Info Archives - Brooks Dollar

Many people favor evaporative coolers during the early and late summer months in Arizona. They are a great way to cool your home when it’s 80-110 degrees outside. The only real drawback is that they don’t work too well on those high humidity days during the monsoon season. I recommend having an AC as a primary way to cool your home, but having a evap cooler is a wonderful way to help alleviate the steep electricity bills that summer can bring.

The main reason evap coolers are so much cheaper to run than air conditioners is that they only have 1 motor. While most AC’s have 2 motors and a compressor. Most amps are drawn during the startup of the compressor. It is equivalent to stop and go traffic in the city or non stop high way traffic.

Evap coolers use convection to transfer the heat from the outside air to the water that is falling across the pads. They can drop the temperature 25 degrees or more. The higher the humidity in the outside air will cause the cooling efficiency to decrease.

Proper maintenance on swamp coolers is crucial if you expect them to last more than the first season of operation. They are relatively low cost to maintain. If you do it right then you should only have to inspect and maintain your swamp cooler twice a year. Usually done before and after summer. I recommend doing a pre summer inspection during early spring. In Arizona I recommend to start getting your swamp cooler ready in February. I recommend winterizing it before snowfall or if you experience freezing temperatures where you are located.

Several things to take a look at when inspecting your evap cooler.

- Pads – Depending on how much the water is running across them, and how “hard” your water is. You might want to change these pads out yearly or every other year. In Arizona there is a lot of minerals in the water. This is evident from some of the large mineral deposits that are left on the pads after a few months of running your cooler. Sometimes a purge pump (aka clean machine) or a bleed valve will help keep your pads in decent shape. This works by draining some of the concentrated mineral water, and it will get replaced with fresh water from the fill valve.
- Fill valve – You want to make sure that the fill valve is properly activating and shutting off when at the proper level. Sometimes mineral deposits will stop them from doing their job.
- Fan Motor – You want to make sure that the fan motor is spinning well, and that no strange noises are coming from it. A little shot of lube might help it spin better.
- Pump – Make sure pump is delivering enough water, and the distributor lines are evenly delivering the water. Pumps usually will make a grinding noise when they stop working. Replace it with similar style.
- Belt – Belts tend to fray, crack, and tear after their service life. Replace the belt with the exact same size and style.
- Blower wheel – Take a look at the bearings that the blower wheel shaft is connected to. The bearings will rust after their service life has expired. Also make sure there isn’t too much vibration coming from the blower when spinning. I recommend replacing the whole unit rather then just replacing the bearings or blower wheel. It is usually more cost effective to replace the whole unit.
- Drain – The drain can get clogged with debris and sludge. Make sure the unit is draining properly. If the drain is worn from sun damage or clogged beyond repair. They are usually pretty inexpensive to replace.
- Water Pan – Make sure the water pan and condition isn’t too rusted. They sell a pan coating that you can spray on the bottom of water pans that are rusting. Once again I recommend replacing the whole unit if they get too rusted.
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When many of us think about plants. We don’t usually think of them as other living organisms with feelings. It is difficult for many of us to think that plants can get stressed out from their environment as many humans and animals do. After growing plants for a few years. You start to get a feel for how they are feeling at times. Plant stress is a real thing.

22195775_10214689990269959_3673553820146281118_n — Some wild flower seedlings sprouting in my backyard flower bed.

Growing in my garden in Chandler, Arizona. I have to deal with a harsh summer heat, and at certain times throughout the winter. It may freeze during the nights. You really have to have everything else on point if you expect to produce anything noteworthy. Sonoran Desert can be pretty unforgiving at times.

Some people have different views on putting stress on plants. Some think it will make them more robust in the long run. I on the other hand think that they will produce more and better quality with less stress. I feel plants like to be treated as Kobe Beef cows get treated. Anything that can be done to make the plants feel more at home to their native lands will increase your yields.

Proper plant nutrition is key. A balanced diet of nutrients for the plants will produce healthy happy plants. I found that composting is the best way to get a balanced diet for your garden, and it will help do your part to keep waste out of the landfills. I ordered a compost tumbler off Amazon (like in the link below) to hold the compost as it is getting ready. I also ordered a small composting container for my kitchen. It holds the composting materials a few days at a time so I don’t have to make daily trips to my compost tumbler. It has a charcoal filter to prevent odors. I noticed banana peels are a great way to get the compost party started. I also ordered some composting bags that break down naturally, and are compost safe. I recommend getting a roll to keep the time down when transferring the composting materials from bin to bin.

I got interested in the composting concept when I heard the fact that if you compost. You can reduce the amount of trash you send to the landfills by around 30%. Not to mention the benefits your garden will get in the long run. I have plans to set up a neighborhood composting program in the future once I could use the extra help for my garden. I will continue to keep you guys updated on the progress.

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Benefits of Evaporative Coolers

Don’t stress plants out