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The following is from a chat thread on Freegle and sounds great.
A friend of mine rang me earlier, asking me to remind her how to make my "Home Made Air Conditioner" (also known as a Swamp Cooler!) so I thought I'd remind you all! It's an effective way of actually reducing the temperature of the rooms you are cooling, and if you are lucky, you won't need to buy anything new!
THINGS YOU'LL NEED:
ELECTRICALS: Freezer with some spare space
Electric fan
OTHER ITEMS: Washing up bowl or high sided tray
Empty plastic Fizzy Drink Bottles with screw on Lids
METHOD:
1) Fill the bottles about two-thirds full of cold water, and then squeeze the bottle until the water reaches the top, and screw the top on tightly. Do Not Overfill, as the bottle may burst! Place the bottle in the Freezer until the water has frozen solid, preferably overnight.
2) Place the fan so that it can blow over the plastic bowl or tray, and stand the frozen bottles in the bowl/tray. Place more bottles into the freezer if possible, in order that you will be able to refreeze your initial ones when they are too melted, and put newly frozen ones in the bowl to achieve a constantly cooled room.
RESULTS:
As the air is blown over the frozen bottlers by the fan, the air is cooled. Moisture in the air will condense on the sides of the bottle as it cools, and run down into the tray. The cooler, and now less moist air will be much more comfortable, and the room will be cooler and actually feel even cooler as it is drier.
COMMENTS:
When I had a dog with heart failure, some years ago, I was able to cool the room by placing 6 frozen bottles in a tray as I went out ao work. I would return home daily to a living room that was at least 4 degrees C cooler than the street outside, and also cooler than the rest of the house, even though the room's door had been left open so the dog could choose any room he wanted. My dog had also a supply of cold, freshly condensed water that he had discovered in the tray! My vet was very impressed that my elderly dog had not been stressed through the hot summer weeks, and we were able to keep him happy and relatively healthy, despite his failing heart, until he was 19 years old.
ECONOMY:
If you are running a freezer anyway, this will not use a lot more electricity to freeze the water, and the fan is much cheaper in terms of power to run than an air-conditioning unit. It is efficient, and it functions well. If you Don't have the Fan, empty Fizzy Pop Bottles, a Bowl, or even a Freezer, you can even ask for them on Freegle - but be warned, the heat may not be here much longer, now that I have posted this!!
WARNING:
Be sure to keep Water and Electricity separate! Ensure that the water can not overflow from the bowl onto the socket, the fan, or ANY Electrical cables or devices!!
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Sounds like a good idea! :-D
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