Can You Use A Dehumidifier With A Swamp Cooler? (Solved!)

If you’re from the southwest, you’ve most likely been around a swamp cooler or a dehumidifier at some point. 

However, can you use a dehumidifier with a swamp cooler?

That’s the question we’re going to answer in this article. 

Can You Use A Dehumidifier With A Swamp Cooler?

Yes, you can use a dehumidifier alongside a swamp cooler at your house. A dehumidifier greatly supplements a swamp cooler in its functionality. Using a swamp cooler continuously increases the levels of humidity in your house. High humidity is neither good for your health, nor your house.

Living in a muggy house can be very uncomfortable and poses a health risk to you and your family.

Mold and mildew destroy your walls, furniture, and other electronic devices. Imagine losing your favorite painting to high moisture. Gross!

You need to be able to control the moisture levels to the required amounts.

A level that is both good to you and to your surroundings. Yes, you will need a dehumidifier to get rid of this excess moisture. 

A dehumidifier will also supply your swamp cooler with hot air (Dehumidifiers produce heat, naturally).

This hot air is a requirement for the swamp cooler, as it passes through the wet pads to produce moist vapor. You don’t want to drain all the moisture. Therefore, consider getting a smaller dehumidifier.

Do Dehumidifiers Help Swamp Coolers?

A swamp cooler fan blasts moist air into a hot room to create a cooling effect. As heat is expelled out the windows, this moist air continues to build up in the room.

After some time, it reaches a saturation point where the atmosphere can longer absorb moisture. 100% humidity. Too much humidity. 

Swamp coolers work best under low humidity. Since swamp coolers use the evaporation mechanism, highly humid air inhibits proper evaporation. The more evaporation, the cooler the air. 

You’ll have to run a dehumidifier in the same room. The dehumidifier sucks up the excess moisture in the house to create low humidity.

Therefore, dehumidifiers significantly help swamp coolers to improve their cooling efficiency.

Using a Dehumidifier With A Swamp Cooler

Install a dehumidifier to help boost the cooling power of your swamp cooler.

Both the swamp cooler and the dehumidifier work efficiently when all windows and doors are closed. Positioning a dehumidifier and a swamp cooler is key.

Swamp coolers take in hot air from outside through evaporative cooler pads to produce cool air. Dehumidifier gives off hot air from its operation.

For optimum results, you have to point the dehumidifier vent at the intake of the swamp cooler. Make sure to use a smaller dehumidifier.

Using both devices concurrently will increase your power usage, eventually your monthly utility bill.

Check out the specifications of each device to ascertain its power consumption.

Consider talking to a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) expert first to understand the operation, and help you save on your power and money.

How Does Humidity Affect Evaporative Cooling?

Humidity affects evaporative cooling. There is a high evaporation rate with low humidity. With low humidity in the atmosphere, the evaporative coolers lower the temperatures by a higher percentage.

Say the room humidity is about 10%, the evaporative coolers will reduce the temperature by almost 40%. The less the moisture the higher the evaporation to replenish air moisture. 

Too much moisture inhibits effective evaporation.

When room humidity is above 60%, the evaporative coolers can only reduce the temperatures by about 10%. Temperature reduction drops to 0% when room humidity is 100%.

 Cooling depends on evaporation. Therefore, humidity has a significant effect on evaporative cooling. 

Do Evaporative Coolers Work in High Humidity?

Evaporative coolers have been designed to cater to low humidity levels in the air.

High humidity reduces the efficiency of evaporative coolers. Evaporative coolers work by passing hot air through wet pads to create evaporation.

By evaporation, the wet pads now contain more moisture than the surrounding air.Cooling occurs when cool air is fanned from the evaporative cooler to the atmosphere.

When there’s high humidity (a lot of moisture) already in the atmosphere, there’s no point in an evaporative cooler working. It doesn’t work.

High humidity will create drips in your evaporative cooler, which leads to rusting.

Servicing evaporative coolers is too expensive and can drain your pockets dry. Be sure to use your swamp cooler only when needed. Switch off the device when the humidity gets too high.

How To Optimize Swamp Cooler

The trick to optimizing your swamp cooler lies in knowing how to use it.

For the best functioning of your swamp cooler, ensure that you:

• Pair your swamp cooler with a smaller dehumidifier.
• Only use your swamp cooler in dry climates. Swamp coolers never work in humid areas. If they do, the humidity will only work to spoil your device.
• Open your windows for proper air circulation.
• Add house plants to help absorb excess moisture in your house.
• Use your swamp cooler only when it’s too hot.
• Regularly clean and service your swamp cooler.
• Make sure swamp cooler pads are always wet and the tank is full. Only use cold water to fill the tank.

Follow these simple and easy steps and reduce the chances of ever needing to repair your swamp cooler. Save your money for something else. A vacation on the beach when it’s too hot maybe?

Final Thoughts

Can you use a dehumidifier with a swamp cooler?

Definitely yes. A dehumidifier works hand in hand with a swamp cooler. You need both at the same time for the best results. A dehumidifier will ensure your swamp cooler gets a long life.

Both the dehumidifier and the swamp cooler fight off the cold. They’ll help kill harmful bacteria in your room. In fact, They work to even kill the flu virus. 

Get yourself both gadgets and you won’t notice when the heatwave passes by.