The Fog Blog

Koolfog is proud to have supported the recent American Cancer Society, Relay for Life event hosted by La Quinta High School.  The relay is a 24- hour walk that features teams to raise money for cancer research and programs. The American Cancer Society also takes these opportunities to raise awareness about early cancer detection and prevention.  The actual event is centered around the relay in which runners and walkers take turns doing laps around the track in honor of cancer survivors or in symbolic support of cancer research.  The event had approximately 68 teams participating with roughly 500 people from all over the Coachella Valley.

Koolfog’s participation included providing portable misting fans to assist in cooling volunteers, walkers, runners, and spectators who all support “the need to find a cure”.

The event took place on October 5, 2009 and Koolfog is proud to have been a part of this important mission.  Local organizers, the desert chapter of the American Cancer Society of Palm Desert anticipate a net of at least $90,000.

Most people don’t realize that animals feel the heat as much as humans do. Many animals can only release heat through panting which is not nearly as effective as our natural defense against heat — sweating. So if an animal lives outdoors, especially in a manufactured environment that doesn’t contain bodies of water for hydration, trees for shade or any means of relief from the sun, they may be at high risk for heat-related ailments.

But some seem to be catching on. In the past, our outdoor cooling systems were used in animal environments, but primarily in production environments (dairies, hog barns, poultry barns, etc.) and public zoos. However, this year alone Koolfog added several new clients in the “for profit” and “non-profit” animal facility world.

Here are some examples of new and existing clients who are pioneers in animal cooling — congratulations goes out to all:

Palm Springs Animal Shelter made the local news this summer with the unveiling of a new cooling system for their animals on August 6.

Friends of Palm Springs Animal Shelter, Sandy Allen (a concerned citizen) and City Councilwoman Ginny Foat made everything happen in a very short period of time and the dog kennel area is much cooler during the day time.

The Humane Society of the Desert is Southern California’s largest no-kill animal sanctuary and is quite impressive in size as well as amenities for the animals including the new Koolfog misting system installed throughout the kennels; landscaping and walking paths; a Puppy Park; four large play pens; and, a Vet Mobile. Amy Diaz (manager) tells us that they experience an incredible drop in temperature in the kennels now that the system is employed and there is no wetting compared to their old, low-pressure DIY kit.

Two very interesting businesses that are Koolfog clients are Paw Pals dog daycare in Franklin, TN and the Bow Wow Bungalow in Burbank, CA. Both locations offer what I would call “extreme dog daycare.” Dogs lounge, play catch, swim, take baths and generally are living the high life while their owners are away at work or on vacation. At the Bow Wow Bungalow they kick it into high gear with an indoor themed play area called the Bungalow Jungle equipped with a waterfall with Koolfog visual fog effect, water romp area, prehistoric rocks, giraffes, gorillas and more. I’ve never seen anything like it.

Birds need lovin’ too. At the Oasis Sanctuary in Benson, AZ they get it. The Oasis Sanctuary is a facility dedicated to captive Exotic birds. In other words over 600 parrots, cockatoos, macaws and other captive avian species reside at the sanctuary and I hear enjoy the Koolfog misting system that is utilized throughout the property.

Parrot in the mist

Last but not least I am compelled to mention the teVelde Dairy in Escalon, CA who implemented a Koolfog misting system for their close-up cows (i.e. those cows within 14-21 days of calving) a couple of years ago just prior to an extreme heat wave that hit throughout the central valley and wiped out thousands of cows throughout California. This dairy experienced problems but they were minimized in the loafing areas due to the addition of the Koolfog dairy cooling system.

Cooling promotes feeding

It is fun to watch people experience Koolfog for the first time. There is a certain tangible nature to what we do. Koolfog is both visible and tactile and its benefit can be felt as well as translated to a return on investment. But unless you are an engineer you probably wouldn’t have a clue how it works.

The truth is that although the underlying physical principles are quite complex, the explanation is fairly straightforward. When water evaporates into air it cools the surrounding air and objects in contact with it.

To put this in perspective, here are some real-life examples of evaporative cooling:
- Sweat evaporating from your skin is your body’s natural defense against the heat. You only need a stiff breeze to remind you of that.
- Walk towards a lawn being watered in the summertime and you may notice that the air temperature is cooler as you approach.
- Jump out of a pool on a warm day and feel the chill.

