Portable A/C vs Portable Evap Cooler

MurshDawg

MurshDawg

Active Member
So, I am doing research as to what would be the most economical purchase for my grow room cooling. I am either going to purchase a portable evap cooler or a portable A/C. What are y'alls opinion on the pros and cons of both cooling methods. I would think evaps are cheaper and they add humidity to our dry ass climate.
 
stumps

stumps

Well-Known Member
Depends on heat and venting. I stay away from a/c. That's just me lot's of people use it. Mine gets hot but humidity is hardly ever below 28% I use lots of fresh air.
 
lrg

lrg

Active Member
swamp coolers are garbage

a standard 5200 btu A/C window unit will work best
 
TruenoAE86coupe

TruenoAE86coupe

Moderator
I live in Colorado, pretty close to as dry. I use a swamp cooler to cool the basement and take the cooled air from there into the room. Works great, no issue with molds or mildews, and great cooling, took care of 3000 watts easy....
Why all the nay sayers to swamp coolers? For us in these stupid low humidity areas they are great, and the running cost difference is HUGE!!!!
My swamp cooler would out cool any 5200 btu a/c (which was a very specific size since we don't know a damn thing about the set up)
 
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infoseek

Active Member
lrg said:
swamp coolers are garbage

a standard 5200 btu A/C window unit will work best
Click to expand...
They do work well without exchanging the air outside but they kill your electric bill like no other.
it would really be best to just save and invest in the 400-500 portable ac units.

Yes you prob could find a way to exhaust enough air to use an evap cooler but what are you going to do during monsoon season?
 
BeaverHuntr

BeaverHuntr

Well-Known Member
I'd go with a protable AC or a mini split if you can afford it. Go with a dual hose portable AC just in case you ever decide to run Co2.
 
MurshDawg

MurshDawg

Active Member
TruenoAE86coupe said:
I live in Colorado, pretty close to as dry. I use a swamp cooler to cool the basement and take the cooled air from there into the room. Works great, no issue with molds or mildews, and great cooling, took care of 3000 watts easy....
Why all the nay sayers to swamp coolers? For us in these stupid low humidity areas they are great, and the running cost difference is HUGE!!!!
My swamp cooler would out cool any 5200 btu a/c (which was a very specific size since we don't know a damn thing about the set up)
Click to expand...
That's what I was thinking. We have an average of like 10% humidity all year long; in the summer it's more like 5%. It costs a shit ton of energy to run any a/c a 8000 btu pull around 9 amps at god knows wattage and a 2000 btu pulls 2 amps. I have seen 350 cfm portable evap coolers for less than the cheapest 1000 btu a/c. Maybe even with some ice packs in there you can coax out some more cooling.
 
TruenoAE86coupe

TruenoAE86coupe

Moderator
No actually the evaporation of the water cools the remaining water more than you would believe.
I would go with a big ass unit like i do, then just pull cool air from the cooled area. (obviously this won't work for everyone, but works very well for me. You are going to have a decent amount into a good size swamp cooler, but it will pay for itself with not having that huge electric bill. If you started looking on CL now you could probably come out with a really good deal.
But honestly in humidity like we have to deal with it is almost a needed piece, 50% humidity in Flower makes a huge difference.
 
phxfire

phxfire

New Member
A/c will use more eletricity than a e-vap. The e-vaap will only cool a room down about 10-15 degrees where a A/C can go down to 60 degrees....
Depending on ventilation system and the ambient temperature (Inside House Temp) the E-vap maybe beneficial in cost. where the A/c maybe beneficial in its ability to cool better.

Plants love 68-77 degrees... In Az Summers get over 110... So the question would be will a E-vap cool your grow room? With an A/c unit there is NO question about it...

I have found the only was an e-vap will work is if your house a/c is on and set to about 77 degrees during lights on... (ambient Temp). That is why I run lights on after dark.... Even in the summer there is not alot of stress to keep the room cool...
 
MurshDawg

MurshDawg

Active Member
phxfire said:
A/c will use more eletricity than a e-vap. The e-vaap will only cool a room down about 10-15 degrees where a A/C can go down to 60 degrees....
Depending on ventilation system and the ambient temperature (Inside House Temp) the E-vap maybe beneficial in cost. where the A/c maybe beneficial in its ability to cool better.

Plants love 68-77 degrees... In Az Summers get over 110... So the question would be will a E-vap cool your grow room? With an A/c unit there is NO question about it...

I have found the only was an e-vap will work is if your house a/c is on and set to about 77 degrees during lights on... (ambient Temp). That is why I run lights on after dark.... Even in the summer there is not alot of stress to keep the room cool...
Click to expand...
At that point turning my thermostat down to 77 would be more affordable than having a dedicated a/c for my room, imo.
 
TruenoAE86coupe

TruenoAE86coupe

Moderator
I agree entirely, and you would be surprised how much a good swamp cooler will lower temps, I have pulled high 90's down into the mid to low 70s.....
 
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infoseek

Active Member
I have tried a swamp coolers they are more trouble than they are worth & dont work well at all in the summer and not at all if it rains or if there is any humidity. You will find yourself aiming all the fans in your house around trying o circultatet he air to make the fucking thing work. (kind of) then after dealing with unnessasary bs you will return it and get an ac :)
 
fatboyOGOF

fatboyOGOF

Well-Known Member
i bought a very good portable A/C unit. cost $600. it worked great for about 2 months maybe. then the sensor broke and it wouldn't turn off when the desired temp was reached. it was too large to take to a store and i don't like strangers in my home so it sat in a corner until a gf took it.

i tried a portable evap fan. it didn't seem to work very well and i stopped using it after a month or so.

in the old days, with the 1000 watt, i simply learned to live with temps in the high 80s to low 90s! my yeilds were good. not great but i was pulling more than 16 oz per grow. i can live with that! :)
 
Jack Harer

Jack Harer

Well-Known Member
lrg said:
swamp coolers are garbage

a standard 5200 btu A/C window unit will work best
Click to expand...
That will work, but it will work its ass off. Get a 12,000BTU unit. It will cool more efficiently and use less power. Danby makes a good 12,000BTU portable unit.

I made the same mistake, getting the smallest AC I could get. Then got smart and bought the danby. The portables are freaking LOUD tho... sounds like a spaceship taking off!!

 
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