Climate · 26 May 2025
Humidity, wet-bulb temperature and fan-only mode
When outdoor air is already holding water, wet pads stop cooling and start humidifying. Kill the pump, feel the change, and wait out a storm-front afternoon.
The country
Climate
Where evaporative cooling still earns its keep: Perth, Adelaide, inland Victoria, the NSW slopes, and the dry Queensland west.
Climate · 12 May 2025
Evaporative cooling in Queensland: dry inland versus the coast
Longreach, Roma and Toowoomba can still justify a wet-pad cooler. Brisbane, Cairns and the wet-season coast generally cannot.
Climate · 28 April 2025
Evaporative cooling in inland New South Wales
Why Dubbo, Wagga Wagga, Orange and Broken Hill still suit wet-pad cooling, and why the same machine is a poor match for Sydney humidity.
Climate · 14 April 2025
Evaporative cooling in Melbourne and inland Victoria
Melbourne’s climate is marginal for a wet pad; Shepparton, Mildura and Bendigo still use them because the inland northerly is a different air mass from a humid south-easterly on the bay.
Climate · 31 March 2025
Evaporative cooling in Adelaide and regional South Australia
Adelaide’s dry heat still suits a wet pad on the plains. Hills weather, a 2009 water study and a long memory of restrictions decide how hard the rooftop unit should work.
Climate · 17 March 2025
Evaporative cooling in Perth and the WA wheatbelt
Dry easterlies still make Perth evaporative country. Water Corporation’s figures, the Fremantle doctor, hard water and goldfields bleed-reuse habits decide whether the rooftop unit remains a bargain.
Climate · 3 March 2025
Where evaporative cooling works in Australia
The machine follows the wet-bulb, not the state border. Dry interiors still suit a rooftop pad; humid coasts mostly buy a fan. A Bureau of Meteorology climate page will tell you which house you have.
Questions this desk keeps hearing
- Where does evaporative cooling work best in Australia?
- Hot, dry interiors and west-facing cities: Perth, Adelaide, inland Victoria, the NSW slopes and the Queensland west. Humid coasts are a poor match.
- What should I do on a humid day?
- Turn the water off and run the fan only, or shut the system down. Extra moisture without evaporation is just indoor weather you did not ask for.
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