cooling your tent or van

[Drake12321]

Cool fixture.

[Canoe]

Someone wanted this, so I figured I'd make it available to all.

Maximum single-stage evaporative cooling output temperature drop potential using a Dura-Cool pad (which is 95% efficient).
(Note: Aspen media is only 85% efficient. Approximately 12% less temperature drop than shown on these graphs).

• Look up the ambient air temperature (dry bulb) on the left axis.
• Follow the closest line to where it meets the Relative Humidity across the bottom.
• Find that point back on the left axis, which is the coolest possible chilled air output (for single stage evaporative cooling with a Dura-Cool pad).
  .
• One can see how the low humidity days on the playa are prime for some evaporative cooling. Many days hit the low teens. Some days even go to single digit Relative Humidity. (I think the lowest I've seen is 7% RH.)
• The calculation of wet bulb from dry bulb temperature & relative humidity is done in SI units, so the data used for the graph is in Celsius. That data is converted to Fahrenheit for the imperial/F graph, so that graph doesn't have nice round values for the ambient temperature start of the lines. You'll have to estimate your distance between lines to get the most accurate value.

.

Max Single-Stage Evaporative Cooling Temp with Dura-Cool Pads - Celsius.png

.

Max Single-Stage Evaporative Cooling Temp with Dura-Cool Pads - F.png

[skyy]

I'll throw my two cents on this thread too since sharing is caring.

Hello Everyone!

I'm not sure if this is still relevant to your thread but I opted not to build a monkey hut but rather create a lightweight PVC structure that can attach directly to the Kodiak tension rods.

The picture below was from pre-burn 2019. I learned a few lessons during the burn which included drilling some holes through the major intersection points for a bolt and nut to secure everything in place (the PVC tended to pull out of the joints since there was no adhesive). Additionally I extended the top bars (the ones perpendicular to the main metal rod on top of the tent) in order to account for the curvature of the roof when the kodiak is erected.

I threw the aluminet over top of the whole thing once erected (or you can put it in place before erecting the tent for an easier time)

The added distance between the kodiak the aluminet gave an additional insulation layer of air which kept the tent considerably cooler compared to laying aluminet directly over the tent.

This set up allowed me to break the PVC down into small enough pieces such that it fit in the "bar bag" that came with the kodiak and didn't require extra bags to carry in and out.

Unfortunately I didn't get an picture of it completely set up but I think you get the idea

[muttonchop]

Hey FIGJAM! Thanks for the design! Since it's been a while, any way you could update the photos that are no longer available and provide the relative specs of the hardware, pumps, etc that are dead links now?
Cheers

[FIGJAM]

The place I stored my pics crashed, so I lost them.

But I found all of them here....

https://www.theplayalabs.com/swamp-cooler

[Captain Goddammit]

Fuck It’s Gone, Just Ask Me

[lucky420]

I'll throw my two cents on this thread too since sharing is caring.

Hello Everyone!

I'm not sure if this is still relevant to your thread but I opted not to build a monkey hut but rather create a lightweight PVC structure that can attach directly to the Kodiak tension rods.

The picture below was from pre-burn 2019. I learned a few lessons during the burn which included drilling some holes through the major intersection points for a bolt and nut to secure everything in place (the PVC tended to pull out of the joints since there was no adhesive). Additionally I extended the top bars (the ones perpendicular to the main metal rod on top of the tent) in order to account for the curvature of the roof when the kodiak is erected.

I threw the aluminet over top of the whole thing once erected (or you can put it in place before erecting the tent for an easier time)

The added distance between the kodiak the aluminet gave an additional insulation layer of air which kept the tent considerably cooler compared to laying aluminet directly over the tent.

This set up allowed me to break the PVC down into small enough pieces such that it fit in the "bar bag" that came with the kodiak and didn't require extra bags to carry in and out.

Unfortunately I didn't get an picture of it completely set up but I think you get the idea

Thank you for sharing. I’m going to give this a try as I usually just drape my Kodiak with aluminet

[Canoe]

Did anyone ever get their hands on one of these Boundless Breeze fans?
How does it compare to the Endless Breeze?
(I found comparing info online once, but I'm not remembering...)

"Boundless Breeze"?
wow
Looking at the blades and the construction, that looks like the Endless Breeze in a round package. For $39, I'd suggest you grab one quick and check it out.

Boundless Breeze.jpg

I did find
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8yDCEr3ZvA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Lkxc4ds1BU

[lucky420]

Boopity bee boop
Going to try that shade thing over my Kodiak soon, so bumping the thread

[Drizzt321]

Speaking of shade, do you think this shade coth, mix of aluminet & white shade cloth inside, is the same, more, or less effective than 80% aluminet (such as from here)?

