I won’t write about the residents of the cities of the European part of Russia languishing from the abnormal heat, because this boyan is a bandit. If you personally don’t belong to them, or you love the heat and feel great among hot concrete and asphalt, then just don’t read this post.

So, it's getting hot. Not everyone can afford a “real” air conditioner, and it’s not just about money. The queue for the installation of split systems is scheduled as much as a month in advance, and a floor-standing air conditioner that does not require installation is an agrammatic noisy fool that will stupidly and uselessly occupy the precious space of a city apartment for 9-10 months a year. Fans are of little use, because... They continue to drive the same hot air, which does not bring relief.

But, as you know, the new is the well-forgotten old. There is such a thing - an evaporative air conditioner, which, due to the simplicity of its operating principle, can be built with your own hands. There are descriptions of such homemade air conditioners on the Internet, but the proposed designs are relatively labor-intensive to manufacture, and a modern metropolitan resident has so little free time... And not everyone dares to drill, saw, plan, and paint in their apartment.

But there is a way out! Being an equally busy city dweller, I came up with and tested an evaporative air conditioner, which is molded from shit and sticks of scrap materials in literally 15 minutes. Tools you will need:
- hands - 2 pcs.;
- screwdriver - 1 pc.
Materials:
- exhaust duct fan- 1 PC. (purchased at any construction market);
- flexible corrugated aluminum ventilation tube- 1 PC. (bought there)
- wire with plug - 1 pc. (again there).
The total budget is several hundred wooden ones.

Use a fan with maximum performance. I found the most powerful of the household ones at 300 cubic meters per hour, all the more powerful ones were industrial, and therefore noticeably more expensive and noisier. Please note that it must be exhaust, i.e. blow in the direction where the pipe connects to it.

So. We slightly stretch the pipe and bend it as shown in the photo (it bends, stretches and holds its shape perfectly). We attach the raised end of the pipe with tape or self-tapping screws to some kind of stand (I used cardboard box from under the same fan). We connect the wire to the fan and insert the fan into the pipe.

Pour some cold water into the pipe and loosely place cotton rags in the water. When they are saturated with water, add water so that there is a little water above the rags. In total, the layer of water and rags I got was one-third to one-half of the cross-section of the pipe. All. Let's turn it on!

After half an hour of work, when the water had cooled, the temperature difference at the inlet and outlet of the pipe was as much as 5 degrees - the improvised air conditioner lowered the temperature from 31 to 26 C! Pouring snow and ice scraped from the walls of the freezer into the pipe on top of the water gave another 1 degree. YES!!!

In pursuit. It is impossible to drag a pipe with water inside (it bends), so it makes sense to improve the design by securing it to some kind of stand. You can simply tape everything to a suitable board, or you can come up with a more elegant holder - it all depends on your imagination.

Yes, as you know, cold air, being left to its own devices, goes down, so it makes sense to direct the outlet section of the pipe a little upward, and place the structure itself not on the floor, but on a table or bedside table, in order to cool not only your feet.

With a pipe diameter of 150 mm, a length of its part filled with water of 450 mm and a fan of 300 cubic meters per hour, my device, of course, was not able to cool the entire room. However, it is quite capable of creating a comfort zone around the workplace or bed. Now I’m sitting at the computer in a pleasant coolness :)
How to improve productivity if necessary? You can increase the length and cross-section of the pipe, install a more efficient fan, or assemble several devices into a battery. In addition, I have not yet experimented with the amount of water and rags and their material. Overall, there is great potential for improvement!

I give you an idea! Coolness is close - just 15 minutes of moving your hands! :)

Wanting to save money, they use a homemade air conditioner to cool the air. Homemade devices operate on the principle of lowering the temperature of any surface when water is converted into steam.

Installation of factory and homemade air conditioner

The design of a household appliance such as an air conditioner is quite complex. The air cooling system operates by transferring heat from one zone to another: in the hot season - from the house to the street, and in the winter months - from the space outside the walls of the apartment inside it. A special substance is responsible for the circulation of warm air masses - freon, which, if necessary, boils and goes into a gaseous state, acquiring a low temperature.

