Packing elements for evaporative coolers and a method of supporting packing elements in cooling towers

A method of supporting apertured horizontally disposed packing elements of a splash pack for an evaporative cooler, with the packing element including a sheet of expanded metal which is corrosion resistant and which has a flat splash surface and apertures with width and length dimensions of from approximately 10 mm and 30 mm respectively to approximately 60 mm and 120 mm respectively, and with the elements being vertically spaced a substantial distance from each other, said method including forming a first layer of substantially horizontal disposed packing elements by positioning them so as to provide overlapping regions which are substantially co-planar with the remainder of the elements in the layer and in which a portion of one of the packing elements overlaps a portion of another;

• connecting the packing elements together by threading elongate connecting elements through aligned or partially aligned apertures of the packing elements in the overlapping regions;
• supporting the first layer of packing elements by means of substantially vertically disposed, elongate, first support elements having respective first ends which engage the connecting elements;
• suspending from the first layer a second layer similar to the first layer in a spaced-apart relationship from the first layer, by engaging the respective first ends of the first support elements with respective second ends of second support elements similar to the first support elements;
• and
• engaging the respective first ends of the second support elements with the connecting elements of the second layer.