I'm ignoring cost at the moment, just curious about performance.

[Canoe]

Speaking of shade, do you think this shade coth, mix of aluminet & white shade cloth inside, is the same, more, or less effective than 80% aluminet (such as from here)?
I'm ignoring cost at the moment, just curious about performance.

Hopefully someone who has used both, or at least the Aluminet/White will get back to you.

In the meantime, ballpark:
* 80 % aluminet: at ~94 % reflective will reflect away ~75.2 % of the heat/light from the sun, absorb ~4.8 % and pass through ~ 20 %.
* the 50/50 aluminet & white: aluminet will reflect ~ 47 %, absorb ~3 %, pass 50 % to the white: which will pass 25 % of the original, reflect ~16 % of the original, absorb ~9 % of original; absorb 12 % total.
* The absorbed energy should be taken away by wind passing over/below/through it, so it doesn't radiate down at you. When no wind, the al-white retains ~2.5x more heat to radiate at you, but neither is a lot of heat.
* The 80 % aluminet lets 20 % of the sun through, the al-white ~ 25 % through; call it 5/20 or 25 % more gets through.
* The al-white should reflect more of a night light source under the cloth back down at you.
* I'd expect the al-white to hold more playa dust, and be harder to blow off or shake it off, which degrades reflectance as the dust holds/radiates-down more heat.
* Hard to judge wind resistance / load, but I'd expect the dual layer al-white has more drag hence wind load.
The last two is where you really need someone (preferably several someones) who's used the al-white on playa to respond.
You'll also want feedback on their stitching and grommeting job holding up in playa winds.

[Drizzt321]

Speaking of shade, do you think this shade coth, mix of aluminet & white shade cloth inside, is the same, more, or less effective than 80% aluminet (such as from here)?
I'm ignoring cost at the moment, just curious about performance.

Hopefully someone who has used both, or at least the Aluminet/White will get back to you.

In the meantime, ballpark:
* 80 % aluminet: at ~94 % reflective will reflect away ~75.2 % of the heat/light from the sun, absorb ~4.8 % and pass through ~ 20 %.
* the 50/50 aluminet & white: aluminet will reflect ~ 47 %, absorb ~3 %, pass 50 % to the white: which will pass 25 % of the original, reflect ~16 % of the original, absorb ~9 % of original; absorb 12 % total.
* The absorbed energy should be taken away by wind passing over/below/through it, so it doesn't radiate down at you. When no wind, the al-white retains ~2.5x more heat to radiate at you, but neither is a lot of heat.
* The 80 % aluminet lets 20 % of the sun through, the al-white ~ 25 % through; call it 5/20 or 25 % more gets through.
* The al-white should reflect more of a night light source under the cloth back down at you.
* I'd expect the al-white to hold more playa dust, and be harder to blow off or shake it off, which degrades reflectance as the dust holds/radiates-down more heat.
* Hard to judge wind resistance / load, but I'd expect the dual layer al-white has more drag hence wind load.
The last two is where you really need someone (preferably several someones) who's used the al-white on playa to respond.
You'll also want feedback on their stitching and grommeting job holding up in playa winds.

Ah, someone better with numbers than I am

Does sound like straight 80% aluminet is superior, especially when it comes to possible wind load.

And looking at costs, per square foot, even taped & grommetted the 80% aluminet is barely over 1/2 the cost from greenhousesupplystore.com. Not to mention available in larger sizes, up to 26' wide and as long as you want. ~$0.54 per square foot for 26'x26'

However, their 12'x24' is cheaper per square foot, ~$0.27. Although I'm thinking I might want the large size, plenty of drap over and down the sides of my small trailer, plus a decent size foyer area. Should be big enough to setup a hammock to the side as well, although I might try and set up a small tarp oriented to help keep the hammock shaded in the middle of the day. Just in case it's a blast furnace year again.

Then again, 2 12x24 can give me more flexibility in draping it, and smaller individual packed down bits. Hmmm... Either way, I think it's a big upgrade from my existing 80% black shade cloth I've been using for years.

Do they make 90% aluminet? Debating if it's worth trying to find some of that, although obviously it'll end up being a large additional cost.

[gaminwench]

I've used my big chunk of Aluminet for many years, both on the playa and in defaultia.

I would skip the edging/grommets; you'll have more flexibility of structure with BIG plastic alligator clips and rope.

I LOVE my Aluminet, purchased in 2007, and still in use today.

[Canoe]

... Either way, I think it's a big upgrade from my existing 80% black shade cloth I've been using for years. ...

