Zibold was clearing forests in Crimea when he discovered thirteen large piles of stones.
Each conical stone pile was 10 meters tall and covered over 900 square meters.
Zibold concluded that the stacks of stone were dew condensers that supplied the city with water.
He calculated that each air well produced more than 55,400 liters of water each day.
Achille Knapens Air Well in Trans-en-Provence, France.
His condenser was 6 meters tall with an 8-meter-diameter top.
By a fortuitous combination of circumstances, Zibold’s condenser actually worked.
By condensing dews within the pile, the condenser produced up to 360 liters of water every day.
This allowed the stones to lose heat rapidly at night.
It was also possible that the collector was intercepting fog, which added significantly to the yield.
A model of Zibolds condenser.
It still stands, although in dilapidated condition.
The walls are punctured by a number of holes that let in warm, moisture-laden air during the day.
Eventually, the project was abandoned.
Many villages in India have been using dew condensers constructed on roofs of houses for years.
