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Heaters & Swamp Coolers

Nepenthesis

Formerly known as Pineapple
The time has come that I need to get my heater/swamp cooler for my greenhouse. It's a greenhouse for nepenthes and other tropical plants. I'm hoping to keep it 50F at night in winter and 70F during the day, if possible. When it's 70F outside and there are no clouds (it can get up to 100F in the summer), it can get up to 100F inside the greenhouse. Will a swamp cooler actually help cool the greenhouse down while maintaining humidity? It seems kinda like a long shot... It's a harbor freight 6x8 greenhouse, nothing fancy. I just want something cheap to get to a place where I can keep my nepenthes outside in the greenhouse.

Does this work for a heater?

1500-watt heater

Anyone have suggestions as to which swamp cooler I should get? Preferably less than $150, but capable of cooling down my greenhouse quickly and efficiently. What do you guys use in your greenhouses?

Oops, also forgot to ask... What thermostat do you guys use in your greenhouses? Looking for something that works well but is not pricey. Just need something that can turn my heater on when the temperature drops before 50F and turn the swamp cooler on when the temperature goes above 85F. :)
 
Where are you? Your humidity levels outside will effect drastically a swamp cooler's effective cooling.
 
Hi Pineapple

The swamp cooler will not only cool but also increase humidity levels. As Adnedarn says the temp and humitity will affect the outputs. But iff you can tell us your typical temperature and humidity in the greenhouse I can work out what is possible, temp and hums, with an evaporative cooler.

Cheers
steve
 
It's usually around 50%-60% in the winter outside and on hot summer days it can get pretty low. At night it usually gets up around 90%. It's usually so humid that moisture gathers on the panels inside of the greenhouse.
General temperature in the greenhouse is about 10F warmed than the outside air temperature on a sunny day, but when its in direct sun (for about an hour or two in the afternoon) it can get up to 100F with drastically low humidity.
 
I assume you use shade cloth? That alone will work wonders. Also, Nepenthes can do wonderfully well in "less that optimal" humidity, so perhaps don't be TOO worried about the humidity, and don't be afraid to vent your greenhouse out in the summer (i.e. open the door or vents).

That being said, allow your plants time to acclimate to lower humidity and new conditions.
 
I need to order some 50% shadecloth online along with the heater/swamp cooler. Good to know that will also cool of the greenhouse. Is it okay to put it on the inside of the greenhouse rather than the outside? That way it wouldn't blow off. :p
 
Still didn't say your outside temp :p Here is a chart as related to outside temp. and humidity as to the temp. of the air will likely be.

evap_chart3.gif


You need the cooler outside the greenhouse sucking fresh air, and blowing into the g/h and letting the hot air out somewhere (top is best where it's the hottest). then, it's time to start working with the microclimates this will create. Right next to the cooler, is cooler than at the other end of the g/h or outside of the direct air flow. This will increase humidity- but may still be low pending outside humidity... Doesn't sound like you get as dry as I am, but with single digit humidity outside, my greenhouses would sit around 20-30% without supplemental humidification.

For a heater, I use an unvented propane heater in the big greenhouse to maintain temps around 55 in the winter. In the small greenhouse I use a 1500w oil filled heater. both have built in thermostats.
For a cooler- I have used both "portable" coolers and full size house coolers retrofitted with a "masterstat" made by mastercool thermostat.
Andrew
 
Still didn't say your outside temp :p Here is a chart as related to outside temp. and humidity as to the temp. of the air will likely be.

evap_chart3.gif


You need the cooler outside the greenhouse sucking fresh air, and blowing into the g/h and letting the hot air out somewhere (top is best where it's the hottest). then, it's time to start working with the microclimates this will create. Right next to the cooler, is cooler than at the other end of the g/h or outside of the direct air flow. This will increase humidity- but may still be low pending outside humidity... Doesn't sound like you get as dry as I am, but with single digit humidity outside, my greenhouses would sit around 20-30% without supplemental humidification.

For a heater, I use an unvented propane heater in the big greenhouse to maintain temps around 55 in the winter. In the small greenhouse I use a 1500w oil filled heater. both have built in thermostats.
For a cooler- I have used both "portable" coolers and full size house coolers retrofitted with a "masterstat" made by mastercool thermostat.
Andrew

Thanks for the chart! That really helps. Looks like it should work out pretty well with my conditions. :)

I can figure out a way to hook up a hose to the evaporative cooler to pull outside air into the greenhouse. That shouldn't be an issue.

Do you have a specific brand or model of evaporative cooler that you prefer over others? Don't want to get one that will crap out on me or not do its job. :)
 
I use one of these: Jay-Bird Aquafog
It provides significant cooling and increases the humidity at the same time. The fogger is controlled by a hygrostat that you dial to the desired humidity (I keep mine at around 80%), so when it drops below the RH you chose, the fogger kicks in and runs until the humidity is back up where you want it. It also provides significant cooling effect, allowing me to maintain temps that stay below 90F even on the hottest days, and simultaneously maintain very high humidity. My GH space is quite modest: a 10 X 12 footprint house.

A word to the wise: don't buy cheap equipment, it will only fail you.
 
  • #10
I use one of these: Jay-Bird Aquafog
It provides significant cooling and increases the humidity at the same time. The fogger is controlled by a hygrostat that you dial to the desired humidity (I keep mine at around 80%), so when it drops below the RH you chose, the fogger kicks in and runs until the humidity is back up where you want it. It also provides significant cooling effect, allowing me to maintain temps that stay below 90F even on the hottest days, and simultaneously maintain very high humidity. My GH space is quite modest: a 10 X 12 footprint house.

A word to the wise: don't buy cheap equipment, it will only fail you.

