10 Best Portable Swamp Coolers 2024 in the US

During the summer, we’re all trying to escape the heat. But running central air conditioning might not be feasible for a lot of people. And there are less expensive alternatives that might not be as efficient, but can still keep you comfortable. A portable “swamp cooler”, or more accurately, an “evaporative cooler”, is one such option.

But there are some things you have to consider before deciding on using a portable swamp cooler. Firstly, swamp coolers are only effective in certain climates, like areas with dry, desert heat. Also, a swamp cooler requires access to a water supply, that you either add manually or by hooking it up to a hose. You’ll also have to consider the size of the room or home that you want to cool.

We’ll go through some of the features of a swamp cooler, to help you decide if it’s right for you. You’ll be able to survive the summer without having to spend a fortune on cooling your house!

(You can also check out other air conditioning products and ideas among the MSN buying guides.)

Portable swamp coolers can be filled with water either manually or from a continuous water supply:

• Manual filling: Some swamp coolers require you to fill the water tank manually. The Agilly 3-in-1 Evaporative Air Cooler has a detachable 1.32-gallon water tank. This allows you to just take the tank over to a faucet or hose in order to fill it. When filled to capacity, it should have enough water to operate for a full 8 hours. It has three fan speeds and 4 pre-programmed modes: normal, natural, cooling, and sleep mode.

Agilly 3-in-1 Evaporative Air Cooler

• Continuous filling: There are also swamp coolers that you can hook up to a faucet or garden hose so that they fill continuously as the water in the tank evaporates. They will have a float valve that will tell the unit to stop filling up. The Hessaire Portable Evaporative Cooling Fan (Model No. MC37M) can fill both continuously and manually. But, it’s best to use the continuous filling option only outdoors, in order to avoid any mishaps should the unit fill up too much.

Hessaire Portable Evaporative Cooling Fan

Here are some features that the best swamp coolers share:

• Fan speeds: Swamp coolers will usually have either two or three fan speeds: low/high, or low/medium/high. Faster moving air will mean that the water in the absorbent pad will evaporate more quickly, providing you with even greater cooling, reaching as much as 20 degrees cooler than the ambient temperature. You also have the option of running the fan without any water in the cooler. It will just cool you off like a regular fan.

• Cooling area: Swamp coolers will differ greatly in the area that they’re capable of cooling. The Hessaire Indoor/Outdoor/Portable Evaporative Cooler (Model No. MC26A) is able to cool an area of 700 square feet. The most powerful model among the MSN Best Swamp Coolers is the Hessaire Portable Evaporative Cooler (Model No. MC37M), with a fan capable of blowing at 3100 cubic feet per minute (=CFM), and able to cool an area of 950 square feet!

• Louvers: For additional air circulation, it’s best to get a swamp cooler that has louvers that oscillate left and right. This way, it may provide cooling air for a wider area–as much as 65 degrees.

• Caster wheels: You want to be able to move your swamp cooler around to where you need it the most. Some are light enough to carry around by means of a convenient handle. Heavier models feature caster wheels so that you can roll them from one place to another.

What Are Some Tips When Selecting and Using a Swamp Cooler?

Here are some pieces of advice when selecting a swamp cooler:

• Who can benefit from a swamp cooler: One drawback of a swamp cooler is that it propels moist, humid air. If you live in an area with humid heat, a swamp cooler is probably not the best choice. The air will already be saturated with water vapor, and the medium won’t evaporate very much. Also, as we mentioned previously if you run a swamp cooler indoors, it will make the house even more humid and uncomfortable. Here is a chart by the swamp cooler manufacturer Hessaire, as to how much their product will cool off the air. It depends greatly on the temperature outside and the relative humidity. While a swamp cooler gives impressive results when the humidity is under 30%, you can see that its performance starts to decline when it’s excessively humid.

Hessair Cooling Chart, relating humidity to cooling ability

• Maintenance: People wonder about the origin of the name “swamp cooler” for an evaporative cooler. Some say that it’s from the swampy, moldy smell of the air coming out of an evaporative cooler if you don’t maintain it properly! Even though it might be a joke, it does reflect the fact that a swamp cooler needs more maintenance than an air conditioner or fan. Some of the maintenance steps include

  • - Descaling: Using a descaling solution or descaling tablets regularly, to remove any mineral deposits that may accumulate in the machine.

  • - Draining: There is usually a draining hole on the bottom or back of your swamp cooler. You should drain the water periodically in order to clean the unit, and ensure that there won’t be any buildup of mold inside.

  • - Filtering: An alternative is to use filtered water from which the mineral deposits have been removed.

  • - Zinc anode rod: Some suggest placing a zinc anode rod in the swamp cooler’s tank. This will attract any corrosive minerals that may be present in your water. It will prevent the cooler pan from corroding instead!

  • - Cleaning the absorbent pad and other parts: The absorbent pad, filter, reservoir, and pump of your swamp cooler should be cleaned monthly, to prevent mold from accumulating. The absorbent pads should be replaced twice over the course of the summer, if possible.

Wrap Up

We looked at some of the offerings in the MSN list of the best swamp coolers. If you live in an area with desert-like dry heat, a swamp cooler is quite effective in keeping you cool and comfortable. They’re relatively inexpensive when compared to air conditioning units, both in terms of the initial cost, as well as operating costs later on. They’re a sound investment all around!