Best swamp cooler?

[STV_Keith]

I want to replace the swamp cooler in my shop. It's an old Champion Tradewinds unit that came with the house when we bought it. 2-speed, 230V, 7500cfm, 4-panel Aspen pads, downdraft setup that is on a pedestal that feeds into a wall in my shop. The shop is 1680sf and this thing worked great, but it's a pain to keep changing pads every 2-3 months. Tradewinds are no longer made, and I want to go to a cellulose style pad for less maintenance.

Budget is $1500 or so for the unit. So far I've been looking at the Champion Mastercool, Phoenix Aerocool Trophy and Breezair units. Pricing on the first two is about what I am shooting for. I can't find pricing on the Breezair although the reviews sound awesome.

Anyone out there with some experience with any of these? Is there a better brand in the price range? Suggestions welcomed.

 

[Dkahnjob]

Get the MasterCool.

 

[mjc]

Get the MasterCool.

This

 

[pwerwagn]

I have 2 big mastercools, one is mobile in the shop and the other is mounted/ducted. They have both been great. Pads are expensive but last me 3-5 years usually.

My dad does a lot of swamp cooler installs, and has had great luck with the aero cool's as well.

I think you are on the right track and cant go wrong with either.

 

[thmterry]

I have been having good luck with the Aero Cools, just make sure they have the plastic inserts where the water sits so they dont rust.

 

[Jonas Grumby]

I want to sell this one. Works great, except if you over fill it, it trips the gfi. So I just don’t over fill it.

 

[TITTIES AND BEER]

I want to replace the swamp cooler in my shop. It's an old Champion Tradewinds unit that came with the house when we bought it. 2-speed, 230V, 7500cfm, 4-panel Aspen pads, downdraft setup that is on a pedestal that feeds into a wall in my shop. The shop is 1680sf and this thing worked great, but it's a pain to keep changing pads every 2-3 months. Tradewinds are no longer made, and I want to go to a cellulose style pad for less maintenance.

Budget is $1500 or so for the unit. So far I've been looking at the Champion Mastercool, Phoenix Aerocool Trophy and Breezair units. Pricing on the first two is about what I am shooting for. I can't find pricing on the Breezair although the reviews sound awesome.

Anyone out there with some experience with any of these? Is there a better brand in the price range? Suggestions welcomed.

Are you guys still in LV ?

 

[mesquito_creek]

Mastercool... I change the cellulose pad about every 3 years

 

[STV_Keith]

Are you guys still in LV ?

Yessir. Still here. The one I have now works bitchin'. Easily takes 30* from ambient to inside temps, but it's 15 years old, discontinued and uses the Aspen pads. It is all plastic other than the motor and fan, so there isn't much to go wrong either. I just want something newer with the big cellulose pads that don't need to be changed every 2-3 months.

 

[Wheeler]

I have three master cools and one aerocool. If I were to buy new today and price was relatively close I'd buy aerocool.

 

[Wheeler]

Mastercool... I change the cellulose pad about every 3 years

I filter the water and have not replaced pads in the past 7 years or so.

 

[STV_Keith]

Thanks for the info Wheeler. What do you like better about the Aerocool? How are you filtering the water?

 

[Nordie]

Mastercool or Bonaire, I have a Bonaire on my house and if there's no humidity in July, I'll wake up in my house and it will be 65 degrees.

 

[TCHB]

Mastercool.

 

[Flying_Lavey]

We install a lot of Aerocool units. Add a purge pump and an online filter and your pad life will go through the roof. A purge pump is a timed pump that will empty to pan ever so many hours so you're not cycling through more and more concentrated deposits (water evaporates in the air but the minerals and other deposits remain and get more and more concentrated inside the pan).

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[Wheeler]

I've replace the wet sections on the three Master Cools and not on the Aero Cool. In the next week or so I'll be servicing the Aero and checking for any rust that might have developed from over filling the plastic tray. My Master Cools were not plastic lined. If the masters now come with plastic lined wet sections I would not have any problem with the purchase of one. If they don't have plastic, I would water proof the wet section before putting into use.

I use a two stage filter like the type you might find under your sink used for drinking water.


Ps: the wet sections are not cheap.

Thanks for the info Wheeler. What do you like better about the Aerocool? How are you filtering the water?

 

[Wheeler]

Mastercool or Bonaire, I have a Bonaire on my house and if there's no humidity in July, I'll wake up in my house and it will be 65 degrees.