The air temperature in the room and the pressure of freon, called refrigerant, are controlled by an electronic control unit, which begins to work after receiving signals from special sensors. Since the operation of an air conditioner is difficult process, make a cooling system air environment It's not easy on your own.

Homemade air conditioners are distinguished by the fact that they come into operation as a result of blowing room air through cold objects. This object can be pieces of ice or cold-producing devices used to store food in bags during transport in the summer.

Making your own air conditioner

All coolers made independently are units of two parts:

• a block that lowers the temperature of air masses;
• an element that distributes a cooled environment throughout the apartment room.

Ice and draft

A self-assembled air conditioner may consist of a plastic bottle filled with frozen liquid and a regular fan. Such a cooler environment It is customary to place it on a table next to a running fan.

If desired, the design of the air conditioner can be made more complex: use a wire basket suspended from the bars of the fan grille. A container of ice is placed in this container.

If possible, it doesn’t hurt to improve your homemade air conditioner to make it work better. This means abandoning the plastic bottle and using a “cold accumulator” - a container with a special liquid used in cooler bags. The performance of such an installation for changing the microclimate is determined by the size of the vessel with pieces of ice.

A homemade air conditioner that operates thanks to ice and draft will cool the air in the room much more effectively if you assemble the installation as follows:

1. take a very large plastic vessel with a tight lid;
2. make 2 holes in the lid of the container, and the diameter of the first should match the parameters of the fan grille, and the size of the second can be 5 or 10 cm;
3. insert into the second slot and securely fasten the corner fitting by 5 or 10 cm, which will allow an “L”-shaped outlet to be formed above the cover;
4. immerse in the first hole and secure the fan well, using self-tapping screws immersed in the lid of the container;
5. Fill a tightly sealed container with bottles of crushed ice, frozen liquid or a cold accumulator.

The fan of the device, made according to the instructions, will push warm air masses through the ice container and produce cold currents exiting the corner fitting. Since the body of the container is insulated from heat, the ice will not melt instantly, which means it will ensure the operation of the air conditioner for many hours.

Video “Air conditioning using ice”

Fan and cold water

Together with a fan, you can use not frozen, but simply chilled water to build an air conditioner, which will create a dynamic flow running through the copper radiator grille. In other words, the fan blades will begin to draw air into the spiral copper tube, through which water from the water supply system will flow, characterized by a stable temperature of 14–16 degrees Celsius. With this approach to designing an air conditioner, you will get an inexhaustible source of cold air.

But you will have to pay for the wasted water, so it is much more reasonable to make an air conditioner from a fan and cold water as follows:

1. insert 2 hoses through the lid into the plastic barrel (one should be longer, the other shorter);
2. next to the neck of the container, attach a compressor from the aquarium, equipped with a pipe that sucks in water and connected to a hose that runs from the lid to the bottom of the barrel;
3. attach a fan to the lid of the vessel, the grille of which must be equipped with a spiral of copper tube;
4. align one edge of the copper spiral with the compressor pipe, and the other with a short hose, which occupies only a quarter of the height of the barrel;
5. attach to the end of a short hose check valve, which blocks the movement of liquid from the barrel to the hose.

After activating the compressor, such an air conditioner comes into working condition, since the cooling spiral attached to the fan grille is filled with cold water from the bottom of the container. The liquid is given a certain direction: after running in a spiral, it will merge into the upper zone, where it is relatively warm water. The result of this organization of the movement of the liquid medium is the flow of only cooled liquid to the fan blades.

Video “Creating an air conditioner from a container of water”

From an old refrigerator

Trying to make an air conditioner from an unused refrigerator should only be done by men who are experienced in repair work. In this case, the design of an air cooler involves the use household appliances for freezing food, the components of which are a cooling radiator (freezer), refrigerant, compressor and condenser, which is a grille at the back of the refrigerator.

To assemble an air conditioner from parts of an old refrigerator, you need to do the following:

1. remove from household appliance doors blocking access to both cells;
2. Carefully, in order to avoid damage to the walls, insert a fan powered by electricity into the freezer;
3. using a drill, make several holes with a diameter of 1.5 cm in the lower area of ​​the side walls of the refrigerator;
4. place the refrigerator so that the rear grille is outside the room in which you want to make the air cool (you can place the household appliance in doorway, sealing the area between the body and the edges of the opening with polyethylene film).

