DIY ICE COOLER AC: Portable Air Conditioner That Lasts For Hours!!

[@je-fq7ve]

Drill two holes in the top and move the fan in front of the of the fan. This way you dont need the ducts to pull air in and warm the ice. Keep it a sealed system.

[@Whatmeworry]

Thanks for the ideas. I Used a battery box and computer USB fans

[@LowBoostFilms]

I found the usb fans didn’t have a lot of power

[@jtmg11]

If you added a second heat exchange with a similar surface area to the evaporator radiator, inside the cold ice/water side, you’d see significantly cooler output temps

[@LowBoostFilms]

That’s a good idea! I may make a smaller and more portable one I’ll try that

[@chuckger1625]

Why would that help? And would you put that before or after the pump?

[@badaboom7279]

heya bro, good to hear from you. The little fridge/freezer doesn't put out any heat. The one I have runs on very low wattage and is as portable as any other ice chest. The good news is, you can use all the parts as in your video. My point is, building it without destroying your new ice chest, ie cutting holes in it. Look into the little fridge/freezer online. The specs are all there. Anyway, my cooler cools down to below freezing (-4 degrees) and runs off of a 12 volt LiFePo4 battery for more than 3 days without having to use ice cubes every 4 hours Happy building, my friend..

[@LowBoostFilms]

I’ll definitely check it out. I wonder if it can continuously cool the water lines to a cold amount. Worth a shot!

[@EC_01510]

What do you mean by the little fridge freezer. I want to build something similar to this. What is it that I'm looking for.

[@LADETROIT]

Wow! No way it moved the lift.

[@rjzzjz6023]

The size of of the "heat exchanger" and ducting are the limiting factors. Also, you have it isolated from the "cold space" in the cooler, not sure why. While a/c units are sized on a tonnage or btu rating, what you will generally experience is roughly an 18° temperature differential of the air entering and exiting the unit. Keep in mind that this relates to actual air conditioning units. Not sure that applies here. Dealt with this trying to cool school buses. Cooling capacity is directly related to expense.

[@LowBoostFilms]

I figured keeping that isolated would keep the ice from melting a little better.

[@badaboom7279]

heya bro, I see a lot of people building these type of air coolers. Interesting idea, but one thing I noticed is that they all destroy a perfectly good ice chest when there are other options. Remove the lid and construct one of your own keeping the original lid in tact. After all, we are builders and craftsmen. It wouldn't take much to do. The other thing is, why use ice, ice blocks, etc when there these fridge/freezers that are portable and run on 12v. I have one and can keep meats and even ice cream frozen when I camp. Think about it. It eliminates the need for buying ice cubes every few hours. Mine reaches .04F. I make my own ice. If you have the parts you used in making your video then you're all good to go just pick up one of those little fridge/freezers online. They're pretty cheap. I hope this helps you cool off the Bimmer.

[@LowBoostFilms]

The 2 problems I’d face with a refrigerator is in a small space they give off a lot of heat so it would be counterintuitive and less portable. Also, they use a lot of power and would either not work with the inverter well, or kill the battery fast :/

[@jtmg11]

@@LowBoostFilms think of this as a highly portable low power, air to water solid state thermal battery

[@bradbiesecker162]

Have you considered making your own blocks of ice using a plastic tray in which you freeze water? You can make several rectangular shaped blocks, maybe 2" high or so, with the length and width being just smaller than the interior length and width of your cooler. Then to that you can add cold water

[@bradbiesecker162]

One question I have is about the purpose of the black vent. Was that supposed to let out the warm air that is between the plenum and the top of the cooler?

[@MudValve-42]

@@bradbiesecker162no, that’s the inlet air for the fan. If it wasn’t there, there wouldn’t be any air flow. It’d be like sucking on a bottle of.

[@kiltedpiper98]

Good video. A 30 degree drop in temp is pretty good. When you swapped out the pump (or got rid of the kink) did it work better?