What was the ambient temp. when you have seen this 65 deg. indoors?

 

[Gramps]

My neighbor about 300 ft. away has a master cool.........we can hear it. I have 3 old stlye Home Depot coolers with Aspen pads. change the pads every other or 3rd year. Quiet and work great

 

[mesquito_creek]

I filter the water and have not replaced pads in the past 7 years or so.

my unit uses the 12 inch pad and cost about a 100 bucks new. I probably could go 5 years but I don't. My primary problem is the build up of hardness (Ca/Mg) on the pad but it still works well even with a lot of crustyness. Do you know how much the filtration is and extra water is costing vs the pad replacement?

I think I have about a 5000 cfm unit cooling 900 square feet. I get 30 degrees delta with low humidity and about 15 delta in august...

 

[Nordie]

What was the ambient temp. when you have seen this 65 deg. indoors?

85ish, I generally see about a 20 degree difference vs outside temp. I also have a garage swamp that vents into my attic which may help my case for keeping the house that cool. The problem is by the afternoon in Vegas when its 100 plus the swamps just can't keep up and I'll switch to ac, then back to swamp in the evenings through the night.

 

[Flying_Lavey]

my unit uses the 12 inch pad and cost about a 100 bucks new. I probably could go 5 years but I don't. My primary problem is the build up of hardness (Ca/Mg) on the pad but it still works well even with a lot of crustyness. Do you know how much the filtration is and extra water is costing vs the pad replacement?

I think I have about a 5000 cfm unit cooling 900 square feet. I get 30 degrees delta with low humidity and about 15 delta in august...

RO is the only filter that has waste water. If you just use a standard filter system there shouldn't be any extra water usage. If you add a purge pump it's only about a 5 to 10% increase in water usage. A purge pump manufacturer will claim it will reduce water usage, but that's when compared to a system without any filtration that is dirty and has loaded pads already.

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[Flying_Lavey]

Mastercool or Bonaire, I have a Bonaire on my house and if there's no humidity in July, I'll wake up in my house and it will be 65 degrees.

What was the ambient temp. when you have seen this 65 deg. indoors?

I think you guys may be referring to the low profile units? Both Bonaire and Master Cool make one and they work great! But, they are loud due to needing to use a prop fan instead of a centrifugal fan because of the restriction in their physical size.

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[STV_Keith]

We install a lot of Aerocool units. Add a purge pump and an online filter...

Thanks for the info. I do have a purge pump and scale filter on the Tradewinds now, but Wheeler is steering me towards a different filter to look into.

I've replace the wet sections on the three Master Cools and not on the Aero Cool....My Master Cools were not plastic lined. If the masters now come with plastic lined wet sections I would not have any problem with the purchase of one.

I use a two stage filter like the type you might find under your sink used for drinking water.

According to the website, the Mastercools now have a plastic lined wet section with a limited lifetime warranty. I'll look into the 2-stage filter as the "scale filter" from Lowe's doens't seem to be helping much.

 

[STV_Keith]

My neighbor about 300 ft. away has a master cool.........we can hear it. I have 3 old stlye Home Depot coolers with Aspen pads. change the pads every other or 3rd year. Quiet and work great

The Mastercool unit I'm looking at uses the squirrel cage fan, not a prop fan, so I can't imagine it could be much louder than the squirrel cage fan in the Tradewinds I have now. Maybe your neighbors have a different model? Also not sure how you get more than a year out of Aspen pads...I have to replace mine about 2-3 months in. They start to get algae on them and then turn black over time. This is one of the main reasons I want to switch to a modern unit with a 12" cellulose pad.

 

[Flying_Lavey]

Thanks for the info. I do have a purge pump and scale filter on the Tradewinds now, but Wheeler is steering me towards a different filter to look into.



According to the website, the Mastercools now have a plastic lined wet section with a limited lifetime warranty. I'll look into the 2-stage filter as the "scale filter" from Lowe's doens't seem to be helping much.

There is also the online filters used for refrigerators. That's what I used on my Mastercool when I had it probably doesn't filter quiet as well as a 2 stage filter and all, but it does do pretty well.

Also, if you're in a dirty area where there is commonly duct blowing, it doesn't really matter what filtration you use as all that crap will get into the water. A purge pump will do much better in that situation.

