Is is good to drain evaporative cooler in garden?
Question: For years I have drained my evaporative cooler each fall and used the water to irrigate my garden. This year I heard that this is not a good thing to do. Can the water from my cooler be harmful to my garden? Answer: There are several factors to consider when answering this question. First, do you use products to keep the lime scale from accumulating in the cooler? Do you use the anti-algae or anti-fungal products in your cooler water? These products may be harmful to plants. So, if the material is still active, it may cause problems. Have you seen problems with your plants when you dumped the cooler water on them? If these products are in the water and you have not seen injury to the plants, it is probably okay to use. However, not knowing the product you use and its constituents, I would advise that you dispose of the water on flowering plants, not on vegetable crops. Another important factor to consider is the fact that as water does its job of cooling the air, it evaporate
