AC Versus Swamp Coolers

The dew point used to be an important weather indicator to metro Phoenix residents who watched for a reading lower than 55, which meant they could run their evaporative coolers.  Evaporative coolers use water and a fan to cool outside air and bring it into a building, in the past requiring less electricity than air-conditioners.

The units providing low-cost cooling were common in neighborhoods across the region starting in the 1940s, but have been in sharp decline since the late '80s.

Now the metal boxes atop homes are rare, done in by a combination of cheap and increasingly energy-efficient air-conditioning and the time and expense of maintaining the coolers.

Arizonans steadily have moved away from using the sometimes noisy, always drippy evaporative coolers, even though they may reduce energy bills.

Arizona Public Service Company estimates that less than 10 percent of its customers use an evaporative cooler and that less than 3 percent rely on a cooler without air-conditioning. In 1984, nearly half its customers had coolers and a quarter of them used them without an air-conditioner.  Salt River Project estimates that about 14 percent of its customers have evaporative coolers.

Most residents who still use them are either extremely cost-conscious, handy at fixing the units, or both.  Auto shops, gyms, warehouses and other industrial buildings with large areas to keep cool still commonly rely on cost-efficient evaporative coolers.

Homeowners, however, are a different story.  Evaporative coolers struggle to cool homes in the extreme heat and humidity of July, August and September in the greater Phoenix area, so it was common for people to use air-conditioning then and rely on the coolers in milder months.

Experts list many reasons swamp coolers - a term Niskern finds derogatory - have faded. New air-conditioners are much more efficient, which means people save less on their power bill by switching from air-conditioners to evaporative coolers. New housing developments are limiting coolers' use on roofs. And people are just happy to use an air-conditioner that rarely needs repairs vs. a cooler that needs rooftop service at least twice annually.

Coolers require new pads, they use water, and some people rely on service technicians to clean them out annually, all adding to the cost.  The higher the outside humidity, the less cooling the units offer, which is why they often struggle to provide comfort during the summer monsoon.  As the metro heat island grows nights aren't as cool as they used to be, and evaporative coolers don't provide the same amount of comfort as they once did.

Need AC repair or replacement for the coming summer months?  Give Aaron’s Mechanical Service a call and let us help you get your AC running! 

Call 623-388-4436

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Aaron’s Mechanical Service
623-388-4436
info@coolingaz.com
http://coolingaz.com