What's the best tubing for swamp cooler installed on a roof ?
Question:Anybody know of the best tubing for the water for swamp coolers on the roof. We used copper and it splits every year. Even when it's drained it seems to split. Is there any tubing we can use where we don't have to replace it every season?
Answers:
If it split, you must have had some low points where water collected despite the draining. When you lay the line you have to make sure that there is a continuous fall back to the source.
Alternatively, you could blow the line out with an air compressor after you drain it.
Copper is still the best, but it does have to be installed correctly. Plastic is acceptable, but it gets brittle and can crack if it freezes too.
I would still say copper, but you might need bigger diameter or insulation to protect it. The next best, i guess would be PVC, but that is not nearly as workable as copper. Then you can go galvanized, but what a pain. There has to be a copper tubing for this application.
swamp coolers use fairly low pressure water, so you can use a lot of different things.
I would recommend rubber, specifically reinforced rubber, more expensive than plastic probably close to the price of copper, but install it once and your done.
The rubber will expand, and not rupture with any water left in the line, what may freeze.
To get by on-the-cheap, just buy rubber hose to fit your copper pipe. Just cut out about 6-12 inches above and below the split(s) and replace with rubber hose and a hose clamp on each end, and leave that copper tubing that is still good, in place!
get it at any auto parts store.
P.S.
I would still recommend disconnecting the line when done for the season, at the lowest point.
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