Do It Yourself Outdoor Mister Fan
These instructions show you how to setup a low-pressure misting ring on a portable household fan to build your own outdoor mister fan. This setup allows you to create an effective mister fan using the water pressure from your garden water spigot. It’s great for cooling one or two people on your patio. It can also be used to cool off your dog or other pets, or even a small chicken coop or rabbit hutch.
What you will need:
1. Misting Ring with a low-pressure tubing connector
2. Low-pressure mister fan adapter kit
(includes low pressure hose, faucet adapter, zip ties, 1/4-inch push lock fitting for the misting ring).
3. Fan
4. Extension cord
5. Electrical Outlet with a GFCI circuit breaker
6. Nearby hose bib water faucet.
The mist ring and the low-pressure mister fan adapter kit can be purchased separately, or together in the Outdoor Mister Fan Kit.
The faucet adapter should already be installed on the tubing, but if not, simply press the tubing into the small end of the adapter. It’s a tight fit, so if you have difficulty doing this by hand, use pliers to help push the tubing in.
If you purchased your adapter kit with a misting ring, a push lock fitting will already be installed on the ring. If you bought the mister fan adapter kit separately, it comes with a push lock fitting that you will have to install on your misting ring. If the fitting doesn’t already have teflon tape wrapped around it, you’ll need to wrap it two or three times, then install the fitting onto the misting ring.
Push the tubing firmly into the push-lock fitting, then gently pull back to ensure the tubing is secure in the fitting.
For our demonstration, I’ll be using an inexpensive box fan I bought at Home Depot a few years ago. Lay the fan flat, then center the mist ring over the exhaust side of the fan, with the nozzles pointing away from the fan.
Attach the misting ring to the fan using zip ties that came with the low-pressure mister fan adapter kit. Bend the zip tie first, which will make it easier to thread around the ring and the grid of the fan shroud. Pull the ties tight, then snip off the ends to keep things neat. You can set the fan upright now, making sure the mist ring is secure.
Plug the fan into a GFCI-protected electrical outlet. A GFCI outlet is the kind with a black “Test” and a red “Reset” button. These outlets trip when there is a “ground fault,” which occurs when the electrical current finds an alternate path to ground. For instance, it might try to travel through your body if you’re foolish enough to be standing in a puddle of water. Don’t be foolish – always be extremely careful when working with electricity in the presence of water. In modern homes, electrical outlets on the outside of the house are usually on a GFCI circuit or are GFCI outlets. In many homes, the entire GFCI circuit is controlled by a GFCI outlet in the garage. Be sure to check that it is working properly before connecting your mister fan.
Connect the tubing with the faucet adapter to the water faucet.
After plugging the fan in and turning it on, you can turn on the water to start the misting. Now you can cool off with your portable mister fan!
