Do you know when you buy a local cooler from your area it has wood wool padding. However, if you look for branded cooler offline or online, you will find most of them come with honeycomb padding.
But what is the difference between them
One obvious difference you can figure is the pricing. Local coolers are way cheaper.
Remember you get what you pay for.
A cheaper product may not be good every time.
You should buy only the best air cooler from known brands that can give you some warranty.
They do not cost much when compared from the local coolers.
Wood Wool is made of synthetic fibre and looks like grass. It is cheaper, has a low life of 1 year, retains less water, and needs high maintenance. While honeycomb padding is made of cellulose material, can last 2-3 years, has higher water retention, and is priced higher.
What is the use of a cooling pad
There is padding or sheet-like material placed inside the cooler.
Its only job is to retain water and provide surface area for evaporation
The water pump drives the water up from where it drips down on the cooling pads
Cooling pads retain this water.
When the cooler fan runs, the air goes inside and passes through this padding.
Due to evaporation, the air that goes inside comes out cooler.
With this mechanism, cooler cools the room
What is Aspen Wood Wool
Wood Wool is also referred to as Aspen wood wool
It is made of wood shaving and synthetic fibre
Look Wise it resembles grass
Features
- Very cheap
- Needs high maintenance
- Low life
- Not very effective for evaporative cooling
- Emits foul smell if not cleaned regularly
They are way cheaper than honeycomb padding but not very good in terms of water retention and to be used for air cooling.
Its life is low and needs to be replaced every year. If your usage is high you will need to change it twice a year.
They need to be cleaned 1-2 times every season depending on the usage else they produce smell
How is Honeycomb padding better
Features
- Higher water retention
- Durable
- Last 2-3 years
- Better Evaporating cooling
- Expensive
Honeycomb padding is made of cellulose material and resembles a real honeycomb in structure.
This structure results in higher water retention and more surface area for evaporation.
So they are very effective in cooling
It is durable and can last at least 2-3 years.
Most of the high end or even low end branded coolers nowadays come with honeycomb padding.
One con of this type of padding is that they are expensive.
If you check online for coolers you will find most of them with honeycomb padding.
Recommended Coolers for this Summer
- Bajaj Frio 23 L Room Cooler (Budget-Friendly)
- Crompton 75L Desert Cooler (High Rating)
- Symphony Diet Tower Cooler (Only buy if you live in too small & congested space)
Comparison Table
| Factors | wood wool | honeycomb |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ₹100 | ₹400-1000 |
| Water Retention | Poor | High |
| Life | < 1 year | 2-3 year |
| Maintenance | Moderate | Low |
| Cooling Efficiency | Moderate | High |
Can I replace wood wool padding with honeycomb padding?
No, every cooler is designed differently. A cooler that is designed to be used with wood wool should not be used with a honeycomb padding. Even if somehow you manage to use honeycomb instead of wood wool inside the cooler. The cooling may not be that effective.
How to clean honeycomb cooling pads?
With time dust and salt accumulates on the honeycomb padding which reduces the air cooler cooling efficiency.
You should clean it every year.
1. Take a light brush and brush it once on both the sides of the padding gently
2. Make a solution of water+vinegar(sirka) in 50-50 ratio. And pour this solution on the pads from both sides.
3. Leave it like this for 10 minutes.
4. Wash it with regular water. All the accumulated dust will be removed.
