The heat, even if it has been waiting for a long time, still suddenly falls upon us. Rains, of course, are tired, but the scorching heat exhausts and reduces working capacity. It is good when there is a split system, but few people think about it in winter or rainy spring. And in the summer, its purchase and installation turn into a hole in the family budget.
Some craftsmen decide to make a home air conditioner with their own hands, using improvised tools and inexpensive materials. The idea of assembling a budget homemade product is quite attractive, but before proceeding with its implementation, it is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of such an assembly and study the technology of its manufacture, agree?
We offer you to familiarize yourself with the different options for building a home air conditioner. Among the proposed technologies, you are sure to choose the appropriate solution and you can assemble the cooling device yourself. Step-by-step guides and photo instructions will help in the implementation of the plan.
Factory air conditioners: types and disadvantages
Before you try to make an air conditioner yourself, it would be nice to figure out what this device is, how it works and what effect you can expect from its operation.
Air conditioning is a technically sophisticated device that was originally used only to cool the room in the summer. Over time, models of air conditioners have improved and become more complex.
Modern climate devices can not only control the indoor climate, but even moisturize and purify the air in it.
The most diverse modern climate devices are called air conditioners and are acquired in order to feel comfortable at home, regardless of weather conditions.
Devices that are currently commercially available can be divided into two types: evaporative and compression.
If evaporative models can only cool air and affect its humidity, then compression models can both reduce and increase the temperature in the room.
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Compression device and its design
Compression is the most common type of air conditioner, which is most often used in everyday life. Its design consists of units that are usually part of any refrigeration equipment: compressor, condenser (radiator), evaporator, temperature regulator and fans.
Each of the elements of the complex performs a specific task:
- compressor provides movement of the refrigerant (for example, freon) along the circuit of the device;
- radiator used for cooling and condensing freon;
- evaporator - the place where the liquid becomes vapor with a decrease in pressure of freon;
- temperature controller needed to control the flow of refrigerant moving through the evaporator: this ensures the preservation of the set temperature;
- fans help to activate the heat transfer process and direct the flow of chilled air into the room.
Schematically, the operation of a compression air conditioner can be represented as follows.
If you carefully study the above diagram that displays the principle of operation of a compression air conditioner, the purpose of each of the elements of the split system (+) becomes clear.
The refrigerant in a gaseous state (t + 10-20 ° C; pressure 3-5 atmospheres) comes from the evaporator to the compressor. There the gas is compressed and heated (t + 75-90 ° C; pressure 15-25 atmospheres). Then it enters the capacitor.
Here it goes into a liquid state, because it is cooled by an external air stream, which is driven through a heat exchanger.
When the refrigerant leaves the condenser and moves to the temperature control device, it has a high pressure and a temperature of 12-20 ° C higher than the environment.
Typically, a temperature control device is a thin copper spiral tube. In this case, the cross section of the device for passing freon is regulated. By Bernoulli law, where the refrigerant is moving faster, the pressure is lower. The pressure drop provides a decrease in the boiling point of the liquid and the active evaporation of the substance.
In the evaporator, where Freon then enters, it again becomes gas due to the active expansion and removal of heat from the air in the refrigerated room. The device is used precisely for the sake of this stage, which is the main one. Then the gas again enters the compressor. The cycle closes to repeat again and again.
Evaporating device: device principle
A remarkable feature of the evaporative device is that it does not use gases, the use of which negatively affects the environment. The operation of the device is not based on a change in the state of aggregation of the refrigerants, but on the evaporation of ordinary water.
The case of the device with a pallet is made of moisture-resistant materials that do not respond to sudden temperature changes. It contains all the nodes of the device.
The design is based on a water pump, which is used to saturate the cooling filter with moisture. The pump is equipped with a filling tank with valves through which water is supplied.
It is very important that ordinary water, which is used in the operation of an evaporative air conditioner, does not have a negative impact on the environment (+)
Cold water for the filter comes from the tank, where it is pumped from the pan. To enhance the cooling effect, ice can be put in the pan.
Cooling filters are used to increase the area of water evaporation, which helps to increase the efficiency of the device. As the material for their manufacture, cellulose or special polymers are used.
The honeycomb structure of such filters provides the maximum possible cooling of the air passing through them.
The fan helps to activate the movement of air masses and force them to drive through the air, and then the cooling filter.
This device works like this:
- a fan draws warm outside air into the case;
- air flows through filters, where they are cleaned and saturated with water from the tank;
- water vapor cools and moisturizes the air that enters the room.
