The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1906-12-12
WILL INTEREST
SHIPPERS Of FRUIT
new DEVICE REFRIGERATING CARS
Practical Demonstration of Ingenious
Apparatus at Horticultural I'm
ion Office Saturday.

kane, one of the best known fruit
men in the state, was in the city, ac-
companied by w. NJ. Howell of Cla-
rinda, Iowa. The gentleman was
here endeavoring to interest the fruit
growers and shippers in what is
known as the Cyclone Fruit Cooler"
an apparatus for putting fruits, vege-
tables and all perishable products
loaded into refrigerator cars, into
immediate refrigeration. The appar
atus has been used extensively by
the California shippers for the past
two years and has been one of the
prime factors in making a reputa.
ton for California fruits in the east
ern markets.
The gentlemen propose to estab-
lish headquarters for the states of
Washington, Idaho, Oregon ana
| Utah in North Yakima, and will in
stall these cooling plants wherever
| there is a considerable shipping of
perishable products.
AS is generally known by fruit
and vegetable growers and shippers
when the product is loaded into an
iced car, closed up and shipped, the
contents at once begin to break down.
1t begins TO give off moisture, in
ducing fermentation, which gener-
ates additional heat, thus raising the
temperature higher than when the
car was loaded. When the cool air
from the ice begins to reduce the
temperature, the moisture is condens-
ed and this condensation distributes
the heat through the car which re-
tards refrigeration and in the alb
sence of any positive movement of
air, explains the fact fully demon
strated by Mr.. Harold G. Powell of
the T. S. department of agriculture,
that an iced refrigerator car re-
quires from two to three days to
reduce the temperature of its con-
tents sufficiently to arrest the pro-
cess of ripening and decay The
marvel is that it carries its contents
to market as well as it does.
The Cyclone Cooler reverses these
conditions in the loaded refrigerator
car. The car is iced together with
salt loaded, braced and closed up.
Then the apparatus is applied By
means of valves air is cut off from
entering the car while with a power
full exhaust fan the hot. moist air
is taken from the car creating par
tial vacuum, causing rapid evapora-
ton, which in itself is a cooling pro-
cess; then the valves are reversed,
the fan forcing the air through the
brine coil, the ice and salt of the tank
at the pressure end of the car, con-
densing the moisture and entering
the car at a temperature of thirty
two degrees; the air is at once abb
sorbed by the boxes or crates con-
tanning fruits or vegetables, taking
the place of the warm, moist air pre-
viously drawn out. While this air
is taking up heat and moisture from
fruits or vegetables a continuous
current is forced through the car
both tanks of ice and salt and brine
coil making complete circuit many
times each minute.
1t should be explained that the
brine by the melting ice with salt
is conducted from ice tanks of the
car into coil of five hundred feet
of one and one-half inch pipe Cen
cased in cylinder) between the coils
of which the air is forced, thus util-
izing the brine, which is fully as
efficient as the ice'in cooling and con-
densing the air, thus saving fully 20
to so per cent of ice consumed en-
route.
After a few minutes the valves
are changed and air exhausted,
thereby again changing valves cold
air is forced in, thus rapidly cool
in the products to the desired tenn
perature.
The process is like filling the car
with ice cold water and it becomes
warmed by the fruit, the water is
drawn off and refilled by more cold
water, repeating until the con-
tents of the car are fully cooled. Wa
ter of course would spoil the fruit
1t is essential that the product is
left dry as we'll as cold.
The air entering the car through
brine, coil and ice) at a temperature
of 80 degrees, contains but two and
one-tenth grains of moisture, while
the air in car at so degrees con-
tains ten and nine-tenths grains and
at 100 degrees nineteen and seven
tenths grains. Thus the air introduce
ed carries in but two grains of mois-
ture per cubic foot, carrying out