Frequently Asked Questions

250 cubic feet a minute.  Output is via a four inch duct connection. 

What´s that feel like?

A 40+ MPH breeze. 

Put your hand out your car window at that speed and you´ll know the feeling.

It feels like a leaf blower... and ice cold leaf blower.

It´s a lot of cold air.

A cigarette lighter plug is provided along with a fourteen foot power cord is standard.

Other connections can be provided for a fee.

We encourage you to have a qualified mechanic examine the health of your electical system and inspect your cigarette lighter or other power connections for corrosion.  Often times these connections have sat unused for years and have difficulty providing a good connection when first used.  While our units power requirements are not high - they do require secure connections.

Testing has shown block ice will provide the greatest duration of cooling.  Block ice has a high volume of frozen water and a minimized surface area providing the most effective long term cooling medium.

Crushed or cubed ice tends to yield very good quick cooling, but the smaller volume for a given surface area means the ice won´t last as long when the unit is operating.

Our coolers are high quality, and discovering ice remaining after two or three days sitting idle is not uncommon.

Our coolers are only built with metal and plastic. 

No fairings are used as we want the units to be easily cleaned and inspected to ensure they´re ready for use.

No wood or other materials easily subject to rot is used in the construction of our coolers.

All of my parts are commercially available off the shelf parts.  I don´t believe in reinventing the wheel, and I don´t need to be welding heat exchangers with a two year old in my garage.  The parts my suppliers provide come with warranties, and I´ll provide you with a 90 day warranty as well. 

Our pumps and fans are marine grade units built to exacting specifications.  They are industrial units designed to operate in harsh environments and sealed to prevent moisture from reaching critical components.  We´ve tested them for radio frequency interference and other electrical interference.  Our test rigs have been thoroughly run and customer units are built to provide years of service.

No.  Our units are not swamp coolers, and our proprietary airflow and heat exchanger actually lowers humidity with each successive pass through the device as long as ice remains in the unit.

The unit can be run with or without ducting - or airflow can be ducted and the unit kept several feet away.  In the plane, I run it with some ducting to get the cool air pointed over our heads.  In the back seat of the truck, I seldom use the duct.   As far as the ducting goes - I get mine at the local hardware store, but if you want fancier stuff - I can suggest a few vendors.

Our coolers are filled with ice water.  Heat is absorbed by the ice water.

Temperature drops of 50 degrees Fahrenheit are not uncommon. 

Our unique structured airflow and heavy duty heat exchanger also reduces humidity while cooling the air.

Its not recommended to store food in the unit, as the internal components of the cooling system are not made of food grade materials.  In addition anything loose in the ice water bath (like plastic bags or labels from bottles) could damage the pump or clog the heat exchanger requiring repair.

A good rule of thumb is ten pounds an hour.

The ice consumption varies by ambient temperature, humidity, and several other factors.  Ice the cooler on a 100 degree day, and you´ll have cool air for about two hours or more.  Throw another bag of ice in, and you´re good for a while longer. The larger the room, the hotter the air, the more quickly the ice melts off.  In small spaces where the cool air is recirculating, your ice will last longer.  Try and cool your garage on a hot summer day, and you´ll be burning through ice every hour and a half or so.  Put it in the cab of my truck and run the trucks fan (No A/C) to circulate the air, and my unit keeps me cool for three hours or more.

For example – in a given test using block ice we cooled a sealed, insulated 200 square foot room with a single ten pound block of ice.  Air temperature at fan outflow remained at 70 degrees or below for just under four hours.  Our average cooler could fit forty pounds of block ice.  This demonstrates how long ice can last given ideal circumstances.

Units can be built in either 12 or 24 volt models.

12 volt units draw just under 5 amps.

24 volt units draw just under 3 amps.

It can be run either from your vehicle´s cigarette lighter, or from a separate battery.

Self contained car jump-start units often integrate a cigarette lighter adapter.  These provide an excellent power supply.

No.  Dry Ice would be dangerous and can damage the unit.  Use only ice and water with our coolers.

Without ducting the fan isn´t whisper quiet - its not as loud as a hair dryer, and it´s a much lower pitch.  With ducting in place it runs quiet.  You can easily converse with it in the room, talk on the phone, everything... It´s not that noisy.  There are quieter, less powerful fans - but would you rather be sweaty and hot?

I have used the unit in an older Mercedes where I have it installed in the trunk and ducted forward into the passenger cabin.  This installation is not any louder then the blower in the air conditioning system, and delivers tremendous airflow.  It works well to augment weak or broken air conditioners in cars.

An extra length of hose is included that may be used to empty the cooler either using the electric pump, or by making a simple siphon.

Yes!

We can build coolers to fit any need. 

We´ve built coolers for use in cars to replace conventional air conditioning, boats, RV´s, campers, tents, race cars, anywhere cool air is needed. 

We´ve cooled helmets, radios, machinery, specialty equipment, people and pets. 

Contact us with your size, power and weight limitations and we´ll engineer a customized solution to fit your needs.

Customer satisfaction is critical to us.  If you´re unhappy with your unit return it within thirty days for a full refund of your purchase price.    We provide parts and labor coverage for 90 days.  Repair and replacement parts are always available.

Coolers are built and shipped in the order received.  We frequently ship same day during winter months, but as summer approaches backorders can reach 7 to 10 days.

Certain coolers are made in advance - and these are marked as In Stock on our site.

We offer payment via either Google Checkout or PayPal. Either vendor will accept Visa, Mastercard, or American Express.  PayPal also accepts direct bank drafts.

Just as our coolers are built with commercial off the shelf products - so is our website.  We elected to offer payment via either of these two companies as they have built names and reputations known worldwide.

Your credit card or bank information is never handled by our website, and we´ll never have record of it.  Your security in your online purchase from us is guaranteed.

If you prefer to pay by check, your goods will be shipped after your check has cleared our bank.