Icy Breeze AC

[Bryan G]

I live in the Central Valley, CA and during the summer my Mooney gets pretty warm during the taxi out and when I’m heading back from a day trip, it’s like a hair dryer blowing hot air into the cockpit once I’m below 3k. Usually getting out of the plane I’m pretty sweaty, unfortunately the koolscoop isn’t quite enough mid summer. I ordered a portable AC cooler, it isn’t a swamp cooler but uses ice cold water pumped through a radiator to cool down the cockpit. Cheaper version of the arctic air cooler, and fits through the baggage door of a M20F.

https://www.icybreeze.com

My only concern with it is the lid doesn’t lock and the bottom drain is just a cap that plugs, not screws, in. So I’ve sealed the plug until I can retro fit it to ensure water doesn’t come out into the airplane. I also need a latch for the lid so it won’t leak if I hit some bumps and I do not want it to leak when I take it out of the plane.

I did one test flight with the 1 quart of water and a couple freezer blocks and it really made a noticeable difference. Door shut, window/vents closed and I was very comfortable. I ordered the extended power switch so I can turn it off once I’m at altitude to conserve battery and the ice blocks inside. 
 

-18 lbs empty with the battery, claims it will last 2.5 to 6 hours depending on the fan speed

[Utah20Gflyer]

I like that your unit has a incorporated battery.  I have a B cool unit but am running into issues with the cigarette lighter outlet getting hot and damaging the power plug.   I have a power pack I built for ice fishing that I'm upgrading so I can use it to power the unit.  It uses a 40v battery from my cordless electric lawn mower.  

Does the base price include the battery and battery charger?  

Thanks,

[Bryan G]

31 minutes ago, Utah20Gflyer said:

I like that your unit has a incorporated battery.  I have a B cool unit but am running into issues with the cigarette lighter outlet getting hot and damaging the power plug.   I have a power pack I built for ice fishing that I'm upgrading so I can use it to power the unit.  It uses a 40v battery from my cordless electric lawn mower.  

Does the base price include the battery and battery charger?  

Thanks,

It comes with the the cigarette lighter power cable. Charger was free too but you’ll have to buy a battery. The 6 amp batter is $69, but I went with the 10 amp for $99. I have the V2 Pro AC, promo code “Freedom” saved 10% and the total cost was $387 including the battery and the 8’ corded remote.

 

Edited July 10, 2022 by Bryan G

[carusoam]

The B-cool system is pretty well developed…

Lots of input over the years…

The icebox came before it and proved how well a cooler with ice in it works… in low power environments…

Keeping the water out of the air and in the cooler is everything…

Wifi, and fancy controls are nice…

 

There are even a few home made devices for the deep CBs in the hotter neighborhood…. 

Great cooling for the times you can’t be at altitude!

Draining water back out… the pump can do that too…

Some Mooneys have a floor drain for that in the baggage area…

Best regards,

-a-

[KSMooniac]

I love my first gen B-Kool as well. I ran a fused 12V lead from my battery to the hat rack for my battery minder connection. When flying, I plug a 3x 12v cig lighter into that lead to run a GDL 39 3D and B-Kool when needed. The remote control for the B-Kool works great, and pumping water overboard before removing the unit is handy.

Sent from my LM-V405 using Tapatalk

[FlyboyKC]

On 7/9/2022 at 7:55 PM, Bryan G said:

I live in the Central Valley, CA and during the summer my Mooney gets pretty warm during the taxi out and when I’m heading back from a day trip, it’s like a hair dryer blowing hot air into the cockpit once I’m below 3k. Usually getting out of the plane I’m pretty sweaty, unfortunately the koolscoop isn’t quite enough mid summer. I ordered a portable AC cooler, it isn’t a swamp cooler but uses ice cold water pumped through a radiator to cool down the cockpit. Cheaper version of the arctic air cooler, and fits through the baggage door of a M20F.

https://www.icybreeze.com

My only concern with it is the lid doesn’t lock and the bottom drain is just a cap that plugs, not screws, in. So I’ve sealed the plug until I can retro fit it to ensure water doesn’t come out into the airplane. I also need a latch for the lid so it won’t leak if I hit some bumps and I do not want it to leak when I take it out of the plane.

I did one test flight with the 1 quart of water and a couple freezer blocks and it really made a noticeable difference. Door shut, window/vents closed and I was very comfortable. I ordered the extended power switch so I can turn it off once I’m at altitude to conserve battery and the ice blocks inside. 
 

-18 lbs empty with the battery, claims it will last 2.5 to 6 hours depending on the fan speed

I just got one of these Icy Breeze units too. I have the remote switch, and I also just ordered the tube extensions. I think having airflow point to both the pilot and passenger will be beneficial. I agree its easy to spill water into the airplane, for me I am spilling more water removing it out of the plane than installing it.

One thing I recommend, (especially with the remote switch) take a sharpie and label the Power Port. Yes it has labeling however (those of us with aging eyes) its hard to read without glasses. The remote switch and the power cord use the same size plug and its very easy to plug the power cord into the wrong port and blow the fuse on the power cord. (ask me how I know...)

Another tip I was told, if you use milk bottles as your ice blocks, mix 1/4 cup of salt into the water. I guess it makes the water colder and take a little longer to melt. I haven't tried it yet, but sounds legit.

So far I have been happy with the purchase, it does seem to make the cabin a little more tolerable on a very hot day.

Neal

 

[M20F]

7 minutes ago, FlyboyKC said:

Another tip I was told, if you use milk bottles as your ice blocks, mix 1/4 cup of salt into the water. I guess it makes the water colder and take a little longer to melt. I haven't tried it yet, but sounds legit.

 

Tap water freezes at 32F.  Seawater freezes at 0F hence why 0 starts there and not 32. 
 
When you dump ice on the driveway in the winter it doesn’t melt the ice, it just raises the melting point.  Which is why places like ND use sand and not ice (because it is consistently below 0F). 
 
Make sure it is in a container though.  You don’t want salt water blowing around in your pump.  

[MikeOH]

On 7/11/2022 at 11:58 AM, M20F said:

Tap water freezes at 32F.  Seawater freezes at 0F hence why 0 starts there and not 32. 

Seawater freezes at around 28F, NOT 0F!

[M20F]

2 minutes ago, MikeOH said:

Seawater freezes at around 28F, NOT 0F!

Correct I am dumb 

[ValkyrieRider]

I will definitely second for IcyBreeze.  I fly out of Phoenix, AZ and I can tell you, taking off at 2:00 in the afternoon when it is 107 outside, having the IcyBreeze on extreme cold makes the world of difference.  I did not originally purchase the remote extension but after a recent trip to Tucson, I realized when I was up at altitude, the air outside was cooler than what the IcyBreeze was producing.  But since it was in the baggage compartment, I had no way of turning it off and saving the battery and the ice.  I added Ice when I left Tucson back to Phoenix and the battery died as I was in the pattern at Deer Valley.  I just ordered the remote and an additional battery ... bring on the heat.

[M20F-1968]

I would also be concerned about the lithium battery, or is that really not an issue?

John Breda

[Yetti]

heater core.  12volt bilge pump.  cooler and a boat exhaust fan.

[Igor_U]

Not the Icy-Breeze but I have brand new B-Kool unit (12V) for sale in the Classified parts section. Please PM me if interested.