's because the cooling effect is so close to you.  it's just a small stream of air, and there's a relatively large amount of water to cool the small stream of air directly in front of you.  hell, even 20 degrees would be great!  it's either this little fan, or the sharper image neck cooler, but from the reviews i've read about this, this is the most effective and easiest!

My main point, though, was that evaporative coolers don't work in humid climates.  They work by drawing dry air through a wet filter medium, and the evaporation of the water into the dry air causes the temperature of the air to drop while also increasing the humidity.  It's great for dry climates like here in Colorado, but they don't do squat if the air is already humid. 

If they worked in humid places you'd see them on houses all over the South, because they're way cheaper to buy and to run than conventional air conditioners.  I spent the first 28 years of my life in Texas and had never even heard of a swamp cooler until I spent some time in Nevada.  In the area where I was pretty much every house had one because they work amazingly well in that kind of environment.  I'm going to miss the cheap cooling when we move back to Texas.     

[motocyconomad]

what about dry ice in a tray in front of a little fan?

[RAFster122s]

what about dry ice in a tray in front of a little fan?

Do you know what dry ice is made of?
Let's see, ok, we take a huge block of dry ice and let it cool the air and as it converts from solid to gas (sublimates) the O2 in the room is  displaced with CO2. You get sleepy and go to sleep and if there's enough CO2 in the air then you die.
dry ice is made from frozen CO2, carbon dioxide

Best solution for beating the heat, move to a location where it doesn't get hotter than you can stand.
Or, man up & pay for cooling that works...

After the air temperature approaches body temperature you won't get much benefit from fans moving air. Evaporation isn't an option in higher humidity environments so you sweat and it doesn't evaporate.

David

[fmctm1sw]

http://www.kooleraire.com/index.htm

I looked at that a year or so ago.  I have an old cooler and two 5 or 6 inch 12 vdc fans.  I plan on making a summer project with the kids out of it.  I plan on wiring a cigarette plug adapter to it and putting in in my van.  I wonder if it really works?

[Gordon]

http://www.kooleraire.com/index.htm

I looked at that a year or so ago.  I have an old cooler and two 5 or 6 inch 12 vdc fans.  I plan on making a summer project with the kids out of it.  I plan on wiring a cigarette plug adapter to it and putting in in my van.  I wonder if it really works?

Possibly if you're sitting with your face directly in front of the air outlet you might get a cool breeze, but I doubt it will do any more than that.  That could be kind of nice if you have the cooler sitting immediately next to you, but then you'd have to have the windows closed or it would completely lose its effect. 

[CBGhia]

I was trying to find a post on my VW forum where someone made one with a heater core and a small pump.  Put Ice water in, it goes through the pump to the heater core, a fan in front of the heater core moves the now cooled air to you.  They posted it with pics of the temp dropping in thier bug by 20 degrees.   The interior of a bug is much smaller than your office, but it cold be a fun weekend project.    An oil cooler should work just as well as a heater core if you have one laying around.

[CBGhia]

Here is a link.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=296894&highlight=ice+chest+cooler

[wannabridin]

well i understand how a swamp cooler works, but i guess i'm just optimistic about how well a small cooler like this would work.  plus, some of the reviews on amazon are from places like lexington, KY.  Florida, the coast in CA, places that aren't the driest around either.  when i get a little extra cash, i feel like it'll be worth it to try.  if not, i'll return it, and bite the bullet for a little bit of money and a learning experience.