Fixin' to start! Now Pics added.

[grumpy]

Here's a breakdown of the evaporator costs.

One reclaimed blower motor-Used. $20.00
Fasteners (Screws and nails) $8.01
Water pump $64.20
PVC-pipe, fittings and glue $25.60
110 Gallon Reservoir $63.20
Treated Lumber $59.10
100% Silicone glue (3 tubes) $7.50
Padding and Zip-ties $12.23
12" & 6" Aluminum Flashing $11.85
Total $271.69
Tax $19.70
Total Price $291.39

 

[6riversfarms]

Here's a breakdown of the evaporator costs.

One reclaimed blower motor-Used. $20.00
Fasteners (Screws and nails) $8.01
Water pump $64.20
PVC-pipe, fittings and glue $25.60
110 Gallon Reservoir $63.20
Treated Lumber $59.10
100% Silicone glue (3 tubes) $7.50
Padding and Zip-ties $12.23
12" & 6" Aluminum Flashing $11.85
Total $271.69
Tax $19.70
Total Price $291.39

Wow that isnt bad at all grumpy. Way more cost effective then the commercial units. How many hours of labor do you figure it took?

 

[Kyle@theWintertime]

REALLY cool system, and I'm pretty shocked at how reasonable the costs of materials is!

 

[LauraNJ]

That is really neat! Great job!

Very reasonable in cost. You are very skilled!

 

[grumpy]

Here's a breakdown of the evaporator costs.

One reclaimed blower motor-Used. $20.00
Fasteners (Screws and nails) $8.01
Water pump $64.20
PVC-pipe, fittings and glue $25.60
110 Gallon Reservoir $63.20
Treated Lumber $59.10
100% Silicone glue (3 tubes) $7.50
Padding and Zip-ties $12.23
12" & 6" Aluminum Flashing $11.85
Total $271.69
Tax $19.70
Total Price $291.39

Wow that isnt bad at all grumpy. Way more cost effective then the commercial units. How many hours of labor do you figure it took?

Geez, I don't know for sure. Probably 30-35 hours...maybe. When I get on a project like this, I don't keep track of time. As a matter of fact, I lose track of time. With the first one done, I could probably cut my "thinking" time quite a bit.

It's the challenge to see if I can make "what-I-see-in-my-mind" work. I had a fun time with it. Even the boo-boo's. It was interesting/fun trying to figure them out. I can already see I'm going to need more water pressure. It's not working nearly as good as it should.

I've got a digital temperature sensor I'm going to install inside the wind chamber on the blower to see what the actual temperature is coming out of the evaporator.

Grumpy

 

[Random Rabbit]

i ... am....in....AWE !!!! Nice !!!


( looking for a bowing smilie )

 

[fuzzy9]

That looks awesome, Grumpy! You are really pretty darn handy, and talented!!

 

[ZRabbits]

Excellent Grumpy. Smarts and know how to save a buck. Can't wait to hear the plans about the grow out room.

Karen.

 

[6riversfarms]

Here's a breakdown of the evaporator costs.

One reclaimed blower motor-Used. $20.00
Fasteners (Screws and nails) $8.01
Water pump $64.20
PVC-pipe, fittings and glue $25.60
110 Gallon Reservoir $63.20
Treated Lumber $59.10
100% Silicone glue (3 tubes) $7.50
Padding and Zip-ties $12.23
12" & 6" Aluminum Flashing $11.85
Total $271.69
Tax $19.70
Total Price $291.39

A

Wow that isnt bad at all grumpy. Way more cost effective then the commercial units. How many hours of labor do you figure it took?

Geez, I don't know for sure. Probably 30-35 hours...maybe. When I get on a project like this, I don't keep track of time. As a matter of fact, I lose track of time. With the first one done, I could probably cut my "thinking" time quite a bit.

It's the challenge to see if I can make "what-I-see-in-my-mind" work. I had a fun time with it. Even the boo-boo's. It was interesting/fun trying to figure them out. I can already see I'm going to need more water pressure. It's not working nearly as good as it should.

I've got a digital temperature sensor I'm going to install inside the wind chamber on the blower to see what the actual temperature is coming out of the evaporator.

Grumpy

I know what you mean about the challenge. The tinkering and head scratchin and slinging tools is half the fun lol. I bet if you had to build another you could do it much quicker the second time around.

