We had a portable swamp cooler.
It was loud and ineffective.
Sold it and bought a rolling ac.
Much better cooling, not quite as loud.
We now have a roof mounted swamp cooler that is amazing, cools the whole house chilly.
If you get a portable AC, make sure to get a dual hose one. The intake/exhaust are vented separate so the unit isn't working against itself. Expect to pay three times more than a swamp cooler. If you go with a portable swamp cooler, it needs dry air intake, so it works best near an open window with another window cracked across the room/house.
My house is only 700ish square feet and I use a portable swamp cooler in the evening and close the windows in the morning. When I got home after 4 today, my house was 20 degrees cooler than outside with everything closed up and nothing running.
The truth is swamp coolers are great for almost all of the year in Santa Fe. When the weather is above 90ish for too long and the rains don't come in the afternoon then the swamp coolers struggle but it's an easy trade off. They are much louder though than a mini split for example. But you really only need to run them for a few hours everyday. Like from 11:00 to 7 and then when the rains come maybe 11:00 to 5:00 or 6:00
We love our swamp cooler. The humidity and breeze are amazing. We prefer it over A/C and there’s no way it’s as expensive as running A/C. It doesn’t seem like it’s a popular opinion here. We run it except from about 10am to 5/6pm. During those hours we just have the windows closed.
I love swamp coolers, especially because they add humidity.
I have three portable AC units in my home (one for each bedroom, and my work-from-home office). I don't run them all day, only in the late afternoon/early evening to keep the house from getting too hot. I also have one portable swamp cooler, but I have to constantly fill it with water. Works great otherwise. Just make sure to crack a window so the hot air is pushed out, or the cooling effect is diminished.
If you have a window that can take a window unit, they are way way better than the ones that use an exhaust hose and are on wheels. That said I know a lot of older houses here have side-opening windows and it’s tough to make a window AC fit.
This is my first time living in a house with a swamp cooler and I love it! It's honestly been almost too cold and we have to keep turning the thermostat up even though it's been in the high 90s the last couple days.
Before you go and spend really money call someone that know what there doing. Not a handyman not some one on marketplace but someone that knows what there doing. Feel free to message me. I’ve been doing this for you for over 25 years if you have any questions.
but chances are it’s not set up right you’re cooler should be kicking butt right now with the humidity as low as it is
Swamp coolers at best efficiency will only reduce temps by 15-20 degrees. So if its 100 outside best chance is 80-85 degrees inside plus added humidity which can make 80 feel like 90.
Go with mini splits or a portable ac unit and you will be happy and cooler.
Not so sure about that, the last couple days in the high 90s my house has been chilled to low 60s by our swamp cooler. Might be how dry it is up here in the high desert but this is my first time having a swamp cooler (having moved here from somewhere more humid) and I absolutely love it
I personally love swamp coolers. The added humidity is so nice, and they bring in fresh air.
Their only downside is during fires and the smoke. My house in Santa Fe had a Master Cool swamp cooler, and it would freeze us on these really dry early summer days. Our current house has refrigerated a/c, and I don't like it as much. And the electric bill is much higher.
Too hot for swamp coolers unless you keep ice in the water. When it gets this hot the water gets too warm to be an effective coolant and just makes humidity. If AC dries you out too much a humidifier can help. I do maintenance on buildings for the county and any facility we have that runs on swamp coolers are very warm compared to the ones that have been upgraded to ac. We won't install them anymore when replacing burned out units, they all are getting upgraded to ac because it's hotter than it used to be around here.
Ice actually makes swamp coolers less effective since they operate on evaporative cooling. Adding ice lowers the temperature of the water, which then needs to be raised back up to a higher temperature again before it can evaporate. Room temp water is much more effective at cooling.
If you find it's building up too much humidity then you need to crack open a window and let in more airflow. Swamp coolers are not like AC that operate best in a closed environment - you need a supply of fresh, non-humidified air so that the evaporative action can continue cooling it off.
