For a hot shopfloor, is an evaporative cooler lower carbon than air conditioning?

Usually yes in dry heat. An evaporative cooler runs only a fan and a small pump, so it draws far less electricity than a compressor-based air conditioner. It cools less in humid weather and uses water. Compare the two on kWh per month from the nameplate and running hours, times 0.710.

Where each fits

• Evaporative: dry, hot inland regions; open sheds; spot cooling at workstations.
• Air conditioning: humid coasts, sealed rooms, processes that need set humidity.

How to compare

1. Find rated power for each option.
2. Multiply by expected running hours a month.
3. Multiply kWh by 0.710 kg CO2 per kWh.
4. Add water use for the evaporative option as a separate line.

What Senseible does here

Senseible reads electricity bills (CEA grid factor 0.710 kg CO2 per kWh, CO2 Baseline Database version 21.0) and diesel, LPG and gas invoices (IPCC 2006 defaults) into a dated, fingerprinted Scope 1 and 2 record for each site, and labels estimates as estimates.

• Chiller efficiency kW per TR
• Heat stress and productivity

Sources: CEA CO2 Baseline Database, version 21.0, Bureau of Energy Efficiency

Last reviewed 2026-10-23.