It’s easier to warm up than to cool off, especially if you’re toiling in a broiling shop. And when summer sends the temperature and humidity soaring, your productivity can take a nose-dive. When things get that hot and heavy, you might long to be an old-time mechanic working under the proverbial shade tree.
A leafy canopy tall enough to cast a shadow over your work area would be lovely, but trees don’t grow overnight, and they don’t force cool breezes indoors. High school physics tells us it’s not about blowing air around anyway.
What cools you off is evaporating moisture from the air before a fan flows it at you. That’s the principle behind portable evaporative air coolers. Running these units where needed can blow jungle conditions right out of a shop — and even cool outdoor work areas. They’re the sure-fire way to work coolly and comfortably despite high temperatures and humidity levels.
Better than A/C
While air conditioning is expensive and impractical for many shops, let alone outdoor bays, evaporative air coolers are cost-effective, mobile and begin cooling the air as soon as they are switched on. They’re extremely versatile as they come in a range of sizes and configurations to match the cooling needed in nearly any work area. Fan-driven, evaporative coolers blow chilled air across a shop; plugging in multiple coolers amplifies the cool-down effect as needed.
As the name suggests, portable evaporative air coolers work through evaporation. Plug one into a standard 110V electrical outlet, fill its reservoir with water, or connect it to a garden hose for auto-filling, then turn it on and prepare to chill out.
Evaporative coolers use purpose-built fan blades to draw in hot air through the back of the unit and blast out chilled air through the front. Their fans are designed to pull in more air at low RPMs for peak performance.
Inside the cooler
Within the cooler, air is moved through special evaporative
media pads. These soak up cool water like a sponge, acting like a pre-chiller for the incoming air. When the hot air passes through these pads, the water evaporates and instantly drops the air temperature by up to 26°F. This is all achieved without the expensive high amp compressor motors, environmentally toxic chemicals and refrigerants required by air conditioning systems.
Some coolers offer various convenience features, such as a negative air ionizer to help clean the chilled air, outdoor-rated adjustable floodlights, LED control panels, remote control, and even built-in Bluetooth® audio players and stereo speakers.
Keep in mind that keeping cool on the job is about more than getting more done on a hot day.
The issue is that no one works as well in hot situations. As a result, productivity dips, morale may suffer and mistakes may be made. That’s why OSHA mandates that employers protect workers from extreme heat.
So, don’t sweat it. Just add water and plug in your portable evaporative air coolers for near instant relief from furnace-like heat.
