The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Tech → DIY Cool Shirt
The female metal-clipped connectors will work with either the metal or plastic male connectors, but the female plastic-clipped connectors will only work with the plastic male connectors. I found that out at ECR with my "medical device" cool system.
Step one: pick up cooler from the side of the freeway - Done (thanks D. L. Grant!)
Step two: buy bilge pump
I've liberated someone elses idea from another forum... how about the "cool seat" or "cool seat cover?" It'd need to work through a couple layers of nomex, and would only be on your back and rear, but would remove the need (and expense) of connectors alltogether. And you wouldn't need multiple shirts for the team.
Anyone put any thought into it before?
I've liberated someone elses idea from another forum... how about the "cool seat" or "cool seat cover?" It'd need to work through a couple layers of nomex, and would only be on your back and rear, but would remove the need (and expense) of connectors alltogether. And you wouldn't need multiple shirts for the team.
Anyone put any thought into it before?
This was discussed earlier in this very thread.
We used frozen milk jugs, gatorade bottles and arizona tea gallon bottles. We kept them in a cooler all weekend with a 50lb block of dry ice. Lasted all weekend and then some, opening the cooler many times. It also re-froze the bottles we put in over night.
Last time we used pellet dry ice and while it froze things much faster, it was all gone by sunday morning. The block of dry ice was <$40 at a local welding supply co. Well worth it IMO to be comfortable all weekend on the race track.
I made a cool shirt ice chest, based on the original post and some other DIY guides online.
If the image links don't work, try these:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/PP … directlink
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Uh … directlink
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/HS … directlink
I managed to find dry-break connectors from McMaster Carr that fit perfectly on the Firewear Cool Shirt that my team is using. You can see it rigged with a battery pack here, for testing purposes. I'm using a dimmer switch to control the rate of flow. Works splendidly.
If you'll be at Thunderhill this weekend, come visit Haulin' Bass and I'll show it off. I'll be the one driving this thing around:
http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Watt-Cruzin- … B001CKD9G4
Looks like we'll being pouring water down our suits...'cool suit'.
KT
Gel ice packs in your pant pockets work pretty well.
Ice packs in the suit might make emergency egress more difficult.
Here's a quick look at the two coolers I built:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZZXFVVX764
Just found this thread while doing some research. does anyone have the link to the McmasterCarr quick disconnects? The one on the previous page doesn't work, and i don't have the cool shirt yet to use as a guide to find the parts.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#quick-disconne … gs/=aqcs3e
thanks. once i get the shirt and cooler i'll figure out the exact size.
"Acetal Quick-Disconnect Coupling Thru-Wall Sckt, 1/4 Cplg, for 3/8"" Tube ID, W/ Valve
" mcmaster 5012K79
"Acetal Quick-Disconnect Coupling Socket, 1/4 Cplg, for 3/8"" Tube ID, with Valve
" mcmaster 5012K83
"Acetal Quick-Disconnect Coupling Plug, 1/4 Cplg, for 3/8"" Tube ID, with Valve
" mcmaster 5012K86
Also consider:
Water-Resistant Clear Polyurethane Tubing 3/8" ID, 1/2" OD, 1/16" Wall Thickness 1' Length mcmaster 5195T73
Unslit Foam Rubber Insulation for Pipe & Tube 1/4" Thick, 1/4" Insulation ID, 6' Length mcmaster 4463K23
I built one of these:
http://forum.specmiata.com/cgi-bin/ulti … tml#000054
into a small project box and mounted it in my "other" racecar. It works nicely for prolonging the longevity of your ice and is easier than toggling the switch to the cooler on and off.
Some Safeways also have block ice that will indeed last a lot longer than cubes. We get better than four hours out of a block, as opposed to maybe an hour and a half with cubes.
Scott
For a speed controller, I just use LED dimmers (pulse wave motors). They're often rated to 6 or 8 amps. Pump pulls just 2 amps.
This one works great, and is tiny:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/PWM-dimm … 535wt_1134
Bigger, but easier to mount:
http://www.amazon.com/Dimming-Controlle … amp;sr=8-1
Bilge pumps cost money! What's wrong with windshield-washer pumps? Pocket-sized, i.e. free at the junkyard! Yeah, you engineer types will whine about the duty cycle and MTBF gibberish, but how do you know it couldn't pump water for 12 hours straight?