You mention wanting to drape over a trailer. Do pay attention to what you will use to hold the cloth up; as in, so it doesn't get rubbed to pieces in the wind while draped over something. This really isn't the shade-cloth thread. But lots on this has been covered before. You have been using the black shade cloth, so you do have that experience to draw from.

There can be some rather funky synergy results when using black. Where that 80 % passes 20 % through, and absorbs most of the rest, the wind will usually take it away rather than have it radiate down (and up & away...). But for heat/IR energy radiating at you from sun-baked ground, or reflecting at you from other structures, what gets in under shade cloth matters too. If it's black, it won't reflect that down onto you. It will get absorbed, and again, the wind taking it away vs. radiating it down. So a higher layer of 80 % aluminet, an air gap, then the black 80 % shade cloth, is something to consider. That 20 % hits the black, for 20 % of 20 % let through, plus anything getting radiated in under the cloth, or radiated away by the people under the cloth, gets absorbed instead of reflected at you or reflected back at you... Then there's some uses of black that I haven't been able to wrap my head around how it keeps those below it so cool.

[lucky420]

Boopity boop shamalama ding dong

Just place holding

[Drizzt321]

I've used my big chunk of Aluminet for many years, both on the playa and in defaultia.

I would skip the edging/grommets; you'll have more flexibility of structure with BIG plastic alligator clips and rope.

I LOVE my Aluminet, purchased in 2007, and still in use today.

Oh yes indeed! I'm planning to either do some kind of extending tent poles (need to make sure they're tall enough) or PVC square 'structure' to make sure it physically stays off of the trailer. Thinking about somehow doing some extending 'ridge pole' type of thing, combined with the tent poles, to make it similar to PVC structure. Might just be easier to stick with some nesting PVC and using clip clevis pins. Break down into something relatively low bulk, while still being pretty sturdy to hold itself up well.

Might do some kind of 'stand' that can sit on top of the trailer to help keep the center from sagging onto it and scraping it up.

Reason I like edging is it gives me better, more secure places to stand tie off to. I've used those black clips before, and they're handy if I need a tie point in a weird spot, or spot I can put a tent pole through, but I don't prefer them.

... Either way, I think it's a big upgrade from my existing 80% black shade cloth I've been using for years. ...

You mention wanting to drape over a trailer. Do pay attention to what you will use to hold the cloth up; as in, so it doesn't get rubbed to pieces in the wind while draped over something. This really isn't the shade-cloth thread. But lots on this has been covered before. You have been using the black shade cloth, so you do have that experience to draw from.

There can be some rather funky synergy results when using black. Where that 80 % passes 20 % through, and absorbs most of the rest, the wind will usually take it away rather than have it radiate down (and up & away...). But for heat/IR energy radiating at you from sun-baked ground, or reflecting at you from other structures, what gets in under shade cloth matters too. If it's black, it won't reflect that down onto you. It will get absorbed, and again, the wind taking it away vs. radiating it down. So a higher layer of 80 % aluminet, an air gap, then the black 80 % shade cloth, is something to consider. That 20 % hits the black, for 20 % of 20 % let through, plus anything getting radiated in under the cloth, or radiated away by the people under the cloth, gets absorbed instead of reflected at you or reflected back at you... Then there's some uses of black that I haven't been able to wrap my head around how it keeps those below it so cool.

Hm... Aluminet over black cloth, that's a really fascinating thought. How do you do the 'double' height thing off of a single upright pole? I suppose a 4-way PVC T fitting, reducer down to 1/4" and slip that through the black cloth, or something, so it stays completely draped over, and then another 6-8" and put the aluminet over?

What about some of those big 10" anchor 'nails'? Drill a small hole about 8-9" up, enough for a cotter pin or similar. Put the nail through the PVC fitting straight up with some strong epoxy. Cut a few inches of PVC in half, after the black is on, put the cotter pin in the hole, put the PVC half over top, then put the aluminet over top of that.

I think it's time for me to do some measuring on my trailer of actual length/width/height I'd need, and then measuring the amount of PVC I'd need. I've done similar before for just a single pole for the back of my bike so I could find it, this'll just be a bit bigger overall.

[Canoe]

Might do some kind of 'stand' that can sit on top of the trailer to help keep the center from sagging onto it and scraping it up.

Hm... Aluminet over black cloth, that's a really fascinating thought. How do you do the 'double' height thing off of a single upright pole?

Pool noodles can be your spacer? A bit of string to tie them in place to one layer?

