ReCycle AirCond Water System

[Damon_11]

Hi Everyone,

My crafty neighbour suggested that I rig up some system to catch the water from my Evaporative Air cond unit that is dumped every hour or so and trickle feed it to my trees in the back yard 5-20m adjacent to the house.

Questions I have. Is this considered grey water, do I need any special permits, etc.

What could I use to catch and effectively deliver an even flow of water to the trees. Should I use some sort of float pump arrangement if they are not too expensive.

Thanks

DC

[silentC]

My guess is that it's not really grey water. It's just water taken from the air and should be clean as far as I know.

Whether you'd get enough to water trees or not, I don't know. It's not like you get litres and litres. It might be more useful for drip irrigation to your pot plants or garden. I reckon you could just run a length of watering system pipe with some drip nozzles in it. It would have to run down hill from the unit. If you wanted to do more with it, you could collect it in a tank and set up a pump etc but I'm not sure you'd get enough regularly to do much with.

Put a bucket under it for a day or two and then you'll see how much you actually get.

[Pulse]

Guys the residents of the Country music capital are a step ahead:

Last weeks paper (http://www.tamworth.yourguide.com.au/detail.asp?class=news&subclass=general&story_id=534818&category=general&m=11&y=2006) had an interesting article. 30 litres per hour sounds OK to me. Some local twit also suggested we ban evap coolers if the water restrictions get really severe!!

Cheers
Pulse

[durwood]

I was surprised by the amount of water given off a A/c unit when my son in law put a bucket under the drain of his 1.5 HP unit it filled the bucket in under an hour and he is in the far west and it was hot and dry compared to the coastal area.

I think a tank would be the go. Maybe just a tap or if you have a good fall from the A/C drain to tank and then to plants with the tank supply giving you a head or if you have thirsty trees/lawn etc just let it drain from the A/C to them

As for a permit you don't need to have one to loose it to wherever you do now and why ask for trouble Don't even think of asking the council. Lets just hope they don't read this thread it might give them ideas to charge us.

Any moisture you can use has got to be better than loosing it.

[silentC]

Yeah, I guess it depends on the conditions etc. I had one in Sydney and I never noticed it pouring out, but then I was usually inside enjoying the cool air ;)

Definitely worth checking out. Be interested to know how much it does pump out. Could be a good argument for putting a split system in at home :)

[ozwinner]

Hi Everyone,

My crafty neighbour suggested that I rig up some system to catch the water from my Evaporative Air cond unit that is dumped every hour or so
DC

Id be more concerned as to why it dumps every hour, isnt it set up right?
Ours only dumps at the end of a run (day).

Al :confused:

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Questions I have. Is this considered grey water, do I need any special permits, etc.

No. Typically it's dumped into your roof guttering and it'd be illegal to do that if 'twas deemed grey water. ;)

As to why it dumps hourly, that'd be 'cos that's the manufacturers' preset. Is it a Bonaire? Most dump only when the unit's switched off, but in high use conditions this can be the water's retained for weeks on end... which isn't good for the health.

On ours, I tossed the dump system and added an overflow, similar to a toilet cistern, but with a small hole drilled right on the water line. This means there's a constant trickle going to waste (actually it's more like a drip per second) but we've routed it to a soaker hose buried in the garden. Which, I gather, is what you want to do? No problem.

Not my idea... this is how the old Celairs were built before Bonaire bought 'em out and turned 'em into cr@p. The downside is that at the end of the season I have to go up on the roof, shut off the tap and remove the overflow to dump the water and prevent rain-water accumulating, then replace it before the next summer gets too hot. Can still run the fan over winter, just not the water. [shrug]

But hey, you should be up on the roof at those times anyway to service the filters and wash out the trough! Auto-dumping does not mean auto-cleaning!


Yeah, I guess it depends on the conditions etc. I had one in Sydney and I never noticed it pouring out, but then I was usually inside enjoying the cool air ;)

Definitely worth checking out. Be interested to know how much it does pump out. Could be a good argument for putting a split system in at home :)

It'd be measured in gallons per dump. :(

A split can actually spit out more water than a swampy, especially on a humid day! Admittedly it's extracted from the air and not from the mains, but what with councils beginning to charge for rain-water tanks on the premise that you're removing that water from the catchment area, I can't help wondering when they'll see refrig. systems in the same light! :eek::D:p

[Ashore]

The waters fine for plants but definately not for human consumption, the air born bugs etc are still active, but for plants go for it;)
For an even flow run it into a tank and drip feed from there

Rgds

[Damon_11]

Id be more concerned as to why it dumps every hour, isnt it set up right?
Ours only dumps at the end of a run (day).

Al :confused:

Thanks chaps, my largish Brivis unit is faily new and dumps the water regularly during the really hot weather, beleived to be for health reasons and efficiency of the aircond inside the house.

I'll try the bucket tomorrow, it's a mild 33 here in Perth tomorrow and see what the result is in litres.

DC

[silentC]

I think I missed the all important 'evaporative' term in your original post. This is an air conditioner that actually uses water for cooling. So I guess if it's dumping it and refilling, then it's definitely worth doing something with it.

[sammy_h]

Didn't I read somewhere that the water left at the end of the cycle is very salty? Therefore you could end up salinating your plants?

[sammy_h]

Yeah, from here (http://www.sahra.arizona.edu/programs/water_cons/home/cooler.htm):

As water evaporates from the pads, dissolved salts and minerals are left behind. This bleed-off water can be put to some uses, despite its elevated salinity and hardness. The water can either be diverted directly to salt-tolerant species such as turf, or stored for later use.

[ozwinner]

Thanks chaps, my largish Brivis unit is faily new and dumps the water regularly during the really hot weather, beleived to be for health reasons and efficiency of the aircond inside the house.