The drier the outside air, the more actively the process of water evaporation takes place, and the better the device works.
Pros and cons of factory air conditioners
In many regions of our country, people cannot survive the summer heat without air conditioning. These devices are needed and useful. No one will argue with this statement. But along with the advantages, they also have a number of disadvantages that you need to know in order to predict and reduce their negative impact.
So, let's start with the “pluses”:
- creating a comfortable temperature microclimate in the home;
- air filtration;
- the use of humidifiers and ionizers in a number of modern models.
These benefits are obvious. They make us make a positive decision when buying this device.
Without proper care, the air conditioner quickly becomes polluted and becomes a real hotbed of fungi and pathogens that provoke the occurrence of diseases and allergic reactions.
But there are also disadvantages":
- the device itself will not be cheap, but you will still have to pay for its installation and for maintenance;
- electricity consumption and, accordingly, bills for it will increase;
- dust extracted from the air accumulates on the filters, which contributes to the growth of microorganisms, for example, Legionella bacteria - the causes of serious lung disease;
- air conditioning without a humidifier helps to reduce humidity in the room, which negatively affects the mucous membranes of the nasopharynx and eyes, promotes skin aging;
- a chilled stream of air masses can cause colds;
- the noise emitted by the device can irritate people.
If the device is poorly looked after, it can transmit unpleasant odors that fill your entire home. Detailed information about the features of servicing the split system is given in this article.
So, it makes sense to try to make your own device that has the advantages of factory air conditioners and is devoid of at least a few of their shortcomings.
What can you do with your own hands?
I draw your attention to the fact that we do not strive to surpass factory products. It is unlikely that we will be able to achieve the same cooling capacity.
Our goal is to build a device that does not consume a lot of energy, is inexpensive and, in case of inefficiency, can be sent to the box and the trash without regret. But imagine how self-made you will be pleased if successful!
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Homemade portable air conditioner
The use of improvised tools in the manufacture
Homemade incubator device
Low-power fan upgrade
Most home-made devices, as experience shows, consist of two main parts:
- a unit to reduce the ambient temperature;
- an element that contributes to the spread of the cooling effect throughout the room.
So let's figure out how to make an effective air conditioner at home from what we have at hand.
Ice paired with a fan
Simpler than this device can only be a wet sheet with which to curtain a window opening. Also, by the way, is a way to cool and moisten the air entering the room.
For its construction, plastic bottles or other containers filled with ice are needed. Well-proven flat containers with special coolers for cooler bags - cold accumulators.
They can be screwed to the fan grill with wire or placed in a basket fixed to the rods of this grill. The more ice, the better the cooling device.
Ice frozen in plastic bottles is a rather heavy item that needs to be firmly fixed to the grill or simply set on the table at the fan level
The effectiveness of this design, consisting of ice in a tank and a fan, can also be improved by assembling it in a special way.
We will need:
- five-liter plastic water bottle with cap;
- computer fan - diameter 120 mm;
- four screws and a screwdriver;
- pre-frozen ice.
Two holes are made in the bottle opposite each other. One thing will be round: a fan is inserted into it so that it draws air into the tank. The fan must be rigidly fixed with screws on the surface of the bottle.
This photograph clearly shows how a computer fan can be fixed in a hole made on the back of a five-liter bottle
The second hole is made rectangular. In this case, only the bottom and side walls of the rectangle are cut. The resulting valve is bent up. Through a rectangular hole inside the bottle ice is laid, the fan is turned on and that's it. You can enjoy the cool.
When the need for the device disappears, you can close its window with a valve to preserve the remnants of the cold.
We suggest you familiarize yourself with a device of a similar, but more complex and “long-playing” design in the video instruction block located at the bottom of the article.
Fan and copper tubes
If we are going to make a compact cooler from a fan with a protective grill and copper pipes through which water will move, then we should immediately focus on the topic of water.
It should be either flowing, or water should be placed in a bucket, which will become part of the device. If the house has a water meter, then the second option with media recycling is preferable.
One of the options for a successful tandem of ice with a fan and a copper coil will present the following selection of photos:
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Step 1: The device of the spiral from a copper tube
Step 2: Attaching the spiral with plastic clips
Step 3: Connect Plastic Tubes to Copper
Step 4: Install the ice bucket and pump
This useful homemade product will cool the air in the room by 5-7º in half an hour of productive work.