 

[grumpy]

ZRabbits:
Karen, things got thrown into panic mode yesterday evening about 8PM. Our beloved boxer, Anna-Bell was rushed to the vet and eventually taken to an emergency clinic. We felt sure her stomach had "flipped". Fortunately, she had one large gas-bubble and that was it. Of course, with the vet bills, Annie had an $800.00 fart!! LOL. These "pets" are gonna put me in the poor house. We didn't get back home and settled down till about 4 this morning. I'm just now getting my faculties about me and getting ready to start my day. I'll snap some shots of the grow-out room as the work progresses.

6riversfarms:
Yes, I could build one now: quicker and better. I know what is needed to make the unit more efficient. I was really concerned about the water pump being "too" strong for the manifold. I was completely incorrect about that!! I now realize that the pressure/volume has got to be at or near maximum handling capabilities for the unit to work really well. The amount of water flowing over the pads is the secret to the success for a swamp cooler.

If anything, the water rate should be doubled or tripled! A true 1000 GPH delivery wouldn't be too much. Now.....I am going to have to "modify" the manifold to handle this extra water. It is simply a matter of draining the tank and carefully drilling extra holes in the manifold. With all of the "filings" of pvc from the drilling, I'll have to make sure they are completely cleaned out of the reservoir. Otherwise, they'll get pumped back through the system and clog the holes in the manifold. Shouldn't take but an hour or so to do the job and get the unit back on line.

Grumpy.

PS. I'll have one more pic of the north wall of the breeding room. I "added" an extra touch that sure made a difference in its appearance. Plus, it helped drop the temps another degree or two.

 

[ZRabbits]

Sorry to hear about Anna-Bell. Better a Fart than a twisted stomach. Hope everything has settled down. Pets become more than what we can ever imagine them to be. And in most instances, they become part of the family.

Karen

 

[grumpy]

I finished out the north wall with foam board. It gives a better appearance and adds insulation factors to the room.

With the two blower motors, I was able to clear out a lot of the clutter caused by the larger, less efficient box fans.
Those old furnace motors can sure move a lot of air in short order.
And for twenty-bucks a piece, you can't beat the price!

Well folks, that about does it for the main breeding room. Hope you all enjoyed the pics of the swamp cooler construction and installation. It works very well, but I've still got to upgrade the GPH on the pumping system.

Now....I'm off to revamping and upgrading the grow-out room. I'll start a new thread for that project.

Grumpy.

 

[rebelrabbit]

Ok folks, I'm a rookie looking for advice. I've read numerous posts and checked out the pics and all of the swamp coolers appear to be cooling 'rooms' (although not necessarily closed in rooms). I'm thinking of building a small hutch (e.g. 8'-10' long) that ducts the cool air from a swamp cooler straight into the bun pens. The thought was to duct into the back side at several places along the length of the hutch at the top of the pens. I was going to leave the bottom of the pens 'open' (wire floor) for ventalation and allow the cool air to just settle. The top and sides would be solid.

So my questions are:
1) is blowing cool, humid air straight into the bun pens bad for the rabbits?
2) if the answer to #1 if 'No', would it hurt put a more solid bottom on the pen under the wire (like a slide out tray) that would help keep the cool air in the pens longer?
3) would I still need to install ventalation fans (I'm thinking small 120mm fans at each end--remember this is a small hutch)?
4) would I be better off with a more open pen (maybe leave the back side with the duct work just wire)?
5) or should I stick to reading about rabbits instead of trying to raise them?

I live in north Texas and like everyone else, the last few years have been HOT. I'm just starting to get into this but don't want to buy some rabbits just to watch them bake in the back yard. My goal is just to breed 2 or 3 does a couple of times a year to supplement the meat in the freezer. I won't breed in the summer here but don't want them to die either.

I'd appreciate any advice. Thanks.

 

[Marinea]

I a sure Grumpy (and others) will be along to answer your questions Rebel, but I just wanted to say welcome!

This is THE best place to come for those involved with rabbits. I would love to hear about your rabbits and setup.

 

[rebelrabbit]

Thanks Marinea. So far I don't have anything to show but ideas. I really want to figure out how to keep the rabbits from having heat stroke before subjecting them to my learning curve. I continue to expand on the swamp cooler idea and think I could use it for double duty. My thought is I could have two pumps in the S/C with one running water thru some metal tubing (copper?) sandwiched between a layer of plywood (on bottom) and ceramic tile (on top) that would be the floor in the bun pens. The cool water flowing thru the tubes would cool the tile that the buns could lay on. The metal tubing would, of course, also have a loose coil inside the swamp cooler before going to the bunny cages. Instead of radiant heating, they would have radiant cooling. I would only have to tile about half of each pen so I could still put feed on the opposite side with a wire floor to aid in removeing bunny dropping. Anyway, I'm looking forward to getting folks opinions.