If the previous point is not feasible, then you need to do this: open the refrigerant supply line and remove only the condenser outside the room, using copper pipes for this. True, this solution to the problem involves pouring a new portion of freon into the system.

Video “Air conditioner from the refrigerator”

From a portable refrigerator

When you decide to make an air conditioner from a portable refrigerator, in addition to the housing from a small household appliance, you must use 2 more items:

• radiator;
• submersible pump.

A homemade air cooler is constructed from a portable refrigerator in several stages:

1. a radiator of a suitable size is installed in the “box” of the device;
2. a submersible pump (taken from an aquarium or car washer) is attached to the bottom of the refrigerator body;
3. the wires are led outside the chamber;
4. a square-shaped hole is drilled in the lid of the refrigerator (from inside the body), and 2 round holes are made outside this area, which will be needed for ventilation;
5. inside the chamber, using silicone, fix the radiator;
6. the pump output and radiator inlet are connected;
7. A hose is placed at the radiator outlet, which will help make the device operate more quietly.

The created air conditioner will cool the air by filling the refrigerator container with pieces of ice or cold water, which, under the pressure of the pump, will enter the radiator and, under the influence of the fan, form cold air currents.

From a car radiator

If you are planning to make a cooling device from a car radiator, you will need to prepare the following parts:

• fan (from the car);
• radiator (from the car);
• computer power supply housing.

To assemble an air cooler from these elements, you need to perform certain tasks:

1. mount on back wall the power supply housing has a radiator, and there is a fan on the front, which will allow the air flow to exit the radiator and be directed towards the fan;
2. Attach handles to the created structure to make it convenient to move.

Since the power supply produces different voltages, the air conditioner can be turned on in different modes of supplying cooled air. To correct the work homemade device You just need to adjust the built-in speed switch.

The radiator used to create the air conditioner is distinguished by its plate appearance. Rubber hoses are placed on it and secured with clamps. Hollow tubes are needed to supply and discharge water. In this case, the liquid must flow from one place to another very quickly, for which the fan motor operates at high speed, providing an instant decrease in the temperature in the room.

Video “How to make an air conditioner from a radiator”

Other options

Air conditioning can be done using a car air purifier and a standard fan, but this method is difficult and expensive.

The instructions for creating this air cooler require:

• connect the fan to the air purifier using a hose or pipe;
• make a housing for the air conditioner parts using any available materials;
• make a filter from a fine mesh mesh (fold it 4 times) and attach it to the lower area of ​​the body;
• Fill the air cleaner reservoir with water and connect the system to the electrical network.

The made device will function due to the fact that the fan moves air masses into an evaporation chamber, which contains water and cools the medium trapped in it. Outside the air conditioner, cool air will appear after passing through the holes in the mesh.

1 - body; 2 - wire mesh; 3 - air duct; 4 - holes for cooled air outlet; 5 - flange connection; 6 - fan with motor

You can also create a spray air conditioner with your own hands. The device is assembled from a large container filled with water and an air duct. To make this air conditioner work, you need to do the following:

• insert a spray bottle into the evaporation chamber, the nozzle of which will allow you to regulate the intake of liquid from the tank;
• link installation to ventilation system, promoting cooling of air masses.

Advantages and disadvantages of homemade air conditioners

The undoubted advantages of self-assembled air conditioners include:

• real performance, because such installations really cool the air in the room;
• the ability to assemble from scrap materials that did not require spending money.

But homemade air coolers also have a number of significant disadvantages:

• operating time is limited by the amount of ice that has to be constantly replenished;
• the inability of the installation to cool the air in all rooms at once, since while one room is blown with cold currents, a refrigerator is working in another, freezing ice and therefore heating the air;
• significant energy consumption, which necessitates the need to replenish the supply of ice chips;
• strong humidification of the air in the room, which results in its passage through cold water or ice.

The air in the room will not become humid, which means it will not cause the same harm to a person as heat, if instead of ice the air conditioner is loaded with cold accumulators. Still, they are not converted into water.

