Date: Sat, 30 Jul 2011 09:40:02 -0500
Reply-To: mcneely4@COX.NET
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Dave Mcneely <mcneely4@COX.NET>
Subject: Re: [NVC] Create electricity-free cooler
In-Reply-To: <4E340D7A.9010609@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
I posted my question just as a typical, rhetorical, smart-ass question like I see some others ask on occasion. Now, I wonder if anyone actually plans to make use of one of these? It might be that a shape other than that of flower pots might provide more useful cooled space for the purpose. Around here, one can get terra cotta planters in square shapes. Of course, for camping application, terra cotta would also be rather fragile. If the idea catches on, maybe one of the camping supply outfits will come up with a plastic material that has the water transfer properties of terra cotta.
This past week in New Mexico, I just put my beer in the creek. On numerous occasions, that has worked fine. I cool watermelons that way, too. A stream at 55 F, when the air is at 85 F is just fine as a cooler, if one is not trying to keep milk or eggs cold for a week or more. A spring box would drop the temperature more (by evaporation). Maybe just immerse a milk crate with an inserted shelf above the water, and cover the whole thing with a terry cloth towel in the water.
Of course, wildlife might find the thing, and it would be a definite violation of the "Store all food in a bear proof box or inside a hard sided vehicle" rule if left unattended.
What think you folks? Anyone tried something like that, when camping in their VW Vanagon?
mcneely
---- Rocket J Squirrel <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> Right, that's self-evident. Evap coolers, whether in the form of a
> couple-a terra cotta pots or in the form of swamp coolers, are a good
> choice in your arid areas, but not so much in your humid areas.
>
> McNeely must-a thought I was posting the link because I thought the
> setup was a one-size-fits-all thing, or haven't been around much to not
> know how evap coolers work.
>
> I posted it because I'd never seen anyone build an evap cooler so
> simply. And instead of writing,
>
> "Assuming that one needs a way to cool something down, like a couple
> bottle of wine, doesn't have an ice chest or refrigerator, but does have
> two terra-cotta flower pots, some sand, some water, and a towel."
>
> I guess I should-a wrote,
>
> "Assuming that one needs a way to cool something down, like a couple
> bottle of wine, doesn't have an ice chest or refrigerator, but does have
> two terra-cotta flower pots, some sand, some water, a towel, AND IT'S A
> DRY AND HOT DAY."
>
> But I thought that was self-evident.
>
> --
> RJS
>
> On 07/29/2011 06:48 PM, Alistair Bell wrote:
> > it's just an evaporative cooler. You can work out the heat used and the rate of water evaporated, knowing the air temp (and water temp) and the rel. humidity.
> >
> > It would be more effective in hot dry climates than in hot humid climates.
> >
> > Neither conditions can be found this summer up here on Vancouver Island. Max temp so far has been only around 27 C.
> >
> > alistair
> >
> >
> >
> > On 2011-07-29, at 6:06 PM, Dave Mcneely wrote:
> >
> >> Nope, just asking a pertinent question. Follow up is up to you, or not. mcneely
> >>
> >> ---- Vanagon<camping.elliott@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>> What-you're giving me a homework assignment?
> >>>
> >>> Sent from my smartphone with tiny screen& even tinier keypad.
> >>>
> >>> On Jul 29, 2011, at 5:41 PM,<mcneely4@cox.net> wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> Sure, it will work. Have you done any experimentation to determine just how cold this "refrigerator" will be compared to ambient, at different relative humidity values? mcneely
> >>>>
> >>>> ---- Rocket J Squirrel<camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> >>>>> Possibly of interest for camping. Assuming that one needs a way to cool
> >>>>> something down, like a couple bottle of wine, doesn't have an ice chest
> >>>>> or refrigerator, but does have two terra-cotta flower pots, some sand,
> >>>>> some water, and a towel. A fairly unlikely scenario, sure, but hey!
> >>>>> Amaze your friends!
> >>>>>
> >>>>> <http://lifehacker.com/5825676/create-an-electricity+free-refrigerator-with-some-flower-pots-and-sand>
> >>>>>
> >>>>> --
> >>>>> RJS
> >>>>
> >>>> --
> >>>> David McNeely
> >>
> >> --
> >> David McNeely
--
David McNeely
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