Cheap/free cooling using water

[Matte]

Just wondering if any of you guys have any ideas for cooling my house using a hose.  My area if it's hot it's humid, so I don't think that misters would be very effective.  One guy I talked to runs a sprinkler on top of his roof to keep his house cool. I would prefer a bit more efficient and discrete.  I pay flat rate for water and live in pretty much a rain forest so no guilt or cost to using tons of water.

[dragoncar]

Well swamp coolers are out if it's humid.

I guess you could run the faucet through a mini-turbine and generate electricity to run a heat pump.

Or just take cold showers?

[Gerard]

I would just fill a tub or kiddy pool with cold water and plop into it (or swab myself with a cold water washcloth) every time I felt warm. In fact, that's what I've been doing this week, 'cause it's stinkin' hot here. It works best if you can hit the yard or balcony afterward to catch a slight breeze, and the closer to naked you are, the more efficient this becomes.

Plus, I guess the tub of cold water would slightly cool your house because heat energy from the air/house would go into the water until it reaches equilibrium.

But I don't think any of this will make a huge difference.

[MrMoneyPinch]

When I lived in a top floor apartment without a/c, I used to soak a microfiber shirt with water, wring it out and wear it. It wicked so much heat away from my core that I actually got cold. (30C/86F temps)

Genius!   I'm trying this on my bike ride home :)

[GuitarStv]

Does your water run cool (around here all the water is pumped up from underground, so it's pretty cold when it reaches your tap).  If it does:

- Get a really long hose
- Attach the hose to the faucet
- Run the hose around the area you want to keep cool
- Put the other end of the hose in a tub or out a window
- Turn on the hose

The cool water will pick up heat as it travels the length of the hose, and then will remove the heat from your area when it leaves.  If it's really humid you may need to put some kind of plastic under the hose to prevent damage from condensation.