All of the homemade air coolers reviewed function without problems. They are a real salvation from the heat when the situation is hopeless. True, using a home-made air conditioner causes a lot of trouble.

The heat, even if it has been expected for a long time, still hits us suddenly. The rains, of course, are boring, but the scorching heat also exhausts and reduces the ability to work. It’s good to have a split system, but few people think about it in winter or rainy spring. And in the summer, its purchase and installation turn into a hole in the family budget.

Some craftsmen decide to make a home air conditioner with their own hands, using improvised means and inexpensive materials. The idea of ​​assembling a budget homemade product is quite attractive, but before you begin to implement it, you need to evaluate the effectiveness of such a unit and study the technology of its manufacture, don’t you agree?

We invite you to familiarize yourself with different options structures home air conditioner. Among the proposed technologies, you will definitely choose suitable solution and you can assemble the cooling device yourself. Step-by-step guides and photo instructions will help you achieve your plans.

Before you try to make an air conditioner yourself, it would be good to understand what this device is, how it works and what effect can be expected from its operation.

An air conditioner is a technically complex device that was originally used only to cool the room in summer period. Over time, air conditioner models have improved and become more complex.

So, it makes sense to try to make your own device that has the advantages of factory air conditioners and is devoid of at least a few of their disadvantages.

What can you do with your own hands?

Please note that we do not strive to outperform factory products. It is unlikely that we will be able to achieve the same cooling power.

Our goal is to build a device that does not consume a lot of energy, is inexpensive and, in case of ineffectiveness, can be thrown into a box and trash without regret. But imagine how this homemade product will please you if you are successful!

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Cardboard box tricks

The basis of this design is still the same table fan and ice. But the device turns out to be quite interesting, so we decided to show it to you. The best part is that all the valuable components of this device can be easily returned to their original position without losing their functionality.

We will need:

• a corrugated cardboard box large enough to accommodate a large saucepan;
• the pan itself;
• table fan with protective grille;
• wide tape;
• gypsy needle and raw thread;
• scissors, stationery knife;
• ruler or tape measure and marker;

We need to make a box without a bottom from the corrugated cardboard of the box according to the size of our pan. The pan should fit tightly into this box, that is, match it in length and width, but the height of the box must exceed the pan by 15-20 cm.

To do this, we cut out the box with a stationery knife and cut off its bottom and lid. We roll the box according to the markings, gluing its edges and edges with tape in 2-3 layers.

The finished box (top view) should not have any holes on the side surfaces, except for a slot equipped with blinds, which is clearly visible in the photo on the left

There should be no holes in the walls of the box. We cut out a square box lid from the remnants of corrugated cardboard. It's better to make it two-layer.

In its center we mark a circle, the diameter of which should be 2-2.5 cm greater than the span of the fan impeller so that its blades fit freely into the cut out round hole and did not touch the edges during their rotation. We secure the lid in its place with tape.

At the level of the upper edge of the pan placed in the box, we cut out a rectangle 3.5-4 cm high in its wall. The length of this “embrasure” can be different, but it should not reach 4 cm to each of the side edges of the box in order for the structure to preserve rigidity.

Cooled air will flow out from this cutout. And to control the flow, you need to build blinds for it.

To do this, we cut out two strips from corrugated cardboard, the length of which is 4-5 mm less than the cutout, and the width is 5 mm greater. We connect these strips together at a distance using a gypsy needle and harsh threads. We make punctures in the top strip at a distance of 7-8 mm from the edge, and in the bottom - 12-15 mm.

We insert the blinds into the opening and fix each strip at three points. We do not tighten the threads, but secure them with knots.

Try moving the blinds with your finger. The structure must move freely and not crumble when moving. Now you can start assembling the device. Place a mat under the pan or old fabric in several layers to make the device work quieter. The stability of the pan should not be affected.

On the left, through the round hole in the lid of the box, the ice is clearly visible, which is located on the fan grille covering a large pan, and on the right, the device is photographed in operation

Place the pan and cover it with the front protective grille of the fan with the concave side up. Place pieces of pre-prepared ice on the grid. It is better to prepare it in plastic glasses, because large pieces melt slower than small ones. We cover the structure with a box.

