Can I make an A/C out of clay? (2.0)

It’s not a total fail. I live in Michigan USA. One of our biggest problems is dry air during winter—since our houses are closed up and the furnaces dry out the air. It can be so bad that it damages your house. Not to mention that it is extremely uncomfortable—dry skin, painfully dry eyes etc. As a result, people spends tons of money on humidifiers. What you have created is far more aesthetically pleasing than a mass-produced humidifier. So BRAVO!

What you are making is really a swamp cooler. A swamp cooler cools by evaporation. So as long as everything is porous and soaks up water and has the air flow, it will cool. I think you should 3.0 this project but I think you need to K.I.S.S. this project. You don't need the pump. You need a reservoir and surface area for air to flow over for evaporation to occur. Humidity is always an issue when it comes to using a swamp cooler. Plants love the humidity or running a dehumidifier helps because when it is time to stop cooling this way you have to make sure everything dries or you come into a mold problem.

21:00 you can see the second crack in that piece when you're applying the bisque fix. Good learning experience, next one will be better!

If you leave them detachable you would be able to take them apart to clean in case mold developed or if minerals from hard water started clogging it

This is so solarpunk. I like to think of this kind of technology as "Pruning the Tech Tree," or optimizing for high-tech outcomes using the shortest path through the tech tree. I don't think the future of invention will be in increasingly complex solutions, but in increasingly simple ones.

Suggestions for 3.0. These changes will retain the current aesthetic while improving performance and ease of manufacturing. 1. Remove the flat bottoms of each layer 2. Leaving the the top partially open instead of a closed donut 3. Stack each donut onto the groove of the previous layer instead of hanging from a central cone 4. Separate the stand from the collection basin 5. Minimize water overflow Due to its large surface area and uneven drying rate, the flat bottoms of the current design are the main source of cracking. By removing the bottoms and not sealing the tops, each layer can stack loosely onto one another and allowing for micro adjustments to be made if the water distribution is uneven. The very top cap is essentially an inverted bowl with a hole in the center for the pump tube to distribute water evenly. By leaving the tops of each donut open, you encourage water to funnel into the next layer instead of flowing on the outside which is not optimal. Fired clay is a fantastic material for cooling since porosity = high surface area = faster evaporation. A layer of water negates this property so minimizing water overflow is key. We want just enough water to wick moisture evenly throughout the structure without the appearance of dry spots or looking soaking wet. Making the cone stand separate from the basin provides the benefit of reducing cracking and giving a place to hide the water pump. Alternatively, the stand doesn't have to be a cone at all. The bottom donut can have short but sturdy legs attached to it to support the weight of all pieces above it. Doing this exposes the interior surface for additional airflow and cooling. Pros: - Easier to throw and trim - Reduced complexity - Reduced weight - Decreased chance of cracking - Much more adjustable - Increased performance - Easier to clean/disinfect Cons: - Less stable; more pieces = easier to topple (glue can help with the bottom stand) - Adjustable = more time fine tuning level/flow* (more below) *The biggest issue you'll find is controlling the rate water seeps into the next layer since each layer isn't always the same size as the previous one. The big rings will drain much quicker than the small rings. To solve this tiny holes can be poked in the bottoms of the rings to increase flow. As a general rule smaller rings will need more holes than bigger rings. These holes can be sealed with silicone for adjustment. I have more minor improvements and ideas for this including a method to help with the stability issue but this is already getting long so I'll leave those for later if you're interested. Let me know what you think!

My grandmother had a fountain that ran for years and years in her living room that utilized this same concept. I was obsessed with it as a child. It looked like a dollhouse-sized section of a terra cotta tiled roof and it just continuously recycled water and used a little tiny fan to help the evaporation (she used it to "keep her plants moisturized"). During the dry fall and winter she had to frequently water it along with her plants to keep it going. :)

I am from Mobile Alabama, the Capital of Musts, Molds, Mildews, Funguses, etc. STACK THEM DO NOT ATTACH THEM! You made a 'Swamp Cooler', they do work but the do put a lot of humidity into the air. Humid Air, Dust (mostly human dander) and any horizontal or vertical surface will grow Musts, Molds, Mildews, Funguses, etc. and they LOVE THE DARK. Cleaning Musts, Molds, Mildews, Funguses, etc. off of even a well glazed surface is an issue if you have access. Musts, Molds, Mildews, Funguses, etc. will actually EAT into everything you come across. Also Legionnaires Disease LOVES moist dark places.... and it got its start in a hotel's Swamp Cooler and is a known killer.

I just absolutely love that this project, despite the issues, was something you saw through to the end, experimented to see if it worked, and showed us everything, cracks and all. And I hope you make another version of this, because it's a really beautiful object in itself. No tips from me...I have no idea how it'd work any better, but I'm here to see the process of what you make next!

Evaporative coolers like that will of course increase humidity. The problem is if you then have a dehumidifier running to get rid of the humidity, it just pumps the heat from the evaporated water back into the air, plus extra heat because of the inefficiencies of the compressor pump/motor. It would be worse than not having anything. And if you have a dehumidifier that has the hot condenser coils outside... then that's basically just a regular air conditioner with extra steps. Evap coolers are most effective in dry, dry environments, where the extra humidity isn't really a problem and might even be desirable.

Love this more developed proof of concept. Being from the Western US, where it is very dry, the evaporative cooler is a familiar concept and the comments about mold/mildew are definitely ones to keep in mind, that said, I see this as a much more artful and beautiful way to accomplish the same thing. So, in short, this is awesome! Can't wait to see version 3.0!

Can I just say how much I admire your tenacity and resilience? Things go wrong (because pottery and creation are never perfect) but you don't give up, you just take notes and try again. Pieces cracking in the kiln upset me so much when I was a beginner that I gave up working with clay, and here you are taking it in your stride and making it work. I am honestly inspired by you, and had to subscribe so I can admire your pottery magic.

The crack you point out at 22.39 was already there before firing, if you look closely on the moment you bisque-glue the long crack on it, you can see it move a bit.

Donut edges need small air holes for drying and firing. The trapped air would cause tension and warping. The concept is really great, I am Aussie so it gets very hot down under so I might give it a go myself. Thanks

Hello! I have been watching your videos for about a year now and just signed up for a two week pottery class (overview of the potter's wheel and glazing) I wanted to thank you for sharing all these wonderful videos and allowing others, like myself, to learn and fall in love with pottery!

I would love to see a 3.0. I don't have air conditioning and this project really intrigues me.

It appears that the whole project was an absolute disaster, but your good attitude saved the day! And you've learned so much from it.

My not a potter - other artist - opinion says you need to attach all but the last one, so you have easy access to the inside. Watching farther in, you have more cracks than I expected. I didn't know there was a silicone bond available to fix fired cracks. Wow, you achieved a significant temperature drop. I live in Florida, that is a significant drop. I am definitely interested in watching you recreate.

Awesome! The original is how I found your channel. Still here and I'm not even a potter.

I love this series, and would love a part 3! When you inverted the basin for a moment, all I could see was a fantastic mushroom lawn decoration. I think that you definitely succeeded at making a beautiful object here! The two separate parts as a mushroom and a beehive sculpture are SO gorgeous. I hope you revisit the beehive structure in the future, perhaps as some kind of hanging decoration. Thanks for sharing your work with us!