This form of natural cooling was leveraged by the Persians thousands of years ago with the invention of the Bâdgir (windcatcher) whose architectural design utilized wind shafts to draw air across a water source and into structures. And Koolfog moves this strategy to cool outdoor settings.

Has anybody checked the stock performance of Pfizer lately? Pfizer is the manufacturer of Xanax which — as pulled from the Pfizer web site — “belongs to a group of medicines called benzodiazepines, which have helped many people feel better.”

You know what makes me feel better? Isolating myself from mainstream media.

It’s not that I don’t like to know what is happening in the world. I just find it difficult to absorb news presented by giants such as Fox, CNN, MSNBC, ABC and others. If anybody watches the news they know that headline content is primarily negative. World news is almost entirely negative. So is Business-related news. Entertainment news is subversly negative. Sports news can be negative depending on your perspective (for example, I’m a Cubs fan). And the rest gets lost in the shuffle.

I often wonder if the news reporting is actually extending the recession. In my opinion, it can and it is. I heard recently that Obama was having a very difficult time developing talking points about spending because on one hand, he wants to encourage people to go out and spend money. And on the other hand, he needs to make sure that people are being fiscally responsible. Obviously a delicate balance.

So while our leader is contemplating how to break it to people that they need to spend responsibly, the media continues to swing to the extreme. And in the case of reporting on the economy, the wrong direction. This fosters fear which extends uncertainty which limits spending which impacts earnings which results in job loss which continues the cycle.

I heard about this news source on NPR — Good News Network — and think they are onto something. In fact, today this headline was was featured: “Evidence Piling up that Worst of Recession is Over.” I perused the major news network web sites and couldn’t find anything that resembled this story. Shocker.

What better time to make a major announcement than May Day?

With roots in ancient traditions May 1 has always carried some level of significance. May 1 falls approximately halfway between spring solstice and winter equinox and essentially splits the year in half. And according to Wikipedia, there are many cultural traditions and celebrations surrounding the first of May including naked jaunts into the North Sea in Scotland to bonfires and courtship in Germany to a fairly “young” Lei Day established in Hawaii in 1927.

But May 1 also signifies International Workers’ Day, a celebration of the accomplishment of the international labor movement and commemoration of several significant events including the Haymarket Massacre in Chicago 1886, the May Day Riots of 1894 and the May Day Riots of 1919. Interesting read. What caught my attention was the fact that those protests started over the establishment of an 8 hour workday. How ironic.
I am going to celebrate anyways. Not so much for the labor movement but for the completion of the acquisition of Creative Mist Systems, Inc. and the start of a new chapter in the evolution of Koolfog. In the context above it seems to make sense.

Weather.com has us touching triple digits by Monday. Today is hot enough with a current temperature of 95 degrees Fahrenheit and a high of 98. With almost perfect weather for the preceding 6 months this is our first signal that things are going to warm up — and fast! Good thing we are in the outdoor cooling business. Normally this is a time of mourning for Desert residents and businesses who enjoy our mild winters. However, we view this as a definitive start of the northern hemisphere’s outdoor cooling season and a sure sign that our business lives are going to get very, very busy.

This got me thinking about hot weather businesses. What other companies are hot weather driven? Here are some prime candidates:

• Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream is a sure bet.
• Billibong and Oakley will see business pick up as the sun emerges.
• Hawaiian Airlines dominates the airways in and leading to the islands.
• Universal Studios, Sea World and other theme parks are extremely busy in the summer season. We know this first hand.
• Arch Chemicals is one largest global supplier of swimming pool and spa treatment chemicals.
• Do you like Avocado’s? Chances are you purchase your avocados or avocado products from Calavo, one of the worldwide leaders in the avocado and avocado products market.
• Trane is a major player in residential, commercial & industrial air conditioning equipment. (If anything, these guys follow our season to the tee - albeit on a much larger scale. You would think that selling to national and global companies would limit our exposure to seasonality but that just isn’t the case. When it is hot, the corporate execs start thinking about air conditioning and outdoor cooling. When it is cold, they think about other things).

Maybe Koolfog should start an association of hot weather companies. The NAHWC.

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