Into the hole top cover insert the fan with the blades down. You can turn it on and check the quality of work.

Melted ice turns into water, which must be poured out of the pan in time so that it does not leak out and soak the box. Otherwise, the fan may fall into water, causing a short circuit.

You can get a good look at the whole process of constructing this air conditioner by watching the video that we placed in special block at the bottom of this article.

Plastic bottles and plywood sheet

This wonderful design does not require electricity or even frozen water. The only thing needed for it to work is a draft.

The principle of operation of the device is easier to explain with an example. Open your mouth wide and exhale sharply onto your hand. The skin will feel warm. Now you need to stretch your lips with a tube and blow again with the same force as the first time.

This time the air jet cools your skin. If air passes through a narrow channel, then when it expands instantly, it cools.

Let's prepare a sheet of cardboard, but better than plywood. It must correspond to the size of the window opening that we want to close with this structure. We'll also stock up on plastic bottles. From each of them we will need only the upper third with a cork. We'll cut it off.

By the way, the plugs need to be removed, but not thrown away. They will be useful to us for securing bottles to the surface of the sheet.

We will need so many bottles so that they cover the entire surface of the sheet, but do not touch each other. To measure the holes for them, you can use a long pencil, which is used to mark the center of the cut through the neck.

To drill a hole for a standard bottle, you need a crown with a diameter of 18 mm. Using a drill, drill out all the holes one by one.

The cut-off tops of bottles without corks are inserted into the holes and secured with their own corks, the tops of which have been cut off. This produces rings with internal thread, perfectly holding pieces of bottles.

All that remains is to install the finished air conditioner in window hole funnels out. Experts guarantee that the temperature in the room will drop by five degrees.

Adding a fan to the circuit

One of the obvious disadvantages of the previous device is that it deprives users natural light in room. Additionally, drafts may be a problem in your area. Then use this idea.

To implement it, prepare:

• sustainable household fan;
• six plastic bottles;
• a sheet of thin plastic or thick cardboard - whatever you find;
• plastic clamps;
• stationery knife;
• silicone hot glue.

The operating principle of this cooler is the same as the previous model. Only you don’t need to install it in a window opening, and it can work in any room: it’s portable.

The following photo instructions will introduce you to the manufacturing process in great detail:

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Let's take six pieces plastic bottles with a capacity of 1.5 liters of the same production. It is advisable, but not at all necessary, to choose containers of the same color

Focusing on the top edge of the label, carefully cut off everything that is below it. We do this with all bottles.

Almost all home-made air conditioners use the principle of cooling the surface by evaporating water. If you blow on a wet fabric, then as it evaporates, it will cool the surface of the material, and it will, accordingly, cool the air located around at a very short distance. This principle formed the basis of the simplest climate control device, like a wet towel on a fan body. To automate the process somewhat, you can dip part of the towel into a container of water; it will be absorbed by the fabric and evaporate under the influence of the air flow.

If after the theory you still have a question about how to make an air conditioner with your own hands, then pay attention to several simple and cheap “recipes”.

Fan and plastic bottles

This is the same air conditioner, but instead of a towel, frozen water bottles suspended from the fan housing are used. Make sure that there is a gap between the cooler sections for free passage of air.

The main advantage of this manufactured air conditioner is its low cost and reusability. Frozen bottled water changed its state of aggregation and turned into water, took a new portion out of the freezer, and put this one to freeze. The disadvantage of this design is the problem with draining the condensation that inevitably appears on the surface of bottles with ice.

If the proposed schemes do not suit you, then you can always

Find out what's new in modern models conditioner can be found in the article.

Pipe, water and fan

This is another variation of a self-made air conditioner on the theme of using frozen water and its cooling properties. Take a piece of plumbing plastic pipe with a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the plastic one. liter bottle. A fan of suitable diameter is mounted at one end using hot-melt adhesive. Several plastic bottles with frozen liquid are placed inside the pipe.

A directed air flow passes through a small gap between the bottles (cooler) and the walls of the pipe. Prolonged contact of air with cold objects quite significantly lowers its temperature, after which the structure remains directed to the cooled room. The issue remains with the condensate drainage, but this can be solved by making several small holes in the bottom of the pipe.