To work, we need:
- fan with front grill;
- a copper tube with a cross section of 6.35 mm and a length of 5-10 m;
- thin wire or flexible plastic clamps;
- flexible hose made of transparent plastic with an inner diameter of 6 mm;
- aquarium submersible pump (capacity 600-1000 liters per hour);
- a bucket or a thermal box (the latter is preferable);
- metal clamps;
- cold accumulators.
Flat containers filled with quick-freezing liquid are the cold accumulators that are used in cooler bags, automotive thermoboxes and other products of a similar purpose to maintain the desired temperature.
As a filler, they may contain water-salt solutions, gel or silicone.
For our homemade silicone battery is best suited. If the tank into which it is placed is well insulated, then it can keep the temperature at 0 ... + 2 ° C for a week. As a thermobox, you can use a bucket, but not with a round, but with a rectangular section.
To strengthen the insulation (with a lid!), The inside and outside are pasted with a layer of polystyrene foam 3-4 cm thick.
The tails of the plastic clamps-grippers, after fixing the copper tubes on the surface of the grate, must be cut so as not to interfere with the rotation of the fan blades
If everything you need is prepared, get to work.
We remove the front protective grill from the fan and fix the copper tube on it with plastic clamps. The more turns it is secured, the more efficient the device will be, but in everything you need to know the measure: the air flows from the fan should move freely between the turns of the tube.
The ends of the copper tube remain free. But it is better to cut the ends of the plastic clamps so that the product looks more aesthetically pleasing. The grill is mounted on the fan, and the ends of the copper tubes are directed towards the location of the water tank.
Plastic transparent hoses are put on the copper ends and secured with metal clamps.
Transparent hoses must be connected to the ends of the copper tubes with metal clamps, and one of the hoses is put on the pump nozzle with the other end
There will be two plastic hoses. They must be free to reach the cooling tank. The end of one of the hoses is connected to the pump nozzle. The second hose (long) is located in the tank. The tank is filled with cold water and ice.
There you can put the cold accumulators. It is better to drill holes for hoses and wires so that the lid hermetically closes the thermal box.
This is what the inside of the thermobox looks like, located under a sealed lid: it may contain cold water, ice and blue cold accumulators
After turning on the pump and the fan in the network, the water should begin to move freely through the hose to the fan, then through the copper pipe, returning the cold distributed by the fan, and again through the hose to the thermal box. If everything is so, the system is working properly.
Quick photo production guide
In fact, the presented variants of climatic devices are modernized fans.To inform them of high efficiency and provide a number of useful features along the way will still fail. However, they will even help to cope with the sweltering heat in an emergency.
Those who wish to build a climatic device from waste materials, we offer just such an interesting model:
The fan, supplemented by a circuit with ice water pumped through it, differs from previous systems in that a copper coil is installed inside the grill, which protects the product from accidental damage
To assemble this device, you will need an axial fan with a removable grating panel, a copper tube, plastic ties, a submersible type mini pump and a portable refrigerator - a box with foam insulation.
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Step 1: Unfasten the external fan grille
Step 2: Laying the coils of a copper coil
Step 3: bend around the exit tube around the axis
Step 4: Fixing the copper tube with plastic ties
Step 5: Trimming the tailings of the plastic ties
Step 6: Preparing the pump for pumping water through the coil
Step 7: Connect the plastic hose to the copper pipe
Step 8: Attaching the hose and hose connections
After completing the assembly, we test the homemade by immersing the pump in a foam plastic refrigerator with water and ice. To verify the operation of the system, we measure the temperature in the room before starting work and after half an hour. The model will be improved by incorporating a fan speed controller in the working circuit.
Tricks with a cardboard box
The basis of this design is all the same desktop fan and ice. But the device is quite interesting, so we decided to show it to you. The best part is that all the valuable components of this device can be easily restored to their original position without losing their functionality.
We will need:
- a box of corrugated cardboard is large enough to fit in a large pan;
- the pan itself;
- desktop fan with protective grill;
- wide adhesive tape;
- gypsy needle and stern thread;
- scissors, clerical knife;
- ruler or tape measure and marker;
- ice.
From a corrugated cardboard box, we need to make a box without a bottom in the size of our pan. The pan should fit tightly into this box, that is, correspond to it in length and width, but in height the box must exceed the pan by 15-20 cm.
To do this, cut the box with a clerical knife and cut off the bottom and the lid of it. We turn off the box according to the markings, in 2-3 layers gluing its edges and edges with adhesive tape.
The finished box (top view) should not have any holes on the side surfaces, except for a slot equipped with blinds, which is clearly visible in the photo on the left
There should be no holes in the walls of the box. From the remains of the corrugated cardboard we cut out the square box lid. It is better to make it two-layer.
