Five Important Tips for Maintaining Your Commercial Swamp Cooler

Evaporative air coolers, also known as swamp coolers, are among the most popular options among businesses looking for an affordable air conditioning system.  A commercial swamp cooler is particularly effective in environments with dry air, taking in water from an intake and using it to create a cooling effect.

While it is inexpensive to operate, a commercial swamp cooler does have one drawback in that it requires more maintenance than some other HVAC solutions.  However, if you keep up on your maintenance, your swamp cooler will bring you affordable air conditioning for many years to come.

Five Ways to Keep Your Commercial Swamp Cooler Running Smoothly

1. Frequently clean the outside of the unit

Much of the outside surface of the swamp cooler is used for air intake, which can easily be clogged with dirt, debris, and dust.  We recommend cleaning it off roughly every month, both to keep the unit functioning at peak efficiency and to prevent any of that grime from making its way into the unit itself.

2. Keep an eye on the cooling pads

At the very least, the cooling pads on your evaporative cooler should be replaced at the beginning of summer, when it’s first turned on, and midway through the summer.  However, under heavy usage, they could potentially crack at any time.  Monitoring them will reduce any usage-induced downtime.

3. Utilize water treatment tablets

It’s easy for mineral deposits to form on the inside of your water holding tank, and the odds of this happening increase with “hard” water.  Fortunately, standard water softening tablets are all you need to get rid of the mineralization.

4. Maintain water levels

The water tank should be checked daily to maintain the level of water inside.  Running the evaporator without sufficient water will quickly damage it.  Simply keeping the water topped off is all that’s needed to avoid this.

5. Always winterize your cooler

Allowing your commercial swamp cooler to go through winter without being winterized will probably destroy it.  The unit should be unhooked from the power, drain the water tank and lines, and clean and dry everything thoroughly.  Portable coolers should be repacked in their storage containers.  Never leave your swamp cooler hooked up past the end of summer.

Springs Heating & Cooling is a veteran-owned business dedicated to providing superior residential and commercial HVAC solutions.  Contact us to learn more about our services!