We have already felt the hot days last week. My home does not have central air conditioning, and a window air conditioner is not an option either. I was wondering how I can do differently than last summer to keep cool. Maybe I can buy an evaporative cooling unit, but it will still cost you upwards of $200 to $300 to purchase brand new. I am so excited to come across the easy DIY project of making 5 Gallon Bucket Swamp Cooler. What’s even better is that this DIY can be solar powered.
The equipment and materials for The 5 Gallon Bucket Swamp Cooler can either be found in your garage or in home improvement stores. This invention will work great even in a humid climate and it’s a simple design. Water and ice will be used as the refrigerant and the cool air is being dispersed by using a small electric fan. All you need to do is to assemble all the parts to make a DIY air conditioning unit.
A Homemade Evaporative Cooler is Just in Time for Summer. Hopefully it will cool down your home without having to use a heavy, electricity hogging air conditioner.
What you will need:
- 5 gallon bucket with lid
- 13 in. x 30 in. cooling pad.
- Garden Screen (size is similar to that of the cooling pad).
- 4 1/2 feet clear PVC tubing (1/4 inch diameter)
- Aquarium or waterfall pump
- Drill and cutter
- Small fan with a removable base
Instructions:
- Drill 3 2-1/4″ holes in the bucket
- Drill 3 2-1/8″ holes in the liner behind .( drilling these holes near to the base of the bucket cools better than holes in the top.)
- Cut a larger hole in the lid, measured to fit your small fan.
- Attach PVC segments to holes. If your liner holes are too big, you’ll have to glue them in.
- Fill with loose ice or a frozen gallon jug. (Reader Mattie Z recommends 4x 1 quart frozen bottles instead for greatly increased surface area.)
- Rest fan in the hole you cut in the lid and turn it on.
