Free Water! - - DIY Atmospheric Water Generator

[David-Audrey]

Think about it.  If there were a serious event, we all recognize how important water would be.  So...

Imagine for a moment that an event did happen and, in this case, you DID HAVE an ongoing source of power (solar/wind)...well, you may also have water readily available.

While doing some investigations regarding water in survival situation, I came upon these plans.  The concept of this set of plans is to dehumidify (take water out of the air), capture it, then filter it so you could drink it. 

Don't know yet how much power it would actually take to run this setup; nor how it would work in our dry environment.  But it appears to be possible since those of you that have had a "Swamp-cooler," know that there is a big pan under the unit to catch the water produced by the process of cooling.

Anyway, thought you might find the plans interesting.  Enjoy!

[Jerry D Young]

Interesting. I can see some possibilities for this.

Just my opinion.

[Ken K7KBJ]

I can tell you my recent experience with this issue.
I am building a house.
I recently finished activating the central air conditioning system.
This type of air conditioning naturally draws moisture out of the air inside the home.
It condenses inside the unit and must be directed to an outside drain.
Because I did not yet decide where the drain would go through my wall, I had it draining in a 5 gallon bucket.
During the recent rainy days we just had, this system produced up to 10 gallons of water per day.
Now, with the same temperature setting, it produces NO WATER at all.
Note: it is no longer raining outside.


So, this is my experience and I have to conclude from this, you will not produce water from the air in our area unless it is going to rain, is raining or just finished raining.

[David-Audrey]

Thanks Ken.

I was wondering about our dry air.  I've since seen things that indicate that you need at a absolute minimum 15% humidity to even begin to be able to take water out of the air.   I'm still checking, but don't have much hope.

Too bad, it's is a nice concept...

[Jerry D Young]

It is a case of is it better to have it and not need it (or in this case 'it will work only some of the time') versus not having it at all. There are times, just as Ken mentioned, that it would work, and work well. At the other end of the scale, it works hardly at all. But there is a wide range in between where you would get varying amounts of water from one of them. If you live in a fairly low area where cooler, moist air tends to accumulate, or near a natural feature that tends to give off moisture at times, such as a river, lake, pond, or even a small stream, there could be times when water can be recovered. Used with a storage system so all the water that can be collected can be kept, then it might just be worth it. When I can afford it, I will purchase one, or make one myself.

Just my opinion.