Phone: 760.345.9429

How Misting Works

Misting systems work by pumping highly pressurized water through specialized nozzles. This results in ultra-fine water droplets spraying into the air. Heat is absorbed by the moisture as it changes from liquid to vapor during a process called “evaporative cooling” and thus the target area can experience heat reduction of up to 30°F.

At Modern Misting Systems, we create (within design constraints) a “room effect”, where we create a curtain of mist around all open-air sides of the target area. Anyone within the “room” experiences the maximum cooling effect.
The Science:
(courtesy of Wikipedia)

Evaporative cooling is a physical phenomenon in which evaporation of a liquid, typically into surrounding air, cools an object or a liquid in contact with it. Latent Heat, the amount of heat that is needed to evaporate the liquid, is drawn from the air. When considering water evaporating into air, the wet-bulb temperature, as compared to the airs dry-bulb temperature, is a measure of the potential for evaporative cooling. The greater the difference between the two temperatures, the greater the evaporative cooling effect. When the two temperatures are the same, no net evaporation of water in air occurs, thus there is no cooling effect.

A simple example of natural evaporative cooling is persperation, or sweat, which the body secretes in order to cool itself. The amount of heat transfer depends on the evaporation rate, however for each kilogram of water vaporized 2257 kJ of energy (about 890 BTU per pound of pure water, at 95°F) are transferred. The evaporation rate in turn depends on the humidity of the air and its temperature, which is why ones sweat accumulates more on hot, humid days: the perspiration cannot evaporate.

The perspiration example is perfect to explain why our Misting Systems are most popular in the dry desert communities of the Southwest.

If you live in a more humid environment, Misting Fans may be the answer for you. Misting Fans force a fine mist in front of the fan-induced wind. The wind helps to evaporate the mist and cool the air.