Streszczenie:

In regions with Mediterranean climates, high indoor temperatures, particularly during the summer months due to high solar radiation, limit plant growth in greenhouses. Due to the inadequacy of natural ventilation and shading practices commonly used to reduce indoor temperatures during these months, evaporative systems have become widely used in recent years. However, in regions where water is scarce, the high water volumes required for evaporative cooling are an issue that greenhouse operators should not overlook. The aim of this study was to determine the cooling effect, relative humidity effect, cooling efficiency, and water consumption of fan and pad cooling systems under Mediterranean climate conditions. For this purpose, measurements were taken in a Gothic-roofed greenhouse between June and September, when temperatures are high. The pad area used in the greenhouse was 7.5 m², the water flow rate was 10 L per minute per meter of pad, and the air change rate was 0.066 m³m^-2s^-1. The average cooling effect, relative humidity effect, cooling efficiency, and water consumption in June were determined as 7.9 °C, 19.4%, 60.7%, and 9.82 L·m^-2, respectively. In July, these figures were 5.6°C, 21.9%, 52.1%, and 9.73 L·m^-2, respectively; in August, 5.4°C, 14.5%, 50.9%, and 10.2 L·m^-2; and in September, 7.1°C, 21.2%, 55.3%, and 11.1 L·m^-2. The study results indicate that while the fan pad system is successful in reducing greenhouse temperatures, it also results in high water consumption. Therefore, it was concluded that studies on different water flow rates and ventilation rates to reduce water consumption are necessary.