What Is a Misting Shower?
Misting showers are devices that spray water as a fine mist, reducing ambient temperature by 10 to 15°F outdoors through evaporation. They use only 1/20th the energy of a standard home air conditioner, making them energy-efficient heat stroke countermeasures.
Not all misting showers are cooling devices. In bathrooms, they serve to gently wash the body with a fine mist and can also be used for deodorizing and sterilizing. Additionally, misting showers function as humidifiers.
Uses of Misting Showers
Misting showers are versatile for both home and commercial use, with water supply pressure-driven models being particularly economical. At home, they can be installed on balconies or eaves for heat prevention, children’s water play, or to cool air conditioner outdoor units, enhancing efficiency. Commercially, they’re used at store entrances, hospitals, beauty salons, cafés, and more, to provide a cooling sensation. They’re also effective at sporting events, schools, construction sites, dairy farms, and in cooling factory and convenience store roofs.
They also find applications in sterilizing and deodorizing at food factory entrances and in saving energy by cooling air conditioner outdoor units and refrigeration units at stores.
Principle and Features of Misting Showers
Misting showers operate on the heat of vaporization principle, with each gram of water absorbing 584 kcal when evaporating. This process cools the surrounding air. When water is atomized into a mist, especially under high pressure (up to 7 MPa), it produces a fine, non-wetting mist that vaporizes quickly for rapid cooling. Alternative misting methods use only water supply pressure, resulting in slightly larger mist particles but saving electricity.
These showers not only cool outdoors but consume minimal electricity compared to conventional air conditioners.
How to Use Misting Showers
Misting showers, installed around the target area, can cool a wide range of spaces. For indoor use, they are more effective in high temperatures and low humidity, but adequate ventilation is crucial to prevent excessive indoor humidity. In factories, for example, they can reduce temperatures by 10 to 15°F without increasing humidity, providing energy-efficient heat stroke prevention.
The cooling capacity is calculated based on the desired temperature drop and ventilation volume. Then, the water amount and nozzle specifications are determined. If the required ventilation volume differs significantly from the plan, it’s recalculated to optimize performance.
Misting showers improve environments not only outdoors but also in processing plants, assembly plants, heat treatment plants, and large spaces like automobile repair shops, warehouses, and gymnasiums.
Humidifying Effects of Misting Showers
Misting showers increase indoor humidity without wetting surroundings. They’re crucial in maintaining humidity in paper, textile, wood processing, and printing plants. Humidity control devices with sensors ensure constant humidity, but heating devices may be necessary as showers alone can lower temperature.
In agriculture, like greenhouses and mushroom cultivation, misting showers effectively control humidity, cooling in summer and humidifying during dry periods.