Helmet cooling options?

I've always fought getting overheated in the summer, and I certainly deal with it inside the race car. I do Lemons/ChumpCar races and the occasional DE. A 30 minute DE session isn't a problem, but 2 hrs+ in a race can be. I plan on doing a cool suit system and am wondering if trying to do something with the helmet is worthwhile. It seems like a helmet blower with just outside air is useful in at least flushing the CO out of the helmet. Is trying to cool this air on a budget something that can be done? Something like using a water-to-air intercooler maybe?

Use a bigger cooler to fab up your cool shirt setup. Add the blower circuit in addition to the sump pump water loop.

Here is the $$$ version but you can see how it could be fabbed up pretty easily.

FWIW, once I got my homemade cooler plus cool shirt setup working helmet heat wasn't an issue even in a black tin top in 100F heat in WV for 3hr stints. I don't have helmet cooling at all except to open the visor under caution. As long as you dump more ice in the cooler at pit stops it's like magic and makes your whole body feel cool.

Do you know what's inside the cooler? I imagine heat transfer between the air and water is tricky.

And if you make a DIY cool shirt system, you can also use the water reservoir to swamp-cool the air going to your helmet (Edit: Looks like the system pictured above has this feature). This air will be very humid though and you'll need to be able to turn it off to prevent extreme visor and windshield fogging if it rains.

ross2004 wrote: Do you know what's inside the cooler? I imagine heat transfer between the air and water is tricky.

I made my own cooler with just the sump- no air cooler. I think you you will want a poor man's intercooler though so you get cool dry air, not swampy dampness blowing in your face. You actually could do it in the one water loop - by pumping the water thru some coils of brake line inside the air tubing or... easier, use one of those $39 oil coolers on ebay and a computer fan as a backward heat exchanger. I think you you will need more than the standard 13 or 19qt cooler though to increase the ice capacity to last for a long stint.

I read somewhere else where a guy tried copper tubing inside of the air duct (which had cold water circulating through it) and it essentially did nothing. That's why I was wondering if an air-to-water intercooler would work, as that's what it's designed for. Guess there's only one way to find out...

ross2004 wrote: I read somewhere else where a guy tried copper tubing inside of the air duct (which had cold water circulating through it) and it essentially did nothing. That's why I was wondering if an air-to-water intercooler would work, as that's what it's designed for. Guess there's only one way to find out...

Well... "back in the day" when no one had a cool shirt, dainty men who couldn't deal with heat would install a NACA duct on the driver-side rear window and run a hose directly to the helmet. Before helmets had air nozzles... we... ahem... er... I mean ... they... would zip tie it to the roll hoop so it blew in the visor.

It only works when you are moving but it's fast, cool(er) air for practically free. (well, $19 for the duct and then some hose... ).

Were I you - I'd run the cool shirt and see if you really need direct cooling of the hat. I bet not.

You will not need the helmet cooling once you have the cool shirt. It really is a night and day difference and you might even want to cycle the cool shirt on and off if you have the legit real deal cool shirt. They suck a lot of heat out of your body.

Also a real Nomex suit can make a night and day difference. I upgraded from a Proban (treated cotton) SFI/5 suit to a Nomex FIA suit this year and barely even need the cool suit any more. It's certainly more comfortable with the cool suit but the Nomex breathes so much better it's ridiculous.

Just how much flow is needed for the pump of a cool suit system? I have an old Mr. Gasket electric fuel pump that's rated for 35 GPH I could mount externally on the cooler.

ross2004 wrote: Just how much flow is needed for the pump of a cool suit system? I have an old Mr. Gasket electric fuel pump that's rated for 35 GPH I could mount externally on the cooler.

I used a $19 12v Tsunami bilge pump designed for pumping out the fish tank on a bass boat.

mounted in the bottom of a 13qt Engel latching cooler ($35) people use in Kayaks.

I combined it with some quick disconnects from McMaster Carr that match the shirt, a roll of tubing from lowes and some insulation to keep the tube from bleeding heat. It's a $75 solution to a $400 problem. Works like a champ.

The above post is also correct - a 555 timer circuit is in the works to cycle it on/off as it keeps the ice longer and you really don't need to be "piss the pants" cold for hours at a time.

12+ inch electric radiator fan tie wrapped to the passenger side roll cage near the A pillar can move a ton of air.

When I read "helmet cooling options" I immediately thought unzipping your fly would work.

My wife says I'm immature, go figure.

sachilles wrote: 12+ inch electric radiator fan tie wrapped to the passenger side roll cage near the A pillar can move a ton of air.

When I went to watch GRC in May, this is what most teams were doing.

dculberson wrote: You will not need the helmet cooling once you have the cool shirt. It really is a night and day difference and you might even want to cycle the cool shirt on and off if you have the legit real deal cool shirt. They suck a lot of heat out of your body. Also a real Nomex suit can make a night and day difference. I upgraded from a Proban (treated cotton) SFI/5 suit to a Nomex FIA suit this year and barely even need the cool suit any more. It's certainly more comfortable with the cool suit but the Nomex breathes so much better it's ridiculous.

I second both of these opinions.

GameboyRMH wrote:

sachilles wrote: 12+ inch electric radiator fan tie wrapped to the passenger side roll cage near the A pillar can move a ton of air.

When I went to watch GRC in May, this is what most teams were doing.

Exactly. And you didn't say hi.

sachilles wrote:

GameboyRMH wrote:

sachilles wrote: 12+ inch electric radiator fan tie wrapped to the passenger side roll cage near the A pillar can move a ton of air.

When I went to watch GRC in May, this is what most teams were doing.

Exactly. And you didn't say hi.

Hey if you said you were there I would have said hi. I was the guy who cheered when the announcer joked that maybe the Group B cars should take the GRC jump.

In reply to GameboyRMH: I was the guy in the Subaru paddock with the big funny hat, trying not to get sunburned. I work for the Subaru team and I swear every event this year has been abnormally hot. Barbados was the only one that we could swim in the ocean every morning.

I just used a cool shirt for the first time doing an enduro at Texas World Speedway in June. With that you'll be fine. I did the same thing as above. $20 bilge pump, dollar store cooler, clear hose from the hardware store and a $100 shirt. It was fantastic.

Thanks for all the responses. I'll do just the cool shirt system for now. Still might add just a fresh air helmet blower with no cooling.

If you go the cool shirt option search ebay for Donjoy. They make a system designed for people recovering from surgery. Same thing as cool shirt and has the same connections so you can buy the cool shirt and use the donjoy. I paid $70 for mine.