In its center we mark a circle whose diameter should be 2-2.5 cm greater than the fan impeller span so that its blades freely enter the cut round hole and do not touch the edges during its rotation. We fix the cover in its place with tape.
At the level of the top edge of the pan placed in the box, we cut a rectangle 3.5–4 cm high in its wall. The length of this “embrasure” may be different, but it should not reach 4 cm to each of the side edges of the box so that the structure retains rigidity.
From this cut-out, the cooled air will go out. And for flow control you need to build blinds for it.
To do this, we cut out two strips from the corrugated cardboard, the length of which is less than the cut by 4-5 mm, and the width is more by 5 mm. We connect these strips together at a distance with the help of a gypsy needle and harsh threads. Punctures in the upper strip are made at a distance of 7-8 mm from the edge, and in the lower - 12-15 mm.
We insert the blinds into the opening and fix each strip at three points. We do not tighten the threads, but fix them in knots.
Try moving your blinds with your finger. The design should move freely and not crumble when moving. Now you can start assembling the device. Place a rug or old cloth in several layers under the pan to keep the appliance quieter. The stability of the pan should not be affected.
On the left, through the round hole in the lid of the box, ice is clearly visible, which is located on the fan grill covering the large pan, and on the right the device is photographed
We put the pan and cover it with the front fan guard, with the concave side facing up. On a grid lay out pieces of pre-prepared ice. It is better to harvest it in plastic glasses, because large pieces melt more slowly than small ones. We cover the structure with a box.
In the hole of the top cover, insert the fan with the blades down. You can enable and verify the quality of work.
The melted ice turns into water, which must be poured out of the pan in time so that it does not leak out and soak the box. Otherwise, the fan may fall into the water, resulting in a short circuit.
You can have a good look at the whole process of constructing this air conditioner by watching the video that we placed in a special block at the bottom of this article.
Plastic bottles and plywood sheet
This remarkable design does not need electricity and even frozen water. The only thing necessary for her work is a draft.
The principle of operation of the device is easier to explain with an example. Open your mouth wide and exhale sharply on your hand. The skin will feel warm. And now you need to stretch your lips with a tube and blow it again with the same effort as the first time.
This time, an air stream cools your skin. If air passes through a narrow channel, then with instant expansion it cools.
In this simple way, with the use of our own bottle caps, we fix the blanks to a plywood sheet with holes
We will prepare a sheet of cardboard, but better plywood. It should correspond to the size of the window opening, which we want to close with this design. We stock up on plastic bottles. From each of them we will need only the upper third with a cork. We cut it off.
By the way, plugs need to be removed, but not thrown away. They are useful to us for fixing bottles on the surface of the sheet.
We will need so many bottles so that they cover the entire surface of the sheet, but do not touch each other. To measure the holes for them, you can use a long pencil, which marks the center of the cut through the neck.
To drill a hole for a standard bottle, you need a crown with a diameter of 18 mm. Using a drill, we drill all the holes in turn.
The sheet is ready for use and can be installed in the window opening, for which it was originally intended
The cut-off upper parts of the bottles without plugs are inserted into the holes and fixed with their own plugs, in which the top is cut off. In this case, rings with internal thread are obtained that perfectly hold the segments of the bottles.
It remains only to install the finished air conditioner in the window opening with funnels outward. Specialists guarantee a decrease in temperature in the room by five degrees.
Fan Supplement
One of the obvious disadvantages of the previous device is that it deprives users of natural lighting in the room. In addition, there may be drafts in your area. Then use this notion.
To implement it, prepare:
- steady household fan;
- six plastic bottles;
- a sheet of thin plastic or thick cardboard - what you find;
- plastic tightening clamps;
- stationery knife;
- hot melt silicone.
The principle of operation of this cooler is the same as that of the previous model. Only in the window opening it is not necessary to mount it, and it can work in any room: it is portable.