I really want to see a whole team wearing backpack-mounted cool-suit rigs as they wander around the paddock, so much so that I'm willing to hand out a Get Out Of Penalty Box Free card to any team doing so.
two questions.
first: does this offer still stand?
second: does anyone know the ~ current draw of your average/easily accessible style windshield washer pump?
third: does it have to be a backback or are other mobile storage devices acceptable? such as purses, satchels, or this pretty little thing 
ok, so I'm going the DIY route, and had a couple questions. Is there any reason why having the tubes on the inside of a shirt would cause problems other than being a little uncomfy? I've got screen printed shirts I want to use, so that when not in car, we can look stylish, and cool. Additionally, mounting systems seem diverse and sometimes complex. Is a cooler ratchet strapped to the spare tire well considered "securely mounted" or do I need to come up with something better?
also, for those running walmart brand "fishtank hose" what kind of connectors are you using?
finally, do most racing suits have provisions for coolshirts? I'm not sure where to have them exist, and most of my team are using OMP First 2 Suits from Racing Suit Rentals, and cannot cut/modify them, and I can't see how exiting out the neck/wrist/ankle holes would be safe, or convenient, but I've no experience whatsoever w/ racing suits. I'm not worried about mine, when it shows up, it'll get holes cut in it somewhere, if there isn't something already moderately convenient for hoses in/out.
Is a cooler ratchet strapped to the spare tire well considered "securely mounted" or do I need to come up with something better?
Basically, the cooler should be immobile when the car is moving. That can be accomplished easily enough with ratchet straps and some sort of snug location, either just a natural fit of the cooler to a spot in the car or a purpose-constructed seat. Most probably, you'll need to weld at least one bracket in to keep the cooler from sliding, but you might be able to find a spot that doesn't require it.
also, for those running walmart brand "fishtank hose" what kind of connectors are you using?
For any sort of tubing, I'd recommend measuring the inner diameter (ID) and use tube barb matching that ID for the tube side of the connections.
Beyond that, it depends on where you want to be able to disconnect. If you'd like maximum modularity, get quick disconnects at the cooler end of the tubing as well as the shirt end; it will cost you $25 to $30 extra for four additional valve disconnect fittings assuming 1/4 size couplings and 3/8" ID tube barb or 3/8" MNPT. Otherwise, you can just get some tube barb to pipe thread conversion fittings and plumb it that way.
If you don't already have your "fishtank hose", consider getting clear tubing from Lowe's; I got 20 ft of 3/8" ID tube for $7, which is more than enough for the double cooler-to-driver run (cold hot, warm return) as well as some leftover for other purposes. You'll also need something bigger to run from the bilge pump exit; I got a foot of 3/4" ID tube from Lowe's for the purpose---this needs to be sized based on the connection on the pump. This is also a little tricky to work with, I had better results when I soaked mine in hot water first.
finally, do most racing suits have provisions for coolshirts? I'm not sure where to have them exist, and most of my team are using OMP First 2 Suits from Racing Suit Rentals, and cannot cut/modify them, and I can't see how exiting out the neck/wrist/ankle holes would be safe, or convenient, but I've no experience whatsoever w/ racing suits. I'm not worried about mine, when it shows up, it'll get holes cut in it somewhere, if there isn't something already moderately convenient for hoses in/out.
The ones I've seen do not. If I hadn't been able to cut a passage in a pocket, I would have cracked the lower end of my zipper (which is double-ended) and routed the tubing out that way.
I'm not willing to cut a hole in my pocket, so I routed mine through the bottom of my zipper.
+1 on using the bottom of the zipper. You will hear at least one small hose comment though.
I bought T-fittings at Wal-Mart for the aquarium tubing. Two of the T branches connect to the vinyl aquarium line and one to the thin wall nylon line from McMaster. The other end of the nylon line hooks to the dry break. I'll try to post pictures tomorrow. Forgot I never updated my vest stuff. It worked great BTW.
~sam
See picture link bellow for how I looked the aquarium line in:
http://www.rustytearracing.com/Cool_Ves … st_End.jpg
~sam
How do you guys get the tubing out of the fire suit? Poke a hole in it?
Some poke a hole in the pants pocket
Slit a hole inside a pocket,
or pull hoses through the bottom of the zipper, if the suit has a double pull zipper.
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