How To Make A Swamp Cooler For Camping? [DIY – Step by Step]

Tough times are just around the corner. With so much stress brought by the environment that we are in, it is also a great time for us to unwind and do the things we want. There is no wrong in taking a break from the daily task that we have.

We can never be productive and can make progress if we have lots of things in mind. We need time for ourselves too. This is time to forget the works and problems we have in life for just a moment.

One of the most common unwinds things that people love to do is camping. It is an old-school thing, but who knows this is a great way to bond with your old friends, meet other people and be romantic together with the one you love.

Camping never failed us. Yet, the things we have might be. But here are the thing that you can do so you can have a swamp cooler on your camp.

DIY Camping Swamp Cooler [Step by Step]

Some people tend to get hot inside their tents. This usually happens when you go to a beach or desert camp or in regions that have high temperatures.

1. Step 1: You must gather all the materials needed.

This is like a video game. You need to find all the materials so you can proceed with the next step. You can look for it at your home, or you can purchase it in the stores near you.

• USB desktop fan
• 20L Bucket
• Lid for the Bucket make sure that it suits
• Some thin porous or cleaning cloths (40cm x 30cm)

These are the tools that you need so you can put together all those materials.

• Vernier
• Measuring tape
• Rotary tool
• Hot glue gun
• Glue sticks
• Your brain (you need to focus and use your brain so you will never fail it)

2. Step 2: Start to Mutilate

You need to cut the lid. Then use the drill to make a small hole at the center.

You must use the Vernier so you can determine the diameter of every cage of your fans. Then minus the parts where the screw can go through.

The one that I have has 16mm minus the 3.2 mm because it is for the rim. I leave a 12.8mm. I use the Vernier set to make a 6.4mm radius for the cage.

Then, on the lid, scrap a circle on the pilot hole to make it my anchor point.

Cut and use a sharp carpet knife or rotary tool to cut the scraped circle.

Next is to make use of the cage so you can drill for pilot holes where you can put the screws.

3. Step 3: Drill your Holes

You must drill again the holes that you have piloted on its lid. Always make sure that they line up on your cage, and that it is clean for a more tight fit.

4. Step 4: Putting up the Cage

You can split your cage and save the screws. You can place its bottom side on the lid and the cage’s top side so you can put your cage between them.

You must secure its cage with leftover screws. Put some hot glue on your screws so you can stop them from pulling down. I used nuts that’s why I no longer use any glue. But when you are worrying that the screws might loosen up, you can put some glue.

When the lid is done, you can now jump into making the bucket.

5. Step 5: The Making of Bucket

The bucket serves as the water vessel and controls the air that comes through. On the side of the bucket, you have to cut some notch so the wire can fit. This notch is where you will put the wire.

Measure the bucket, and using a felt pen, you must create a mark on a half-point. You can measure its top half, and then also mark the other half. You can trace its halfway point on the bucket.

Then the fun starts now!

6. Step 6: Create Holes in the Bucket

You can mark some circles around your bucket that are more or less than 13cm depending on your requirement.

Again, use Vernier in scraping a circle on its halfway mark as your pivot point. Keep in mind to use 6.5cm as your radius. The one that I made has 4 hole that is perpendicular to one another.

This is where your imaginative mind will truly work. You can check out on this page the designs that I made.

You can drill or cut out holes inside its circle. These are intake holes, so you must feel free to do some experiments.

7. Step 7: The Holes and Cloth

We have now arrived at putting the cloth. It must have a dimension of 40cm x 30cm approximately.

Fold it lengthwise then glue it on the top just right above its hole. Just make sure that it covers all the holes. The large piece must also touch the bucket’s bottom.

You can place some glue under its hole so you can secure the cloth.

We are almost done.

8. Step 8: Ice and Water

Start to fill your bucket with water just until the holes. You can add some ice so you can get a better effect. You can wet its cloth so it will act as a wick on keeping the water drawn.

Put the bucket’s lid and then plug it into the USB plug. Then the magic will start to commence.

You can put it inside your tent, or if you have a small space, you can just put it outside and get to have a hose connected to your tent.

Camping will be more comfortable with this swamp cooler. All you need to do is to follow the steps, so you make your own.