[@LowBoostFilms]

Yea it definitely worked better.

[@chord7703]

Would a bigger radiator equal a bit more cooling?

[@LowBoostFilms]

Yea, also the ice will run out faster.

[@garytufte]

If you added another radiator to the air inlet to cool the incoming air, shouldn't you get cooler outlet air?

[@LowBoostFilms]

Yea it could

[@chase_h.01]

Wouldnt just running a straight pipe with the blower and radiator in the middle be more effective and less work? Your intake and output would be external from your insulated cooler and you wouldnt have to put as many holes in it.

[@LowBoostFilms]

I thought about that but the condensation through that pipe would be a lot.

[@drift_papii]

Cool stuff

[@LowBoostFilms]

It works well

[@jamesevans225]

Question. If I take an Isuzu AC Condenser, pump cold water through it, and then push air with a box fan, would it give me more cold air volume? Or does it only work with evaporator cores?

[@LowBoostFilms]

That would work, but when you are pushing that much air it will be hard to keep the ice from melting quickly. Meaning you’ll need a lot more ice and a better pump.

[@SacredHeart0520]

Maybe try a smaller duct size too . 3 in is plenty bigger isnt betrer in thag aspect

[@LowBoostFilms]

True! I may make a smaller version

[@garytufte]

How long does the Ryobi battery last? What amp battery are you using?

[@LowBoostFilms]

9AH battery about 5 hrs

[@keyratcane66]

Good stuff bro

[@LowBoostFilms]

Thanks!!!

[@Slingerland1966]

Did you get heat coming off the pump and melting the ice within 20 mins?

[@LowBoostFilms]

No, the pump doesn’t give off a lot of heat. It lasts a solid 4 to 5 hours easily still ice in there.

[@anthony1113]

It’s never been this cool?? 80??

[@LowBoostFilms]

Yeah normally it’s 110 inside the car in my garage lol

[@anthony1113]

@@LowBoostFilms yeah but doesn’t the car hav air conditioning? Lol

[@LowBoostFilms]

@@anthony1113 no, it doesn’t, I have to put it back in still.

[@SacredHeart0520]

Have you thought of putting a thermostat on it ? Cause if you use it in your car or a i sulaged area then you could not ru. It the whole time

[@LowBoostFilms]

It probably needs to run the whole time.

[@washingtonarias4476]

Nice job but you need a breeder hole in there so are can get in it will have more flow

[@LowBoostFilms]

Where would you suggest?

[@washingtonarias4476]

@LowBoostFilms in the opposite side of the airflow are on top side of the cooler

[@washingtonarias4476]

I'll make one just like this one and it works great

[@LowBoostFilms]

@@washingtonarias4476I’ll have to try that!

[@holyandsaved2342]

Use coolant instead of water then put your ice in the cooler

[@LowBoostFilms]

Really?

[@holyandsaved2342]

I haven't tried it yet but I have a old Heather core with similar blueprint that you used and I believe that coolant would work because it wouldn't melt your ice jugs that's just my theory 😉 worth a try

[@JayM-gt6hm]

$200 for the hillbilly AC as listed 😳😳

[@LowBoostFilms]

Yea it’s not $30 that’s for sure haha. A lot of parts I already had

[@theghoulgals2474]

Ya not worth $100 or more in parts. I spent $300 on portable AC. Done

[@LowBoostFilms]

Yes and no, depends on what you need it for

[@doskraut]

Lol, thermometer right on the vent. Best BS today

[@LowBoostFilms]

Where else should i put it?

[@doskraut]

@@LowBoostFilms say 1 meter awaay from the vent, right now my AV is on and set to 76. If I put a thermometer right on the vent it's going to show 50 f or less.

[@chase_h.01]

Agreed. Everyone who makes these tests them wrong. Like no kidding it's cold right in front the pipe. The real test should be of the ambient temperature of the room using a standard thermometer or meat probe.