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[mesquito_creek]

RO is the only filter that has waste water. If you just use a standard filter system there shouldn't be any extra water usage. If you add a purge pump it's only about a 5 to 10% increase in water usage. A purge pump manufacturer will claim it will reduce water usage, but that's when compared to a system without any filtration that is dirty and has loaded pads already.

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My Unit is fully ducted throughout the building with a Thermostat, auto-two speed and purge pump cycles... I still wonder I would spend more than 33 dollar a year in line filters vs just replacing the media every 3-4 years...

 

[STV_Keith]

I'm looking hard at the Mastercool AD2C7112 unit. Comes with the t-stat, purge and pre-wired 2-speed 240V motor. I know we have hard water and scale buildup is an issue with the current cooler, even with the inline filter. I don't mind putting a better filter inline, to try to get the pads to last longer.

Wheeler, there are literally thousands of different 2-stage filters out there...do you like a specific brand/model? Should I be looking for one that handles TDS? Any idea how many gallons an hr/day it will need to filter to keep up with a swamper?

 

[Wheeler]

I'm looking hard at the Mastercool AD2C7112 unit. Comes with the t-stat, purge and pre-wired 2-speed 240V motor. I know we have hard water and scale buildup is an issue with the current cooler, even with the inline filter. I don't mind putting a better filter inline, to try to get the pads to last longer.

Wheeler, there are literally thousands of different 2-stage filters out there...do you like a specific brand/model? Should I be looking for one that handles TDS? Any idea how many gallons an hr/day it will need to filter to keep up with a swamper?

RD gave me the filter, it came from under his mothers sink.

I don't see much difference between aero or master cool as long as the plastic tray is offered.

 

[Wheeler]

I think you guys may be referring to the low profile units? Both Bonaire and Master Cool make one and they work great! But, they are loud due to needing to use a prop fan instead of a centrifugal fan because of the restriction in their physical size.

My aerocool is a decent size for residential use, about 6400 cfm or so. The master cools are close to the same.
As I recall, the lowest temp. drop that I've seen is 30 deg. below ambient.

When the humidity is high in Parker I try to head for the beach until the middle of Sept.





Here's a chart for people that have no idea what we are talking about.

 

[Wheeler]

I'm looking hard at the Mastercool AD2C7112 unit. Comes with the t-stat, purge and pre-wired 2-speed 240V motor. I know we have hard water and scale buildup is an issue with the current cooler, even with the inline filter. I don't mind putting a better filter inline, to try to get the pads to last longer.

Wheeler, there are literally thousands of different 2-stage filters out there...do you like a specific brand/model? Should I be looking for one that handles TDS? Any idea how many gallons an hr/day it will need to filter to keep up with a swamper?

Just pulled one of 'em apart. The pre cooling media or what ever it might be called is filled with crap. I imagine it's dust and what not. The secondary filters appear to be fine.

It's been at least three years since I've taken the media out and more likely 4 years. I'll replace the two front media with new and place them in the rear.

I use the swamp cooler at least six months of the year.

 

[STV_Keith]

Thanks for the input Wheeler! I'm pretty well set on that Mastercool downdraft unit. It will just about drop in to replace the Tradewinds it's replacing.

 

[Bowtiepower00]

What is everyone using for portable units? Going to need one for my new RV garage...

 

[Wheeler]

I'm looking hard at the Mastercool AD2C7112 unit. Comes with the t-stat, purge and pre-wired 2-speed 240V motor. I know we have hard water and scale buildup is an issue with the current cooler, even with the inline filter. I don't mind putting a better filter inline, to try to get the pads to last longer.

Picked up three 1hp mastercool's today. These new units are much nicer and more in line with Aerocool.
Giving a couple to my brother and I'll use the third for spare parts or sell it off.

While I had the Aerocool apart for maintenance I rubber coated the wet section to lessen any chance of rust from a sticking float. It should outlive me ...that is unless I get that Corona19 stuff.

 

[Hallett Dave]

Picked up three 1hp mastercool's today. These new units are much nicer and more in line with Aerocool.
Giving a couple to my brother and I'll use the third for spare parts or sell it off.

View attachment 853668

While I had the Aerocool apart for maintenance I rubber coated the wet section to lessen any chance of rust from a sticking float. It should outlive me ...that is unless I get that Corona19 stuff.