I'll try the bucket tomorrow, it's a mild 33 here in Perth tomorrow and see what the result is in litres.

DC


I think you will find that the dip switches in the unit are set wrong, our lagish newish Breezeair has the dip switch set to dump at the end of a run although we could set it to dump every hour too.

Al :)

[Bleedin Thumb]

Sorry to show my ignorance but if you are talking about an evaporative cooler what system would I have? :confused:
Split reverse cycle?
It does have a waste pipe but I dont recall ever seeing water dripping?

It sounds like the evaporative system needs a water feed whilst mine isn't connected to water and is a refridgerated/gas system that extracts water from the air??

Also I thought that the evaporative type would be a bit dangerous for domestic use with potential of legoinares disease etc. as commercial units must meet stringent cleaning and maintenance guildlines.:rolleyes:

[ozwinner]

Also I thought that the evaporative type would be a bit dangerous for domestic use with potential of legoinares disease etc. as commercial units must meet stringent cleaning and maintenance guildlines.:rolleyes:

Do a google on legoinares disease, house evaps arent in the same league as the commercial ones..

Al :)

[Ashore]

Split reverse cycle?
It does have a waste pipe but I dont recall ever seeing water dripping?


The drain that drops water in a reverse cycle or split system comes from the evaporator coils , those are the coils on the unit inside your house, not on the compressor outside.


Rgds

[Bleedin Thumb]

So it still works on the principle of evaporation?:confused:
Sorry I know SFA about AC. You have a compressor that compresses gas that expands through a venturi (sp?)... Boyles law, hey presto cold pipes with a fan blowing air over them...cooles the room.
where does the evaporation happen.

Does an AC unit dry the air? or is the moisture loss occur as a result of the cooling process?

This question is even more relevent in a car. You can see how much water is dropped from them in relation to the size of the cabin that they're cooling.

Sorry to be so vague, I feel like I'm having a blond moment:o .

[ozwinner]

So it still works on the principle of evaporation?:confused:
Sorry I know SFA about AC. You have a compressor that compresses gas that expands through a venturi (sp?)... Boyles law, hey presto cold pipes with a fan blowing air over them...cooles the room.
where does the evaporation happen.

Does an AC unit dry the air? or is the moisture loss occur as a result of the cooling process?

This question is even more relevent in a car. You can see how much water is dropped from them in relation to the size of the cabin that they're cooling.

Sorry to be so vague, I feel like I'm having a blond moment:o .

Evaporative, Refrigirative, two totally different beings.

Al :)

[Barry_White]

Lesson in air conditioning.

Evaporative air conditioners cool the air by passing the air through four big pads made from various types of porous materials e.g. Wood strings made into a pad and held together with a material something like shade cloth.

As the air passes through the pads moisture is actually added to the air and actually increases the humidity of the air hence Evap air conditioners are useless on the coast where the air is already humid. They have a reservoir tank to hold the water usually with a float valve to replenish the tank as the water is added to the air and is actually connected to the water supply and has a pump to pump the water up to the tops of the pads and the water trickles down back to the reservoir.

Reverse cycle air conditioners have a compressor to pump the refrigerant around the closed system and as Ashore says the water in the air and actually condenses on the cooling coils and that is where the water comes from in a refrigerated system. This is why refrigerated systems are so good in humid climates.

Evaporative are good in dry climates and are much cheaper to run because all the electricity is driving is a big fan and a pump. They also rely on greater volumes of air and you have the windows open in the house to make them work more efficiently where as on refridge air conditioners are more efficient when the house is closed up.

[Bleedin Thumb]

Thanks Barry, that makes perfect sense.

[Ashore]

To add a tad more to Barry's post in an ac system as you have ( split System) the compressor ( outside ) compresses the gas , as it does this it makes the gas hotter and the fan on the outside unit pushes outside air over the hot gas as it goes through coils reducing its temp . this gas then goes to the coils inside your house going through a TX valve which expands the gas as it enters the inside coils reducing its temp, air from inside your house passes over these coils reducing the air temp and any water vapor in the air that reaches its dew point condences and drains away.
Hope this makes it all just a bit clearer :p :D :p

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

The drain that drops water in a reverse cycle or split system comes from the evaporator coils , those are the coils on the unit inside your house, not on the compressor outside.

Exactly. For anyone considering buying a split system, I sincerely recommend that you plan on hanging the header (inside unit) on an external wall. This allows the drain to run straight through the wall to the great outdoors, along with the rest of the plumbing.

When a header is mounted on an inside wall, there's nowhere to run the drain! Unless you're willing to pay the extra costs of removing plaster, running an internal drain, etc. the only practical option is adding a sump-pump, which is basically the same cheap'n'nasty beast as the air-pump for a fish-tank, pumping condensate from the sump into the ceiling cavity and drained from there.

This has inherent problems, besides the "fish-tank buzz" when it operates. They don't last forever. Being a small dia. hose, they can also block easily in dusty environments. Worse, when they finally do fail, whether burnt out, blocked or whatever, the first obvious sign is moisture running down the inside of your plaster. :eek:

I really, really, really recommend that you do NOT install 'em on an inside wall! Trust me on this. :p

[Gavin04]

To confuse the term a little the outdoor unit is called the condenser because it condenses the refrigerant to a liquid after it has been compressed by cooling it on outside air. The internal unit is called the evaporator because as the liquid goes through the TX valve it evapourates and expand and cools due to the latent heat of evaporation and the Joule effect.

Now because the evaporator is really cold (close to freezing) it cause moisture in the air to condense on the outside and this could be drained to the garden. Of course in a reverse cycle airconditioner the whole thing is reversed in winter with the TX valve and evaporator being outside and the condensor being inside. In humid climates this can cause ice to build up on the evaporator and reduce efficiency.