Expert opinion

Ask a question to an expert

Do not point a cold air flow. This is not safe for your health!

Container, ice and fan

This is a small but effective air conditioner, made by yourself on the same principle as previous models. Its main advantage is the direction of action, compactness and ease of use.

To do this you will need:

• Plastic container 1.5-2 liters.
• Stationery knife.
• Cooler from a computer power supply.
• Corrugated plastic siphon.
• Glue gun.

Take a container for storing food or non-food products. It would be better if it were flatter in shape. A hole is made in the cover, slightly smaller than the intended fan from the computer power supply. It is glued into the lid using a glue gun so that it draws air into the container. A second hole is cut at the other end of the lid, of a smaller diameter, for a corrugated plumbing siphon.

Ice is poured into the container. The air, drawn in by the fan, is cooled in the container and exits through the corrugation.

1. It is best to use a plastic container as a container.
2. You will also need a plastic plumbing corrugation, used for draining
3. Fan and 15V power supply
4. Ultrasonic emitter. In Chinese online stores it is called Mist Maker or fog maker, and costs about 4-5 USD.

Let's start assembly ultrasonic humidifier with your own hands.

1 step. We cut two holes in the cover: one for the fan mount,

second - corrugations

Step 2. View of the finished cover

Step 3. We connect the fan to the power supply. The red wire is a plus, so we insert it into the socket, h black - minus, connect to outside plug. Afterwards we isolate all connections.

Making an air conditioner from an old refrigerator

This is practically a real air conditioner, based on the transfer of heat by freon from the evaporator to the condenser. To do this you will need:

• Jigsaw with metal file.
• Two fans
• Polyurethane foam for sealing.

You can make your own air conditioner from a refrigerator by installing it in the door freezer a fan that blows air inside. To allow cooled air to escape, make a second hole in the freezer door into which you need to insert plastic pipe. Carefully seal the cracks using polyurethane foam.

For better heat removal, you need to install a second fan directed at the condenser. Now you should apply voltage to the refrigerator and fans and you can cool the country house.

Adding on topic

Note!

Which air cooling method from those provided will you choose?

Probably, one day air conditioning in a car will become the absolute norm, regardless of cost and configuration. However, there are still millions of cars “running” on our roads that do not have this useful option, and new ones, also without air conditioning, are still being produced. And, therefore, every summer, the heads of drivers of cars without an air conditioner, hot from the sun, are visited by nervous thoughts about ways to cool the “gas chamber” of a sun-heated cabin using alternative and “asymmetrical” methods.

The first thing a sufferer finds on the Internet is the search for “cool the inside of a car without air conditioning,” “escape the heat without air conditioning,” etc. is a proposal to use PET bottles with ice. This idea has been wandering from site to site for years and offhand it even looks workable.

Confidence is added by numerous descriptions of garage designs of automobile surrogate “air conditioners” made on the knee and using the same frozen water in soda or beer bottles as a “coolant”. They are a variety of boxes and crates, lined inside with foil to prevent loss of cold, and with installed fans to blow air through the ice. In principle, this is a logical direction of development, aimed at increasing the efficiency of the technology, although engineering loses the main thing - attractive simplicity. In any design, the factor of human laziness must be taken into account - no matter how effective the development is, sooner or later it will be thrown on a dusty shelf even by the developer himself if it requires a complex sequence of actions or difficult preparatory work... Freezing and then taking a couple of bottles with you before the trip is something anyone can do, but fencing boxes with fans is, in the opinion of most, overkill...

One way or another, the idea is floating among the masses, but there are very few who have tried the technology in practice. Therefore, our task is to destroy or confirm the myth with a thermometer in hand. To check, having received conclusions in dry numbers, and not in subjective sensations, the simplest basic option - can a “one and a half” with ice, placed on the dashboard under a stream of air from a fan, make staying in a car without an air conditioner at least somewhat more comfortable? And thereby understand whether it is, in principle, advisable to apply further creativity, hands and strength in this direction?