That's twice as much as the greenhouse is... But it looks so perfect! :-(

$200 for a fogger/cooler combination would be best... I don't want to spend over $200 on it. I have a pretty tight budget. I think a swamp cooler would actually be the best option given my budget, and it humidifies a bit. I don't live in a desert and the humidity goes really high at night, so I may not need a fogger for now.
 
  • #12
how big of a greenhouse are we talking here?
 
  • #13
how big of a greenhouse are we talking here?

6ft wide, 8ft back and 6ft tall. I calculated the cubic footage with the slanted roof included, and it came out to around 220 cubic feet.
 
  • #14
And it gets to be 100f outside in the summer, and it's in the sun? That cooler will not be enough my friend. I fear you need to step it up to something with a 8" blower or so... Like the mmb8... http://www.air-n-water.com/product/mmb8.htm I have a mmb10 for my 8x10. I have an mmb8 as my emergency back up... and it can't even keep up with my 8x10. the 220sq ft. the one you're looking at says- is misleading if you ask me, the one I linked is rated for 500 sq. ft. and look at the difference in them. Note: this has no controller... so it's on and off until you add a thermostat set up.
Andrew
 
  • #15
And it gets to be 100f outside in the summer, and it's in the sun? That cooler will not be enough my friend. I fear you need to step it up to something with a 8" blower or so... Like the mmb8... http://www.air-n-water.com/product/mmb8.htm I have a mmb10 for my 8x10. I have an mmb8 as my emergency back up... and it can't even keep up with my 8x10. the 220sq ft. the one you're looking at says- is misleading if you ask me, the one I linked is rated for 500 sq. ft. and look at the difference in them. Note: this has no controller... so it's on and off until you add a thermostat set up.
Andrew

It's rare that it gets up to 100F. Most of the day in the summer, it stays around 85F at the hottest, so I can just open up the door and let it air out, while running the swamp cooler to maintain humidity.

If I had the extra hundred to spend on that evaporative cooler you linked to, I would in a heartbeat. Is there another model for around $200+/- that your would recommend? I'll definitely consider the Adobe Air MMB8 though, I just need a cheaper backup plan if I decide not to go with the MMB8.
 
  • #16
Plus, AFAIK the mmb series is gone ever since adobe air sold their company... the new "master cool" stuff is actually kinda crappy it seems. :-\ If opening the door is enough in your environment (not an option here :p) then just about anything could help/should be enough for a bit of additional cooling. Also keep in mind, a lot of those ones like you are looking at must be hand filled... so you may want to look at one before you buy to see if it has room to add a float to. I would probably stay away from the computer controlled stuff- just because of the greenhouse environment. I'll see if I can look around for a cheaper option.
Andrew

Oh, and I don't know if evaporative coolers are popular where you are as they are here.. but check craigslist- I have bought 2 from there that people barely used in their garage for really cheap... the mmb8 and mmb10...
 
  • #17
Plus, AFAIK the mmb series is gone ever since adobe air sold their company... the new "master cool" stuff is actually kinda crappy it seems. :-\ If opening the door is enough in your environment (not an option here :p) then just about anything could help/should be enough for a bit of additional cooling. Also keep in mind, a lot of those ones like you are looking at must be hand filled... so you may want to look at one before you buy to see if it has room to add a float to. I would probably stay away from the computer controlled stuff- just because of the greenhouse environment. I'll see if I can look around for a cheaper option.
Andrew

Oh, and I don't know if evaporative coolers are popular where you are as they are here.. but check craigslist- I have bought 2 from there that people barely used in their garage for really cheap... the mmb8 and mmb10...

Thanks! You've been a big help. I might as well go for the MMB8 if you strongly suggest it, unless there's a cheaper option that will do the same job.

Do you have any suggestions as far as the thermostat goes? Is there a simple one I can just plug the heater cord and the cooler cord into and set it to the temperature range I want? ???
 
  • #18
Well, keep in mind that the cooler is discontinued. I purchased a few sets of replacement pads for mine wile they were still around. I never checked online for them though. I used the masterstat for the cooler... 110 at lowes. cheaper here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/MasterStat-...200?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3373b00f58 if you are decent with wiring or have someone that can help.
For "cheap" (and i've never used them) there are these outlet things preset to temps.. like this: http://www.charleysgreenhouse.com/i...E3149&s=thermostat&cid1=224&cid2=414&cid3=-99 and others a bit higher range. see some selections here: http://www.charleysgreenhouse.com/i...&varColumns=3&f=1&enter.x=0&enter.y=0&mtype=3
Good luck! :D
Andrew
 
  • #19
Well, keep in mind that the cooler is discontinued. I purchased a few sets of replacement pads for mine wile they were still around. I never checked online for them though. I used the masterstat for the cooler... 110 at lowes. cheaper here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/MasterStat-...200?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3373b00f58 if you are decent with wiring or have someone that can help.
For "cheap" (and i've never used them) there are these outlet things preset to temps.. like this: http://www.charleysgreenhouse.com/i...E3149&s=thermostat&cid1=224&cid2=414&cid3=-99 and others a bit higher range. see some selections here: http://www.charleysgreenhouse.com/i...&varColumns=3&f=1&enter.x=0&enter.y=0&mtype=3
Good luck! :D
Andrew

Well I guess if it's discontinued it wouldn't be a good idea to buy one since I'll need replacement pads... Any suggestion for another evaporative cooler that goes in the same price range $200-$300?

I'll check around at OSH, Lowes and Home Depot for thermostats and see what I can do as far as that goes. I wish there was a controller that had outlets I could just plug my heater and cooler into and set the temperature range. :-(
 
  • #20
There are plug in styles in the charley's link i gave you... lowes/hd definitely don't have them. I'll look around if i get a chance for other coolers.
 
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