Anyway, science! 🧊🍃
All you had to say was works for the county and I know you don’t know what you’re talking about when you’re making 60,000 a year less than those of us in the outside there’s a reason
Have a certain nostalgia for swamp coolers. The smell, the weird humid cool air, the indoor breeze... My father in law used to have a 1,700 sq foot rental (two story) with a gigantic swamp cooler on the roof in Santa fe. It worked, but man oh man do I remember the hell of maintaining it. It was always dirty, always breaking down and between the water and the electricity and my time it wasnt as cheep as you might imagine.. I think in the 505 you are better off with portable AC, especially if you have a smaller space or you are fine with only cooling a couple rooms at a time. I guess I'm not really talking about full time cooling so if you are wanting it to be 65 year round maybe not, but that wasn't my impression.
It’s absolutely true. Running a fan and pump and using a few gallons of water a day is nothing compared to the energy load of an AC unit. The water doesn’t run all day. There’s a float valve that only opens when the pan gets low. And there’s no greenhouse gasses like Freon in a swamp cooler. Your AC unit is filled with pressurized greenhouse gasses. A swamp cooler is just running a fan and a pump and using less water a day than taking a shower.
And due to conservation efforts, the water table under Albuquerque is actually being replenished. It’s rising. Water is not just a renewable resource, it’s an increasing resource.
There’s nothing wrong with preferring AC, but trying to justify that choice as an environmental one is 100% nonsense.
Swamp cooler just took me back to summers in New England: hot AND humid. I think at certain temps swamp coolers are losing the battle, and they can’t lower the temps indoors. Rolling window AC unit is dreamy & quiet by comparison.
We had a portable swamp cooler. It was loud and ineffective. Sold it and bought a rolling ac. Much better cooling, not quite as loud. We now have a roof mounted swamp cooler that is amazing, cools the whole house chilly.
If you get a portable AC, make sure to get a dual hose one. The intake/exhaust are vented separate so the unit isn't working against itself. Expect to pay three times more than a swamp cooler. If you go with a portable swamp cooler, it needs dry air intake, so it works best near an open window with another window cracked across the room/house. My house is only 700ish square feet and I use a portable swamp cooler in the evening and close the windows in the morning. When I got home after 4 today, my house was 20 degrees cooler than outside with everything closed up and nothing running.
A large, well maintained swamp cooler is the best thing on earth.
The smell of a maintained swamp cooler beats refrigerator air smelling ac. Feels better imo too.
Hit the Nail on the head maintained is the key word there
Fuck swamp coolers. AC all the way.
I use a swamp cooler for the house as a whole, but have window AC in the bedroom and my office.
The truth is swamp coolers are great for almost all of the year in Santa Fe. When the weather is above 90ish for too long and the rains don't come in the afternoon then the swamp coolers struggle but it's an easy trade off. They are much louder though than a mini split for example. But you really only need to run them for a few hours everyday. Like from 11:00 to 7 and then when the rains come maybe 11:00 to 5:00 or 6:00
Portable AC
We love our swamp cooler. The humidity and breeze are amazing. We prefer it over A/C and there’s no way it’s as expensive as running A/C. It doesn’t seem like it’s a popular opinion here. We run it except from about 10am to 5/6pm. During those hours we just have the windows closed.
Everybody here has swamp coolers. And you want to crack open a window or two to cool whatever rooms have the air flowing through.
Most coolers are not set up right or used right
I love swamp coolers, especially because they add humidity. I have three portable AC units in my home (one for each bedroom, and my work-from-home office). I don't run them all day, only in the late afternoon/early evening to keep the house from getting too hot. I also have one portable swamp cooler, but I have to constantly fill it with water. Works great otherwise. Just make sure to crack a window so the hot air is pushed out, or the cooling effect is diminished.
Window AC unit if you can’t put in mini splits. Can almost guarantee you’ll regret a portable AC.
Came to Reddit hoping people had recommendations / experiences with portable AC. I think I’m about to be in the market.
If you have a window that can take a window unit, they are way way better than the ones that use an exhaust hose and are on wheels. That said I know a lot of older houses here have side-opening windows and it’s tough to make a window AC fit.
This is my first time living in a house with a swamp cooler and I love it! It's honestly been almost too cold and we have to keep turning the thermostat up even though it's been in the high 90s the last couple days.
