Hi,

I recently installed 2 roof-mounted evaporative coolers on on of my buildings. They cool the common area and the tenants chain their doors open.

Of course no good deed goes unpunished. The added air pressure now keeps the front door of the building from closing all the way on its own. Repeated reminders to the tenants to be sure to close the door don't work. When we tighten the door closer the door slams really hard when the coolers are off.

I am tempted to run one of the coolers only on low, or just shut them off. Of course the responsible tenants are really mad. They say that it's not their fault.

Feasible to have tenant(s) open window(s) slightly to relieve pressure?

Get a better door closer.

Bill,

The problem is when the tenants are not home and their doors are closer.

A vent in the common area will vent out (and waste) the cooler air.

The door closer is fine.

This is a tough one!

add a switch on the door so that the cooler will only run if the door is closed.

Also, "tenants chain their doors open." - this would be a hazard in case of fire, allowing it to spread very fast

"add a switch on the door so that the cooler will only run if the door is closed."

Get a better door closer Bob, or vent the pressure, or train your tenants.

Personally, I would opt for the mechanical solution.

Let us know how it works out for you.

Bill [TX]

If you want to "keep" the cool air, you have to design a closed circuit for the airflow. If you are drawing in air from outside (through the coolers) you have to also provide an escape route for the air that is being replaced (an outside vent).

Believe me, the air is already getting out, where ever it can. That's why the doors stay open. If you actually could stop all the air from getting out, the cooler wouldn't be pulling any in.