How Do Misting Systems Work?

In essence, a misting system refers to a range of outdoor cooling methods that uses a fine spray of water to cool you, your family, guests, workers, customers, and yes, even your pets! Other terms for misting systems include spray cooling and fogging systems. 

Misting Systems: How Exactly Do They Work?

All misters work with the natural cooling effect that occurs when water evaporates in warm air. This is also called evaporative cooling. Most misters work beautifully in dry weather. Some also work superbly with humid weather, although not all. It is recommended that you do your homework before purchasing one for a damp area. 

Misting systems offer several excellent benefits. They can minimize dust and odors in a specific area. They are also great at regulating the humidity, so they are fantastic for atriums, courtyards, greenhouses, and the like. What’s really amazing is misting systems can cool you down without getting you wet.

Water is forced through very minute nozzles to create a very fine fog or mist. As the droplets of water evaporate, it cools the air instantaneously—the finer the mist, the more thorough the evaporation.

The terms fogger and mister are used interchangeably, and many people often confuse one for the other. Some misters produce a spray made of large droplets that can get you wet. These systems often use larger spray nozzles and low or medium water pressures.

On the other hand, foggers use tiny spray nozzles (to create a fog-like mist) and high water pressure. The fog-like mist evaporates before it can get anything wet.  

Your Key to Categorizing Misting Systems: Think Water Pressure

Let's get something straight: all foggers are a kind of misting system. However, not all misting systems are foggers. To avoid confusion, it is crucial to think in terms of water pressure—low, medium, and high.

Since water pressure is the primary indicator of any misting system's performance, it is used as an accurate way to categorize the systems. Water pressure is measured in PSI (pounds per square inch) or BAR. One BAR is equivalent to 14.7 PSI, while one PSI is equivalent to .0689 BAR.

Low Pressure

Low-pressure systems can be likened to being near a sprinkler. It can cool you down and might also get you a bit wet. This kind is also the simplest and the least expensive of the three options. 

Low-pressure systems also won't require electricity. They typically work with gravity-fed water pressures. While their spray can cool a small area, you need to be near the nozzles to cool. However, the closer you are to the nozzles, the wetter you will also get.

Medium Pressure

Medium pressure systems use motorized pumps to raise the water's pressure to 100 - 250 psi / 7 - 17 bar. The spray water this system produces is fine enough to cool you in hot weather and is less likely to get you wet. 

High Pressure

This is the system that will provide the maximum among the three options. High pressure misting systems are considered ideal for areas with very high humidity. It can cool you down effectively without getting anything wet. 

High pressure and medium systems typically use pumps to boost the water pressure from any water source. The higher the resulting pressure, the cooler (and drier!) you'll feel.

What Makes a Misting System Great?

A misting team has to be one thing to be considered great: it has to meet your needs. Even if you invest in the highest-powered and the best system but only have a small patio in a quiet neighborhood, the system might be too expensive, too noisy, and too much. In short, it's not the right fit for you.

What about your kids' sports team? In most cases, a lighter, smaller, and less expensive system that will not get them wet is ideal. However, it might not be the best option for an elegant wedding reception with 200 guests.

Conclusion

Finding the right mister that will best suit your needs is no walk in the park. However, once you gain a better understanding of how they work, you can easily make knowledgeable and educated comparisons. From there, you can effortlessly decide which system works best for you. Check out this Arizona mist systems for more details.

Guest Contributor: Anna Fox