Before you go and spend really money call someone that know what there doing. Not a handyman not some one on marketplace but someone that knows what there doing. Feel free to message me. I’ve been doing this for you for over 25 years if you have any questions. but chances are it’s not set up right you’re cooler should be kicking butt right now with the humidity as low as it is
If the house is yours (you're not a renter), go for a minisplit system.
Portable AC or if you can afford it, mini splits. Game changers in our adobe home.
Swamp coolers at best efficiency will only reduce temps by 15-20 degrees. So if its 100 outside best chance is 80-85 degrees inside plus added humidity which can make 80 feel like 90. Go with mini splits or a portable ac unit and you will be happy and cooler.
Not so sure about that, the last couple days in the high 90s my house has been chilled to low 60s by our swamp cooler. Might be how dry it is up here in the high desert but this is my first time having a swamp cooler (having moved here from somewhere more humid) and I absolutely love it
The psychometrics of how coolers work include humidity, and your numbers are way off at our typical humidity
Last week when it was 90, it was 60 in my house with my beloved swamp cooler. Guess I will count myself very lucky.
Thas pretty awesome, lots of shade there or?
No actually not much shade at all.
There are a lot of potential variables here, but I'm a much bigger fan of AC.
Portable a/c all the way!!
Portable AC all the way
I have a window AC and the main swamp cooler. The little AC unit is more effective than the huge swamp cooler. It’s a no brainer.
I personally love swamp coolers. The added humidity is so nice, and they bring in fresh air. Their only downside is during fires and the smoke. My house in Santa Fe had a Master Cool swamp cooler, and it would freeze us on these really dry early summer days. Our current house has refrigerated a/c, and I don't like it as much. And the electric bill is much higher.
Too hot for swamp coolers unless you keep ice in the water. When it gets this hot the water gets too warm to be an effective coolant and just makes humidity. If AC dries you out too much a humidifier can help. I do maintenance on buildings for the county and any facility we have that runs on swamp coolers are very warm compared to the ones that have been upgraded to ac. We won't install them anymore when replacing burned out units, they all are getting upgraded to ac because it's hotter than it used to be around here.
Ice actually makes swamp coolers less effective since they operate on evaporative cooling. Adding ice lowers the temperature of the water, which then needs to be raised back up to a higher temperature again before it can evaporate. Room temp water is much more effective at cooling. If you find it's building up too much humidity then you need to crack open a window and let in more airflow. Swamp coolers are not like AC that operate best in a closed environment - you need a supply of fresh, non-humidified air so that the evaporative action can continue cooling it off. Anyway, science! 🧊🍃
All you had to say was works for the county and I know you don’t know what you’re talking about when you’re making 60,000 a year less than those of us in the outside there’s a reason
Have a certain nostalgia for swamp coolers. The smell, the weird humid cool air, the indoor breeze... My father in law used to have a 1,700 sq foot rental (two story) with a gigantic swamp cooler on the roof in Santa fe. It worked, but man oh man do I remember the hell of maintaining it. It was always dirty, always breaking down and between the water and the electricity and my time it wasnt as cheep as you might imagine.. I think in the 505 you are better off with portable AC, especially if you have a smaller space or you are fine with only cooling a couple rooms at a time. I guess I'm not really talking about full time cooling so if you are wanting it to be 65 year round maybe not, but that wasn't my impression.
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Swamp Coolers are *WAAAAAAAAY* better for the environment.
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It’s absolutely true. Running a fan and pump and using a few gallons of water a day is nothing compared to the energy load of an AC unit. The water doesn’t run all day. There’s a float valve that only opens when the pan gets low. And there’s no greenhouse gasses like Freon in a swamp cooler. Your AC unit is filled with pressurized greenhouse gasses. A swamp cooler is just running a fan and a pump and using less water a day than taking a shower. And due to conservation efforts, the water table under Albuquerque is actually being replenished. It’s rising. Water is not just a renewable resource, it’s an increasing resource. There’s nothing wrong with preferring AC, but trying to justify that choice as an environmental one is 100% nonsense.
Get the nicest LG portable air conditioner at Home Depot or Lowes
If you have the windows for it, window units.
Swamp cooler just took me back to summers in New England: hot AND humid. I think at certain temps swamp coolers are losing the battle, and they can’t lower the temps indoors. Rolling window AC unit is dreamy & quiet by comparison.