Wasted $800 on a cheap evaporative cooler install mistake

Had a handyman in Las Vegas put in a swamp cooler last June without checking the pad thickness, and it short-cycled for two months before I figured it out. The replacement pads and labor ate my whole budget, plus my electric bill spiked 40%. Anyone else catch their installer skipping the maintenance specs on these units?

1 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

1 Comment

adam9192mo ago

The pad thickness thing is a classic shortcut a lot of these guys take because they don't want to make a second trip to the supply house. Thin pads look fine at a glance but they let warm air slip right through, so the unit cycles on and off trying to cool a space it can't keep up with. Next time, measure the gap yourself before anyone touches it, and ask to see the pad before it goes in. A good installer will expect you to check that stuff, and if they get annoyed about it, that's your red flag right there.

4