Two ways to approach it.
1. Make a shade structure, and then put your trailer under it. (horse vs. cart first, whatever)
2. Build a PVC structure that goes on top of your trailer, like a roof rack. Pool noodles on the rack for a soft sit for the first layer of cloth. Then more pool noodles on top of that cloth, to support the upper layer of cloth.
For either, I'd suggest you take a long look at other shade structures. Depending on the size of the trailer, even a monkey-hut.

Another rabbit hole: viewtopic.php?f=277&t=101553
see what shade is 'thrown' by what type of shelter and based on orientation to the sun

When I first replied to your post, I should have taken this to another topic/thread. This thread is for cooling, not shading. Perhaps a mod will extract these into their own thread?

[Drizzt321]

Might do some kind of 'stand' that can sit on top of the trailer to help keep the center from sagging onto it and scraping it up.

Hm... Aluminet over black cloth, that's a really fascinating thought. How do you do the 'double' height thing off of a single upright pole?

Pool noodles can be your spacer? A bit of string to tie them in place to one layer?

Two ways to approach it.
1. Make a shade structure, and then put your trailer under it. (horse vs. cart first, whatever)
2. Build a PVC structure that goes on top of your trailer, like a roof rack. Pool noodles on the rack for a soft sit for the first layer of cloth. Then more pool noodles on top of that cloth, to support the upper layer of cloth.
For either, I'd suggest you take a long look at other shade structures. Depending on the size of the trailer, even a monkey-hut.

Another rabbit hole: viewtopic.php?f=277&t=101553
see what shade is 'thrown' by what type of shelter and based on orientation to the sun

When I first replied to your post, I should have taken this to another topic/thread. This thread is for cooling, not shading. Perhaps a mod will extract these into their own thread?

Ah yeah, my brain was in the evap cooler mindset when I posted, but only talked about the shade part of my cooling "system" (shade + active cooling). I'll start another thread, after going down the rabbit hole of your linked thread. Thanks!

[shaharklein]

Hi all

I'm trying to find the photos of the unicooler
All those links from 2010 are broken

Thanks

[FIGJAM]

https://www.google.com/search?q=figjam+ ... 7gGmM%252C

Copy and paste for images.

[shaharklein]

https://www.google.com/search?q=figjam+ ... 7gGmM%252C

Copy and paste for images.

Thank you FIGJAM, you are the legend of cooling, hope we will meet in the playa for a hug

In the unicooler design, should there be a gap between the grill and the pad like in the bucket cooler?

[FIGJAM]

no.

[Ratty]

Hi Figgy, I miss your face.

[Drizzt321]

So I can't recommend this little thing, it seems ridiculous, and LOTS of power usage, (10A@24v!!!), but came across this cute little air conditioner just now. It's basically a pre-order, and looks like they basically are using a Danfoss style compressor meant for fridge/freezer rather than air conditioning, although I suppose it can still work. Just... 2899BTU of cooling for $880 (pre-order "savings", regular $1100) is just RIDICULOUS.

Anyway, sorry to interrupt, just...couldn't help myself. It's nice and small and cute and _relatively_ low power, but for that much money I'll just get another one of the small 12v chest fridge/freezers and have ice cream every day on Playa while sitting inside my trailer staying cool with my orange bucket cooler and my bilge blower for maximum chill-out-age.

[Father_Burn]

Hey all,
In 2019, I built the Figjam cooler and had good luck with it, but I wanted it to be a little more user friendly. I put an Arduino based controller that turns things on and off, presoaks the media before it starts the fan but it didn’t work very well. I didn’t put the time into it to make it really work right. This year I put some time in to get it right.
There isn’t much to it, just the swamp cooler you’ve already built, a case for the controls, an Arduino, a display, 3 DHT22 temp and humidity sensors, a couple MOSFETS, A 5V power supply, and a couple little passive things like resistors and a capacitor.
The idea is that with a small enough and insulated well enough space, the swamp cooler might not have to run at full speed all day, and at night. This could save some water and power. Also your sleeping space get a little humid from the breath in there, especially if you’re not alone, so why not fix that too. It also controls a small external pump to keep it filled from another bucket, so you don’t wake up from a power nap sweating your balls off.
I think most of the fans people are using are 4 wire fans. One of them is a PWM (Throttle) wire, that the Arduino can use to adjust the speed. Some fans are different, the one I use is backwards of most, but I like these fans because they have a lot of static pressure, and the price is Free.99 as they come out of old servers we decommission at work.
It’s got a couple different modes, one when you first turn it on where it adjusts the speed of the fan etc quickly to get things cooled off, then slow down to find equilliberium called startup. After it’s been running for a while the speeding up and slowing of the fan is annoying, so the mode changes to running mode which changes how fast the fan speed responds to the cooling needs to get dialed and become background noise you forget about.
The last is the standby mode, when it’s cooler in your space than it’s set for, it just keeps an eye on the humidity in your sleeping space, and will run the fan slowly without the pump from time to time to keep it fresh inside.
Either way Enjoy…or not… I’m at Mountain Mayhem 9:30&B. Come by and say hi if you want to talk about it, or just have a nice drink.

