How to Use Evaporative Cooler Water Treatment

Obtain a water treatment made for evaporative coolers. Hardware stores, home improvement stores and cooler stores stock these treatments. The treatments contain mild acids that help dissolve the mineral deposits on the pads.

Turn off the cooler, unplug it and let others in the home or building know that you are working on the cooler. Evaporative coolers have moving parts that can be dangerous for anyone accessing the interior parts.

Remove the access panel to the cooler. Follow the directions on the water treatment you selected. Add the water treatment to the cooler and replace the access panel.

Plug in the cooler and turn the pump on. Let the pump run for the recommended amount of time. If your pads have a heavy buildup of deposits, you can run the pump longer than the manufacturer suggests. Turn off the pump after enough time has lapsed and unplug the evaporative cooler.

Turn off the water line connected to the cooler, remove the access panel and drain your cooler. Coolers have a removable overflow pipe located in the pan of the cooler. Since the water is slightly acidic from the water treatment, it's a good idea to hook a hose up to the threads at the bottom of the cooler to drain the water away from any concrete surfaces or landscaped area, which could harm the concrete, the plants and the soil.

Once all the water has drained, replace the overflow pipe and turn on the water. Once the pan is full, plug in the cooler and turn on the pump. Let the pads get wet before turning on the fan.