The experiment will look like this. We take two identical cars of the same color, put them side by side in the sun for several hours. After warming up the interiors with the sun's rays in one car, we simply turn on the cabin fan to blow outside air, and in the other, we start recirculation and let the air flow onto the glass, blowing it over several liters of ice frozen in PET bottles lying on the dashboard. After 15 minutes, we look at the result - how much can we lower the temperature? So, let's go!

The temperature inside the car after three hours spent in the sun is 38 degrees Celsius:

We put ice bottles in one machine, turn on the fans in both, time the time - 15 minutes...

The result is depressing... In a car in which the fan was working to blow outside air into the cabin, the temperature dropped to 33 degrees, and in a car in which recirculation was turned on and the air was racing in a circle, blowing bottles of ice - only to 35.5 degrees... Banal purging even without open windows turned out to be more effective than blowing ice in a confined space!

The myth about bottle cooling persists, and although the result was predictable, it was still worth checking. However, it is still worth noting that six liters of ice are capable of more, just not in this form!

Any device that operates on heat transfer, be it an air conditioner or a heater, most important characteristic- square work surface. For bottles on the dashboard it is extremely small, plus their airflow is organized ineffectively. If we had placed the same six liters of ice in a flat ribbed container similar to a car radiator, placed it in the car interior and started blowing air through it, the effect would have been much more noticeable. It’s just that the accompanying difficulties make such an event a little more than completely meaningless...

Other dead-end ideas for “alternative air conditioners”

What other ideas come to mind for car owners without air conditioning with enviable regularity as summer approaches? You can, of course, install a non-standard universal air conditioner - in principle, it will not differ in any way from the standard one - except that the controls on the panel will stand out a little in the overall style of the interior. But the cost of installing a condo on a budget passenger car with components and turnkey work today is approximately 60,000 rubles. A little expensive, in general...

Therefore, such a decision is quickly discarded and the “creative hacking” begins. And here, of course, in second place after frozen PET bottles comes the thought of using a mobile or window air conditioner in the car, the cost of which starts from a more or less affordable 10,000 rubles even now, during the hot season.

It seems to many that if you put a household monoblock air conditioner in the back seat, power it with 12-220 volts through an inverter and stick the hot air hose out the window, you can enjoy the coolness! However, none of these dreamers have yet achieved real success... Why is the idea unviable?

The fact is that even the weakest window air conditioner In cooling mode, it consumes about one and a half kilowatts of power from a 220 volt network. The inverter efficiency of 12/220 is clearly not 100%, but for ease of demonstration on the fingers, we will take it as one hundred. Accordingly, from the 14-volt on-board network, such an air conditioner through an inverter will consume 1,500 watts/14 volts = 107 amperes. The current is crazy, the wiring will be as thick as a finger + many generators even have a lower maximum current output limit. We're not even talking about the fact that the inverter must be designed for long-term operation with a power of at least a couple of kilowatts - such inverters, as a rule, belong to expensive and specific professional equipment, are extremely rare on sale and cost a lot of money...

The idea in third place is the use of Peltier elements. When a current is applied to a semiconductor wafer, it heats up on one side and cools down on the other. It is not difficult to buy the elements, they are not that expensive. Car portable refrigerator boxes work well on such plates, and many people think that an air conditioner can be created using the same principle - inexpensive, silent, without a compressor, refrigerant, pipes and evaporators.

Alas, you will not be able to find a single really working “autocondya” design based on Peltier modules, although there are a lot of projects on various automotive blogs and forums, many even with intermediate reports on the stages of work, demonstrating the considerable efforts of DIY enthusiasts. Why? Yes, for the same reason why bottles with ice don’t work... Too small a “cold release” surface on the cold side and difficulty in organizing effective heat removal from the hot side. To ensure at least some cooling of the interior, from Peltier modules to passenger car there must be a roof...

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So, whatever one may say, there is no alternative to the traditional automobile compressor air conditioner yet and is not expected in the near future. After all, even in hybrids and electric vehicles that are at the forefront of progress, it has a classic design that has not changed fundamentally since the days of the first air-conditioned cars - Packards and Caddilacs of the early 40s of the twentieth century.

Does your car have air conditioning?