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A twist on rain collection and evaporative cooling

3K views 13 replies 12 participants last post by  Technologist 
#1 ·
After seeing a post by another member in another thread, I was struck with an idea while out having a cigarette.

To help with cooling costs in summertime, why not set up a rain collection system, say with a 200+ gallon capacity. Along the peak of the roof, run a piece of PVC pipe (painted to match the roof color), with either a row of small holes, or small plastic spray nozzles (ag spray nozzles or drip irrigation). Then use a small solar powered pump to recirculate water from the tank up to the roof. You could even tie in a thermostat in the attic space if you wanted.

The water flowing down the roof would help to directly and evaporatively cool the surface, and whatever left over water made it to the gutter would be re-deposited into the tank, to be circulated again. Operating cost would be zero, it would not be using any water from a well or municipal supply, and the potential energy savings could be quite significant.

Only downside I can think of is on a really hot sunny day, you could easily end up evaporating off the entire contents of your rain barrel. Lots of pros and cons to weigh with this system.
 
#4 ·
Interesting. I was initially about to call BS on this, then checked around. Damned if it's not right. Another reason to hate the dumbasses in power :mad:
http://www.naturalnews.com/029286_rainwater_collection_water.html

Guess it's time to quietly "illegally divert" rainwater to underground storage to avoid the Nanny State from dictating what you do on your own property, eh?

Glad my state isn't that stupid (yet), but my county did just recently raise the water prices to compensate for less usage; after they petitioned for reduced usage the yeaars before to avoid draining the local water table. I'm still mad about that, but that's a typical democrat political decision for ya, right?
 
#8 ·
You're right that lowering the temps inside the attic will help keep the house cooler. Homes down here in the south almost always have insulation between the attic and the living spaces of the home. Attic spaces also always have ventilation designed to move the heated air out of the attic while bringing cooler air in from outside. Some attics have better air exchange than others.

A canopy of trees is another great way to keep a house cooler under the sun.

During long term power outages after a hurricane; we've found the best way to keep the house comfortable without electricity is to close the house up during the day and open the house to the cooler night air as soon as the outside air temperature drops below the inside air temp. The thermal mass of the house helps maintain a lower temp inside the house during the day and the stored heat from the day gets removed again the next night.

You also get used to wearing less clothing in that situation and your body and mind adjust fairly quickly to hotter conditions.
 
#9 ·
You would need a pretty powerful pump to raise the water to that height and for volume and make sure that the water would get back to the pump in time so it does not run dry. I would also expect it to wear on your roof so expect it to fail sooner than you expect. The cost of a new roof might be cost-prohibitive.
 
#12 ·
Right, I'd go with using the water for watering in a dry state or cleaning and drinking. It WILL lower the temps some in the attic, but how much will bleed into the house with all the insulation designed to keep the attic and house apart? The cost and effort to erect an entire irrigation system on a roof wouldn't be worth it, to me.

And if it was worth it, I don't have any advice to give because I wouldn't know how to build one :) I'd say check valves to keep everything going the correct direction.

Actually, if you stored lots of things in the attic, it would at least keep them comfy if nothing else.
 
#13 ·
It would work I remember when I was a kid my
dad was a TV repair man and gunsmith besides a lot of other stuff .
Verry smart man in a way verry stupid in others Winchester ofred him a job for 30,000
a year in 1974 because he fixed one of their rifles that their engineres couldnt fix
just did want to work for some one elese verry strange person . But any way we keep the house cool by having a big fan setting about 8 ft from the front door with a 5 gal bucket and a pump that vapperized the water and sprayed it into the back of the fan.
and picked up the air flow from under the house were it was cooler. Dont know how he did it but in 80 dregee weather after about 2 hr we had to turn it off becouse it got to cold in the house.I remmeber one winter he wanted to make snow icecream and there wasnt any snow so he turned the fan to the side and cranked up the pump put in clean water and made snow.
He left it run so I could play in it 5 gal of water makes a LOT of snow LOL
 
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