Yesterday and the day before, I worked on my evaporative coolers. I had expensive gutter covers installed two years ago and promised myself I'd never get up on the roof again. Those same two years I hired a guy to open up and shut down the coolers. My housemate pointed out to me my cooler was leaking. She is upstairs and can look out onto my roof and see it.
Several things were wrong. The guy wasn't able to, or didn't take the time to maneuver the back panel on it. Thus the leak. The float wasn't adjusted properly. On the upper roof cooler, he had used too much oil and it was splattered all over the inside of the cooler. And, when I do it myself, I can tell if the belts are tight enough, or worn and need to be replaced. Ditto the straw batts. My kids scold because I go up on the roof but I can check my chimney for creosote, see how heavy the tree limbs hanging over my roof have become and hire help if I need it.
Then, to make matters worse, both pans were beginning to rust out. Jim copped these pictures but he came up and helped me. He also introduced me to Proflex, an amazing sealer. I painted over the rust with Proflex probably giving the coolers five more years of life. I know the mini-split heat pump I had installed in Oregon is an efficient heater and air conditioner with easier maintenance and cheaper to run. Mini-splits are just beginning to be advertised in California. Now I can budget for a replacement system.
After watching my yard service guys with a 30 foot pole saw, I adapted my pole saw by taking off the blade and duct taping a webster to it. It reached my high front windows up under the eaves without having to stand on a ladder. Down came those nasty spider webs. All I have left to do is wipe clean the fascia boards after today's rain. I'm ready for winter.
