cooling your tent or van

[FIGJAM]

Have you turned it on yet?

[Danielpops]

Have you turned it on yet?

lol! yes of course . Verified that the remote works to operate the fan and pump independently. Verified that the toggle switches work too ( as a backup in case remote is lost/broken/etc... ). Verified the pump stops when the water runs low. Verified that the air flow is good and that the pad is getting sufficiently saturated within a few minutes. Verified 10 degree temp drop in foggy SF.

[spacetime]

That is NOT the fan!

This is the fan, and if you had clicked on the link, this is what you would have found.

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/8556/ ... d=TMxuD2fh

Doh. It is a different fan. That website you've referenced is not on ssl, and it appears like the checkout system is broken. Can you recommend an alternate place to order?

I used a jigsaw, but if you're careful, it will cut with a razor knife.

Ok, I don't have a jigsaw at the present, but I'll either look for one in the community or hack at it.

[spacetime]

Have you turned it on yet?

lol! yes of course . Verified that the remote works to operate the fan and pump independently. Verified that the toggle switches work too ( as a backup in case remote is lost/broken/etc... ). Verified the pump stops when the water runs low. Verified that the air flow is good and that the pad is getting sufficiently saturated within a few minutes. Verified 10 degree temp drop in foggy SF.

This looks like a pretty awesome setup. The remote control is clutch.

[FIGJAM]

They show 5 left in stock.

You have the serial number, start searching.

If it doesn't say 190 cfm, don't buy it.

Some sites are confusing this fan with the lower and higher cfm fans.

[spacetime]

Ya, I got stuck in that other site's checkout. This fan is not in stock at the usual suspects. I believe found I found it in stock here here.

[Danielpops]

I got my delta fan which figjam evangelizes from digikey

[sleepnosleep]

Ok... hopefully last dumb questions...

1) what size PVC should I use for the box cooler.

2) the pumps that I have came with exposed wires that will require splicing or soldering. Given that they'll be near water, do I need to do anything to waterproof them?

[FIGJAM]

I like 1/2" HPVC because it's more compact.

I use shrink tubing, but you can waterproof it anyway you like.

[sparr]

I got the smallest pump I could find and it's still far more powerful than I need. Water is *spraying* out of my pinholes, all ~20 of them. The pump doesn't pull much power, so I guess I don't care about it being too strong, but I am still surprised.

I'm having trouble getting the tube loop at the top to stay circular, it wants to be more oval-shaped. As a quick fix for both the shape and the spraying, I've pushed it down between the two layers of cooling pad. Should I expect any problems from this setup? How are other people making it stay circular?

Does anyone have a favorite float switch to automatically shut the pump and fan off when the water runs out? I've found a lot of small ones that are only rated for 300-500mA which might not be enough(??) to run my pump and fan. I'm trying this one but it's really clunky and has a "dead spot" of about an inch of water, which is a lot of wasted water in a bucket.

Here's a pic of the spraying and the recessed tube: http://i.imgur.com/iMQHQkb.jpg

[FIGJAM]

Twist your tube till the hole point downward.

IF you used an inside T connector, the tube should have been easy to shape.

[Danielpops]

Does anyone have a favorite float switch to automatically shut the pump and fan off when the water runs out? I've found a lot of small ones that are only rated for 300-500mA which might not be enough(??) to run my pump and fan. I'm trying this one but it's really clunky and has a "dead spot" of about an inch of water, which is a lot of wasted water in a bucket

I used this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0076UHL ... _aw_oh_pii

Probably still some waste in the bottom of the bucket, but better safe than sorry I suppose. I also only had this in series with the pump line. I mainly want to just prevent the fan from sucking dry air. I'm ok with the fan still running if I get to the point where the water runs dry. This is mostly just to avoid breaking the pump if I run out of water during a nap.

[sparr]

IF you used an inside T connector, the tube should have been easy to shape.

I'm not sure what you mean here. I did use an inside T connector. What does that have to do with shaping the rest of the tube?

[FIGJAM]

The T connector helps the tube hold it's shape, as in this picture.



