DIY Aircraft A/C - Battery Powered

[@rogeraylstock3641]

Really clean looking build. Thanks for the parts list!

[@brankly]

Thanks!

[@slicaltimistic1]

Nicely done. The pop of the component probably cause by putting too much power to the current capacitor. Bring it down to about 12v would work out beautifully. Other than that, nice control to the fan you install, and the radiant cooler is the key. You put that on there instead of the ice. Brilliant!😊

[@skipperga]

Thank you for posting this video. It was very detailed and informative. The parts list was a definite PLUS. I need to make one to go in the back of my truck. It has a camper shell on the back where the dogs ride. This will keep them cozy for sure. Thank you again!

[@brankly]

Glad it was helpful!

[@silentpaw]

I may have to make one of these for Hurricane season.

[@davidgalindo576]

BEST ONE YET. GREAT COOLER. THANK YOU

[@murdocks8242]

In the process of building one! thank you for the detailed information!

[@user-yx9fd1fg7m]

Looks great appreciate it, I will be making this for my Cessna 337

[@kushagramittal4275]

Great job. Thank you for sharing the design. One small suggestion would be to isolate the ice from the radiator and fan. You will loose some cooling but will eliminate a lot of humidity.

[@kurtheil439]

Will just mention as time may have changed things since this was posted. 1) The listed part for the PVC ring ends up getting you a piece that is the same size as the elbow and therefore, will not fit together. 2) The fan listed has a bolt supplied that is much larger than the hole in the radiator. I had to look at the video very closely. Radiator is mounted with two screws on opposing corners and fans were mounted with only 3 screws. At first, it seemed like the fan screws should have gone through and into the matching holes in radiator. I am going to combine this with another design I saw and see if I can build a platform for the radiator so that it is in the lower half of the cooler. Less wear and tear on the hoses as I am also puts foam insulation between ice and radiator so that the ice does not melt as fast. foam mentioned in other comments. Less work to do as illustrated however.

[@JonathanSheehy]

So how did you step down the voltage from the 18V to the 12V Fan?

[@danielmerchan5802]

Thanks for the video and list of components. I have a question, not savvy at all in electrical. How can you connect 2 12 volts fans and one 12 volts pump to a single 18 volt battery? Did I miss something? I'm working on a similar project and, in my case, is trial and error... I have to change the USB pump to a 12 volts one, but I am about to buy an adapter for the battery that steps down the volts, from 18 to 12... Does it sound correct?

[@aaroncatolico7550]

*What would it take to build one that can last 8-10 hours in temperature between 85-90 degrees Fahrenheit?*

[@padsliderfranco9561]

Wow best DIY cooler I’ve seen yet. When can I buy one?

[@brankly]

Thanks! I don't sell them. I just made the one in the video.

[@rsmolkin]

This is almost perfect, I need one. But might be better to put some sort of insulation or divider between the top portion with the radiatior and the bottom portion with ice so air won't be humid. I wish I could figure out the electronics part...

[@nicholasdheedene9736]

Can you give us a material list? I’m going to look into getting a radiator and water pump

[@brankly]

Hi! The full list is in the description. You maybe have to click on "show more" to see the full list.

[@eldnah2]

I thought one of the reasons for a radiator is so you don't have to blow air directly on ice, but your fans are blowing right thru the radiator onto the ice. If you put an insulated shelf above the ice you might cause it to last longer. This is illustrated elsewhere on KZbin.

[@brankly]

Hi ... I wanted to do it as small as possible. Normally I fill it completely with ice so there is no room for a shelf. For me, on a hot summer day, it lasts about 2-3h with the fans on 60-70%. But I usually turn it off when I am at 2-3000 feet because the air from outside is cool enough. I use it mainly for taxi on the ground.

[@AA87LLC-io1uh]

Can you build me one to buy?

[@scrubyvillegas8102]

Would a 12v car battery work with this? The Amazon link you provided for the 18V battery is not there anymore.

[@brankly]

It should work, the battery type is not that important. I also updated the links so they should work again.

[@scrubyvillegas8102]

@@brankly Wow thanks for the fast reply! My AC is shot so i dont want to pay to fix it. I have spare parts so I will use a 12V Car Battery with a Solar Panel Trickle Charger in my window. Regardless your cooler is awesome. I thought about using the Copper Radiator since its more conductive on temperature. What do you think on Copper?

[@scrubyvillegas8102]

@@brankly Also the Home Depot links are broken. Just FYI.

[@brankly]

I don't know, if the copper is the same price go for it but I think it wouldn't make much of a difference because the whole system is not super optimized so I even if copper is a better conductor the temperature change would be marginal at best.

[@geraldmartsy2165]

Does your Frenchie fly with you? What made the caps pop? Nice work sir.

[@brankly]

No it's to hot for him in the plane. The caps pooped because of the high frequency of the motor controller.

[@geraldmartsy2165]

@@brankly Even with the air conditioner? How many do you think it would take to cool the airplane to Frenchie-acceptable temperature? Thank you & English is not my native language.

[@brankly]

I don't know but here it gets very hot and my Frenchy is out of breath after a 10 min walk so I don't want to give him the stress in the plane. Also I think it's maybe to loud for him.

[@geraldmartsy2165]

@@brankly Okay thanks. I'm gonna start flying with my pug - similar to Frenchie. I have the Mutt Muffs for her but we're still getting used to them. I will let you know our progress.

[@kings101ish]

@@geraldmartsy2165 we fly in our Archer and C172 with our two pugs often... taking them on a 500NM XC to Florida in September, they do fine :) No ear muffs needed especially in the Piper, has much better insulation than the Cessna

[@TheBaldr]

Actually measuring the air temp coming out is useless. You need to measure the BTUs.

[@brankly]

Thanks, how do I do that?

[@geraldmartsy2165]

Why is measuring the temperature useless?

[@AlexRodriguez-lc1nk]

WHY DO YOU NEED A RADIATOR IF YOUR USING ICE.WONT THE ICE COOL THE WATER FASTER THAN THE FAN WILL

[@brankly]

It goes like this, cold water is pumped through the radiator and then warm air is blown on the radiator. The radiator increases the surface area where the air can be cooled so it's more efficient and faster. If you only blow the air onto the ice it doesn't get as cold and takes longer.