The following photo instruction will familiarize you with the manufacturing process in the finest details:
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Take six pieces of plastic bottles with a capacity of 1.5 liters per production. It is desirable, but not necessary at all, to choose a container of the same color
Focusing on the top edge of the label, carefully cut off everything that is below it. So do with all the bottles
Unscrew the plastic cover. Carefully incising the base remaining on it from the neck, we remove it. Then remove from the remaining 5 bottles
Having placed all 6 blanks on the table, we check the evenness of trimming and the height of the blanks. If necessary, make adjustments or make a blank from another bottle
To make the base, we take a sheet of thick cardboard and draw a circle on it, the diameter of which is 4m the diameter of the workpiece
Putting the cutting board on the table or replacing it with a plywood sheet, with a sharp knife we cut out the base for the device
On the base cut out of cardboard we draw the outline of six blanks made from bottles
According to the outlined blanks of the blanks, we cut out circles. We act carefully with a knife, taking care not to damage the base
Step 1: Preparing Plastic Bottles for Use
Step 2: Cutting the unwanted part of the bottle
Step 3: Removing the roof and adjacent base
Step 4: Verify Trim Height and Evenness
Step 5: Drawing the base for the amplifier
Step 6: Uncover the base for the air flow booster
Step 7: Drawing the outline of the blanks based on
Step 8: Cutting Circles for Setting Workpieces
All actions for cutting the base and cutting circles for attaching blanks from bottles should be carried out very carefully and carefully. If you cut more than necessary, the workpiece will not firmly “sit” in the nest. True, there is still the opportunity to correct the error - you can correct the defect by gluing with tape. Further:
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Step 9: Remove Cut Circles from the Base
Step 10: Pasting the problem areas of the base
Step 11: Installing Workpieces in Seats
Step 12: Leveling Your Homemade Device
Now the home-made device, which should concentrate the air flows and enhance its movement, remains to be assembled and attached to the fan:
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Having chosen a suitable place on the base section between the workpieces, we pierce two holes for the plastic screed. There should be 6 pairs
We try on a homemade wind amplifier to the fan casing. We mark on it points of installation of couplers
In order to facilitate your work, first we fix the topmost coupler on the fan grill. We tighten it all the way, the rest - no
We pull the remaining couplers through the front grill of the fan, but do not tighten them yet. After installing all, let's see what needs to be fixed. Tighten only after corrections
We cut off excess plastic ties so that they do not get tangled in the blades
We set the fan in motion by hand to check if there are any parts that interfere with the rotation of the working part of the device
We measure the temperature in the treated room before turning on the equipment and activating its work
After five minutes, we check how many points the temperature in the room has decreased, we evaluate the effectiveness of homemade work and begin operation
Step 13: forming a hole for the screed
Step 14: Trying "winding" to the fan housing
Step 15: Fixing the Upper Start Tie
Step 16: Tighten the Inline Couplers on the Device
Step 17: Trimming the Tails of Plastic Ties
Step 18: Checking the rotation of the amplified fan
Step 19: Upgraded Equipment Test
Step 20: Putting Homemade Wind Turbine Into Operation
We cut off the upper part from the bottles, focusing on the label line to get the same lengths. Next we will make the basis. To do this, on a sheet of plastic or cardboard, draw a circle corresponding to the diameter of the fan. Using a clerical knife, cut out a circle.
On the resulting circle, we evenly arrange the segments of the bottles with the bell down. Circle the circumferences of the sockets and carefully cut them out. The result was a mounting plate.
We attach bottle sockets to the holes and fix them in such position with tape so that they do not change their position during gluing. Glue the bottles to the mounting plate, applying glue on both sides.
It remains only on the mounting panel to make holes between the bottles for fixing the plastic clamps with which the panel will be attached to the fan grill. We tighten the fasteners, cutting off their ends, otherwise they will interfere with the rotation of the blades.
If there is no time for experiments, and the issue of cooling the room becomes more and more relevant, then you can buy a practical and inexpensive model of a split system.
We have prepared a block of articles that will help in choosing a home air conditioner:
- How to choose a split system in an apartment and in a house: the best brands + recommendations for customers
- Mobile split systems: dozens of the best options for portable climate equipment
- Split system for 2 rooms: how the equipment is arranged and works + the nuances of choosing such a technique
- Split system inverter or conventional, which is better? Advantages and disadvantages + selection tips
This video shows the fastest and most affordable way to make an air conditioner from a five-liter plastic bottle.
The visual series that reproduces the process of creating a cooling device from a pan and a cardboard box will help you clarify all the nuances if something remains unclear.
This article presents the simplest and most popular designs that anyone can build, but for those who like to apply their master’s skills, we also have something.
Air conditioning is a technically complex device, without which the summer life of modern urban residents is difficult and joyless. But this expensive device needs maintenance and power costs.
We offer you to build your own one of the above most popular devices in the people and use it. Perhaps the factory model will not seem to you as attractive as this budget homemade product.
Have experience making a home air conditioner? Please tell readers about your method of assembling the cooling unit. Comment on the publication, participate in discussions and add photos of your homemade products. The feedback block is located below.