Duration 3:8
How to Build a DIY Portable AC (Swamp Cooler)
Published 8 Aug 2023
Cool down with this DIY portable AC made out of parts you might have sitting around the house. Here's how to do it. Read the CNET Article for more info: How to Make Your Own Portable AC Unit at Home This Summer https://cnet.co/3YsBKcT 0:00 Intro 0:06 What you'll need 0:32 Drilling the holes 1:08 Inserting the Liner and the PVC Pipes 1:35 Cutting a hole in the lid 2:20 Adding Ice 2:30 Final Result Subscribe to CNET: /user/CNETTV Never miss a deal again! See CNET’s browser extension 👉 https://bit.ly/3lO7sOU Check out CNET’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com/shop/cnet Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ cnetdotcom Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cnet/ Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cnet #diy #airconditioner #diyprojects
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If you want the math...melting one pound of ice takes 144 BTU's of energy. Once the ice is melted, it takes 1 BTU to increase the temperature of water by 1 degree (F). So if you've got 20 pounds of ice in that bucket you'll get 2,880 BTU's of cooling power from melting the ice, plus another 800 BTU's to warm the water up from 32F to 72F. About 3,700 BTU's of cooling power if you load that bucket up. It's certainly better than nothing, but it's not going to be anything close to a real AC.
You get some nice cool / cold air blowing over you for an hour, maybe 3 if you use a really big cooler. It's been a nice stop gap for us since our upstairs HVAC went out. My DIY solution is enough to help my daughter fall asleep, and by the time my ice runs out the ambient temperature has come down. I'm not kidding myself though...I ordered a real portable AC to get us through the rest of this year. Next year the federal government will literally be dropping money out of helicopters for anyone wanting to upgrade their HVAC...so I'm waiting for that. ... 10
If you google “DIY swamp cooler” it’s full of this. 2
Hot enough to melt the roads.
This swampy (not an aircon) is way too complicated. The output will be minimal and won’t last too long.
I hang a few wet sheets around the place to drop the air temp slightly inside. I have a powerful box fan, I put a large fruit bowl with water in it and I rotate frozen bottles of water in it. The fan blows air over the top of the bowl and I sit fairly close to where I am sitting or sleeping.
Simply doing that keeps my area cool.
It’s not as cold as an air conditioner. But if you don’t have an air conditioner it’ll help a lot.
I turn my air conditioner on when I e had days of extreme heat and my house hadn’t had a chance too cool.
Otherwise I stick to the fan method like we did as kids. ... 1
If you want the math...melting one pound of ice takes 144 BTU's of energy. Once the ice is melted, it takes 1 BTU to increase the temperature of water by 1 degree (F). So if you've got 20 pounds of ice in that bucket you'll get 2,880 BTU's of cooling power from melting the ice, plus another 800 BTU's to warm the water up from 32F to 72F. About 3,700 BTU's of cooling power if you load that bucket up. It's certainly better than nothing, but it's not going to be anything close to a real AC.
You get some nice cool / cold air blowing over you for an hour, maybe 3 if you use a really big cooler. It's been a nice stop gap for us since our upstairs HVAC went out. My DIY solution is enough to help my daughter fall asleep, and by the time my ice runs out the ambient temperature has come down. I'm not kidding myself though...I ordered a real portable AC to get us through the rest of this year. Next year the federal government will literally be dropping money out of helicopters for anyone wanting to upgrade their HVAC...so I'm waiting for that. ... 10
If you google “DIY swamp cooler” it’s full of this. 2
Hot enough to melt the roads.
This swampy (not an aircon) is way too complicated. The output will be minimal and won’t last too long.
I hang a few wet sheets around the place to drop the air temp slightly inside. I have a powerful box fan, I put a large fruit bowl with water in it and I rotate frozen bottles of water in it. The fan blows air over the top of the bowl and I sit fairly close to where I am sitting or sleeping.
Simply doing that keeps my area cool.
It’s not as cold as an air conditioner. But if you don’t have an air conditioner it’ll help a lot.
I turn my air conditioner on when I e had days of extreme heat and my house hadn’t had a chance too cool.
Otherwise I stick to the fan method like we did as kids. ... 1