Why it makes smoke worse
An evaporative cooler draws outdoor air through wet pads and pushes it through the house and out the windows. On a clean day, that's great ventilation. The pads aren't designed to stop fine smoke particles, so on a smoky day it fills the house with smoke. WA Health advises against using evaporative coolers in smoke.
What to do instead
- Turn it off and close the windows and doors.
- Reverse-cycle air conditioning, split or ducted, is fine on recirculate.
- Run a purifier in one room with the door shut.
- If it's too hot, spend the hottest hours somewhere air-conditioned, such as a library or shopping centre.
If a bushfire is close
DFES gives separate advice for fire safety. While smoke is nearby, run the cooler with the pump on to keep the pads wet. Once smoke is over your home or embers are falling, switch it off. If you can, keep water running over the pads with the fan off. Always follow Emergency WA warnings.
When to turn it back on
When the outdoor reading is back to good. Smoke often lingers into the next morning, so check the live Perth reading first.
Before summer
- Have the cooler serviced and the pads cleaned or replaced.
- Work out which room will be your clean room on smoke days.
Full smoke-day plan Best purifiers for smoke
Sources
- HealthyWA: Smoke hazards from bushfires.
- DFES: Evaporative air conditioners bushfire factsheet.
- Better Health Channel: Using air conditioners when it's smoky outside.