BTW, thanks for answering...I was wondering if maybe I had put the post in the wrong place.

 

[SuburbanHomesteader]

Hey Rebel - I'd say you're in the right place and at the right time! I just finished two days of scooping out 14" of snow...but have been thinking about what I'll do differently this year when the heat arrives. Now's the time to get it done.

I'm not too far from Grumpy - on the KS side of KC. I tried a swamp cooler type thing but ended up going with Arizona Misters around the door and a big exhaust fan on the opposite side of the barn pulling the air through. It got us through the worst of the heat. (too much water with the swamp cooler made things a muddy mess and we didn't have a way to do a tank like Grumpy.)

This year, we're thinking of adding insulation to the entire barn. (Right now it's just metal walls and roof.) We'll be adding onto the barn in a few weeks or so and figured we'd just add the insulation as part of that project.

We were pleased with the misters and will probably experiment more with them.

Good for you for thinking ahead! We'll be back in the 100's before we know it.

 

[rebelrabbit]

Thanks for the info Suburban. Unfortunately,I'm in an urban setting so no barn for me (Mrs Rebel has to be close to a Walmart). It'll be a small start with just a few rabbits in hutches in the back yard. I thought about the misters but where I will have to put the hutches to get the least amount of sun, it will be close to the house. I know it's not a lot of water, but should I be concerned about rot around my home? Also, if I have hutches in open air, what's the best way to set that up to get the best benefit? I'm thinking mist at one end and blow it across the hutches, huh? Sounds like I have more homework.

 

[AnnClaire]

Rebel, I have found that my rabbits do quite well in our drastic heat when in a runout pen during the day. I wet the soil down in the early morning and had concrete pavers set in the ground so the coolness would wick up or they could dig to cooler soil. I would generally wet the soil again mid afternoon, and after I put them back in their cages for the night.

(I would post photos, but photobucket is down for maintenance right now )

 

[squidpop]

I love seeing people coming up with clever solutions and building it themselves- Its brilliant, thanks for sharing Grumpy.

 

[grumpy]

Ok folks, I'm a rookie looking for advice. I've read numerous posts and checked out the pics and all of the swamp coolers appear to be cooling 'rooms' (although not necessarily closed in rooms). I'm thinking of building a small hutch (e.g. 8'-10' long) that ducts the cool air from a swamp cooler straight into the bun pens. The thought was to duct into the back side at several places along the length of the hutch at the top of the pens. I was going to leave the bottom of the pens 'open' (wire floor) for ventalation and allow the cool air to just settle. The top and sides would be solid.

So my questions are:
1) is blowing cool, humid air straight into the bun pens bad for the rabbits?
I try not to have a direct air flow on the stock. Usually it's through the center of the room with additional fans down low to create air movement under the pens.
2) if the answer to #1 if 'No', would it hurt put a more solid bottom on the pen under the wire (like a slide out tray) that would help keep the cool air in the pens longer?
I don't know if the effort would be worth the end result. Try it and see.
3) would I still need to install ventalation fans (I'm thinking small 120mm fans at each end--remember this is a small hutch)?
In the real hot part of the day, I don't honestly feel air moving across the rabbits would be that detrimental. You're basically moving ambient air around them with no decrease in temperature.
4) would I be better off with a more open pen (maybe leave the back side with the duct work just wire)?
The more open the better. Unless you're trying to lower the room temps. Then, you'll still need adequate ventilation even at the cost of removing some of the cooled air.
5) or should I stick to reading about rabbits instead of trying to raise them?
I read daily about rabbit husbandry. I've had rabbits since the mid-70's and I still learn tid-bits pretty often. My Grandpa always told me....work smarter....not harder. I've tried to live by that axiom.

I live in north Texas and like everyone else, the last few years have been HOT. I'm just starting to get into this but don't want to buy some rabbits just to watch them bake in the back yard. My goal is just to breed 2 or 3 does a couple of times a year to supplement the meat in the freezer. I won't breed in the summer here but don't want them to die either.

I'd appreciate any advice. Thanks.