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Water Tank Cooler using A/C unit

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mkindy

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Hello electronics geeks;

I wanted to have a water cooler for my tank since it reaches very high temp at summer , and the water is hotter than the heater water itself in winter.

So i thought i would go and buy one , and i saw one in the some showroom which cost around 600 $ !!!

It was just an A/C split unit (outdoor unit only) with the condenser ( copper pipe looped in a tank) and some controller connected to it. so i thought why dont i do my own. but the thing is , the unit i have at home doesnt have the control wire fixed to the outdoor unit. any help with that ?!
 
The best thing to do is get your pipes out of the attick IMO. The last house I lived in had the pipes in the attick and the water would be scalding hot for about 5min after you turn it on, until the cool water from the underground city piping flushed it out.

...but then again, when I lived in the philippines, the city's water was piped above ground, so it never got cool. where do you live?

EDIT: just noticed the word tank. Do you have a tank on your roof?
 
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Man i dont have ideas of how to connect or to operate that thing, if you can give me a better idea i would be thankful
 
First of all we need more info.
Like what kind of tank it is, where is it located.
I am assuming that it is a water storage tank on the roof of your home.
If so.
Do this.
Put a white covering on it during the summer.
If you live in a dry climate and can afford to use a little bit of water
Use a misting system on the outside of the water tank to cool the tank via evaporation.
If that is not feasible then use a water coiling tower to cool a separate loop of water and put a
heat exchange coil in your tank.
 
i hope you understand the safety problems you may have working with refrigerants (the liquid inside the tubing). if you do a DIY installation. do you even know what the refrigerant is in the systrm you will be building? some of them (like ammonia) can be quite dangerous to work with. some of them (like freon) might have legal restrictions on their use. (i don't know what's more dangerous.... anhydrous ammonia, or government sharks??????)

if you use a freon or a freon replacement, also be aware the refrigerant can cause immediate frostbite on skin contact. all of your tubing joints have to be completely gas-tight and able to withstand several atmospheres of pressure.
 
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If your tank is very large, you do realize that the cost of the electricity for this cooling could be very high (?).
 
I would ditch the idea of using a AC unit to cool the water for a number a reasons most of have been mentioned above.

#1 paint the tank white.

If you live in a arid climate (low humidity) and can afford to use a bit of water then a misting system will cool the tank and some of the surrounding area.

in addition to a misting system use a water cooling tower on a separate loop of non potable water.
With a heat exchanger in the water tank.
Now there are many reasons not to drink the water from a water cooling tower.
legionaries disease, Possible contamination from birds ect. ect.
you can use solar power to run the fan and pump.

AS listed above I would not use a AC unit with the fear of contamination of your drinking water.
also be wise when choosing materials for your project like lead free solder.
 
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