Here’s some pictures of the screens…
[attachment=2]Presoak.JPG[/attachment]
[attachment=1]Running.JPG[/attachment]
[attachment=2]Presoak.JPG[/attachment]

P.S. My code isn’t well written. I know that, but I am too lazy to care. It’s well documented so you can figure it out and improve it. If you do, send me a better version.

Source Code and packages:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/11y2mu- ... sp=sharing

[skyy]

Cool! Glad this is being put to use! Let me know how it goes.

I'll throw my two cents on this thread too since sharing is caring.

Hello Everyone!

I'm not sure if this is still relevant to your thread but I opted not to build a monkey hut but rather create a lightweight PVC structure that can attach directly to the Kodiak tension rods.

The picture below was from pre-burn 2019. I learned a few lessons during the burn which included drilling some holes through the major intersection points for a bolt and nut to secure everything in place (the PVC tended to pull out of the joints since there was no adhesive). Additionally I extended the top bars (the ones perpendicular to the main metal rod on top of the tent) in order to account for the curvature of the roof when the kodiak is erected.

I threw the aluminet over top of the whole thing once erected (or you can put it in place before erecting the tent for an easier time)

The added distance between the kodiak the aluminet gave an additional insulation layer of air which kept the tent considerably cooler compared to laying aluminet directly over the tent.

This set up allowed me to break the PVC down into small enough pieces such that it fit in the "bar bag" that came with the kodiak and didn't require extra bags to carry in and out.

Unfortunately I didn't get an picture of it completely set up but I think you get the idea

Thank you for sharing. I’m going to give this a try as I usually just drape my Kodiak with aluminet

[Token]

Hey all,
In 2019, I built the Figjam cooler and had good luck with it, but I wanted it to be a little more user friendly. I put an Arduino based controller that turns things on and off, presoaks the media before it starts the fan but it didn’t work very well. I didn’t put the time into it to make it really work right. This year I put some time in to get it right.
There isn’t much to it, just the swamp cooler you’ve already built, a case for the controls, an Arduino, a display, 3 DHT22 temp and humidity sensors, a couple MOSFETS, A 5V power supply, and a couple little passive things like resistors and a capacitor.
The idea is that with a small enough and insulated well enough space, the swamp cooler might not have to run at full speed all day, and at night. This could save some water and power. Also your sleeping space get a little humid from the breath in there, especially if you’re not alone, so why not fix that too. It also controls a small external pump to keep it filled from another bucket, so you don’t wake up from a power nap sweating your balls off.
I think most of the fans people are using are 4 wire fans. One of them is a PWM (Throttle) wire, that the Arduino can use to adjust the speed. Some fans are different, the one I use is backwards of most, but I like these fans because they have a lot of static pressure, and the price is Free.99 as they come out of old servers we decommission at work.
It’s got a couple different modes, one when you first turn it on where it adjusts the speed of the fan etc quickly to get things cooled off, then slow down to find equilliberium called startup. After it’s been running for a while the speeding up and slowing of the fan is annoying, so the mode changes to running mode which changes how fast the fan speed responds to the cooling needs to get dialed and become background noise you forget about.
The last is the standby mode, when it’s cooler in your space than it’s set for, it just keeps an eye on the humidity in your sleeping space, and will run the fan slowly without the pump from time to time to keep it fresh inside.
Either way Enjoy…or not… I’m at Mountain Mayhem 9:30&B. Come by and say hi if you want to talk about it, or just have a nice drink.

Here’s some pictures of the screens…
Presoak.JPG
Running.JPG
Presoak.JPG

P.S. My code isn’t well written. I know that, but I am too lazy to care. It’s well documented so you can figure it out and improve it. If you do, send me a better version.

Source Code and packages:

Far out man! This is some cool hackery!

[gulfman]

Wanting to build "bucket" swamp cooler and wanting to know how large should holes be around top 1/3 of bucket? thank you ahead of time for any suggestions.

[FIGJAM]

The size of the holes isn't as important as having enough to let the fan move as much air as it can.

Mine are 2 inch because that's the hole saw size I had.

[shaharklein]

Thank you again Figjam
Used the box cooler design in our yurt and we we were very happy and chilled

cool.png