View attachment 853667

Personally I would bite the bullet and go with Daikin Mini split AC units, no ducting needed.
I have 2 units in the 40x40 garage, 2 units in the 37x24 garage and 1 unit in the 24x24 garage and 1 unit in the casita.
I have been running these units for four years.
No problems so far.
I did not want excess heat nor excess moister for the 67 GTO and the Hallett when they are not being driven.
Maybe a little expensive but to me well worth it.
YMMV

 

[Wheeler]

Personally I would bite the bullet and go with Daikin Mini split AC units, no ducting needed.
I have 2 units in the 40x40 garage, 2 units in the 37x24 garage and 1 unit in the 24x24 garage and 1 unit in the casita.
I have been running these units for four years.
No problems so far.
I did not want excess heat nor excess moister for the 67 GTO and the Hallett when they are not being driven.
Maybe a little expensive but to me well worth it.
YMMV

My brother already has 6 Fujitsu mini splits at his river house and in need of another 9 tons of cooling before he finishes.
The swampers are for the basement and the new garage being built.

I picked up a Daikin this past October for the Parker house. I'll get a couple more when I get the time to install 'em.

 

[2Driver]

Be sure to get the 4x4 pad it makes a huge difference over the regular cellulose pad. Carey put it on our river house and it would make 20 degree difference air than outside. I believe it came in the areocool cooler. Some dealers don’t know what it is until you ask them to check into it.

Aerocool Trophy Series - Phoenix Manufacturing Inc.

phoenixmanufacturing.com

 

[Orange Juice]

I want to replace the swamp cooler in my shop. It's an old Champion Tradewinds unit that came with the house when we bought it. 2-speed, 230V, 7500cfm, 4-panel Aspen pads, downdraft setup that is on a pedestal that feeds into a wall in my shop. The shop is 1680sf and this thing worked great, but it's a pain to keep changing pads every 2-3 months. Tradewinds are no longer made, and I want to go to a cellulose style pad for less maintenance.

Budget is $1500 or so for the unit. So far I've been looking at the Champion Mastercool, Phoenix Aerocool Trophy and Breezair units. Pricing on the first two is about what I am shooting for. I can't find pricing on the Breezair although the reviews sound awesome.

Anyone out there with some experience with any of these? Is there a better brand in the price range? Suggestions welcomed.

I took my swamp cooler off, and replaced it with the biggest 220v AC window unit. It cost me $399 at Lowe’s, and cools my garage from 100+ degrees to 68, in about 15 minutes. I now keep it set at 85 from April 15th-October 15th. No pads, and the humidity stays low.
Maybe $50 a month to run in July and August.

 

[STV_Keith]

I took my swamp cooler off, and replaced it with the biggest 220v AC window unit. It cost me $399 at Lowe’s, and cools my garage from 100+ degrees to 68, in about 15 minutes. I now keep it set at 85 from April 15th-October 15th. No pads, and the humidity stays low.
Maybe $50 a month to run in July and August.

I like this idea. I dunno what BTU that $399 unit is, but the biggest one I've found is a Frigidaire - FFRA2822U2 - 240V, 28,000 BTU. This might be the easiest solution as for installation, ease (no pads/media), water consumption, etc. I'd have to enlarge the 19x19 opening in the wall that the swamper uses now, but it's something I can probably do myself vs having to pay someone to install a mini-split.

What unit did you buy OJ?

 

[Jonas Grumby]

Anyone know of a installer for a Bonaire slim wall unit in havasu?

 

[Rajobigguy]

What is everyone using for portable units? Going to need one for my new RV garage...

I have two of these, one for patio and one for garage'

Polarcool.com

polarcool.com

 

[Nordie]

Anyone know of a installer for a Bonaire slim wall unit in havasu?

It's really not that difficult. My dummy Ironworker self has installed a few now. Either way I'm sure you can find someone capable. You'll definitely be happy with the results.

 

[STV_Keith]

I bought that 28k BTU window unit and plan to install it where the swamp cooler thru-wall was. The opening required is a bit wider than the swamper, and I've got a quote coming to open the wall up. I have a feeling it's going to be stupid and I'm going to figure out how to cut and frame walls/stucco real soon.

 

[STV_Keith]

Got the 28k unit installed. Works well. Was able to bring my 1700sf, high cube shop from 84 to 75 in about 2 hrs. Easily maintains temp once it's there. So far I'm pretty happy with it. Really happy about no maintenance!