I cut part of the ends on the T off to make sure there wouldn't be a dry strip on the pad.

Maybe that is distorting your ring.

[lucky420]

IT WORKS! It really works!

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee cool as a cucumber

[FIGJAM]

TA DAA!!!

[leighpeigh]

Thanks SO MUCH for your awesome, clear instructions. I bought all the supplies I needed on amazon (except the HD bucket) and everything's a piece o' cake until I go to install the fan. Since I'm using a plug-in pump and not a solar powered 12V pump like you are I'm guessing your instructions "I spliced the wires from the fan to the wires from the pump. (both are 12volt)" might not apply here. Can anyone give me advice about what to do now?

[Canoe]

A photo would make sure we understand where you are with it and what you need to do next.

[FIGJAM]

Does plug-in pump mean 120 volt?

[LowePro]

Sparry, I used a few small zip ties to keep the drip-ring-halo in place on the top edge of the blue pad. My drip ring was circular, but it tried to slip down into the bucket. The blue pad is porous enough that you can thread a zip tie thru it, keepnig the drip ring perched on top.

LeighP, consider getting a 12V DC pump. It's about $10. Everything will be much easier, safer, and efficient if your fan and pump are both running 12V DC. If pump is AC and fan is DC, you have an unnecessarily complicated power supply.

[Nipple]

Sitting in Portland, at 33% relative humidity, this thing is blowing out cool moist air!

It's going to feel great on the playa!

Geewhiz! Thanks, Uncle Figjam!

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[spacetime]

Sitting in Portland, at 33% relative humidity, this thing is blowing out cool moist air!

It's going to feel great on the playa!

Geewhiz! Thanks, Uncle Figjam!

Nice. Looks good.

[Canoe]

... LeighP, consider getting a 12V DC pump. It's about $10. Everything will be much easier, safer, and efficient if your fan and pump are both running 12V DC. If pump is AC and fan is DC, you have an unnecessarily complicated power supply.

Post said "both are 12V". I assume both are 12 VDC not 12 VAC?

[LowePro]

Post said: "I'm using a plug in pump and not a solar powered 12V pump".
Her reference to "both are 12V" is quote for another/previous post, describing what she *didn't* do and that's why it "might not apply here"...
how's that for epic thread drift?

[Ratty]

Figjam, do you ever look at Quora. I keep getting requests to answer questions in the burning Man section. Today I mentioned you. The question was 'what inovations have come out of BM'? Why, the Figjam Bucket Cooler of course. I don't even care if it was a correct answer. Nobody is scoring me.

[FIGJAM]

Since I don't know what that is, I guess I don't look at it.

[Canoe]

Post said: "I'm using a plug in pump and not a solar powered 12V pump".
Her reference to "both are 12V" is quote for another/previous post, describing what she *didn't* do and that's why it "might not apply here"...
how's that for epic thread drift?

So all we know is that it's not 12V solar. It's plug-in _____ ?

[Dr. Brap]

Sitting in Portland, at 33% relative humidity, this thing is blowing out cool moist air!

It's going to feel great on the playa!

Geewhiz! Thanks, Uncle Figjam!

IMG_2886.jpg

IMG_2887.jpg

IMG_2888.jpg

I'm sure you're just using that jump pack for testing, but just in case someone else takes a look and decides to use one also, I wouldn't recommend it. Those things have a pretty small battery in them. It will NOT last you all week. In fact, you're only going to get a few hours out of it at best.

[spacetime]

I have most of my cooler parts now, and am curious about two things:

I'm a bit concerned about having a battery just hanging out with alligator clips on it. Are people using anything to limit exposure of the terminals themselves? For example the use of a battery box like this?

Partly because it is orange, and partly to insulate, I want to look at covering the bucket with reflective insulating tape, i.e. this stuff. Can anyone suggest the effectiveness of this and if good, a particular kind?

[sparr]

Quora is sorta like Stackexchange or Yahoo Answers or Expert Sex Change. Better than the latter two, not as good as the former.