Air Conditioning
Posted by grocerynymph on May 10, 2007 · Member since Oct 2006 · 16 posts
So, I was at yoga class yesterday and it was +34 degrees outside. Before class a few of us were talking about how hot it was. I was red/sun burned from driving earlier in the day. I made a comment that when I felt my skin burning I closed the window and turned on the air. This woman next to me gasped and exclaimed, "You have AIR CONDITIONING???"
Now, I know that it uses up a lot of energy, and there is probably something else eco-damaging about it.
But is air conditioning really that bad?
I don't use it every day, only on the really hot days when opening windows makes the heat worse.
I have to admit that for the very first time in my life I have felt guilty every time I have turned on my air conditioning this year. :-\ It's only been a few times so far, but I know that living here in the South, it's going to be on a whole bunch this summer. I do have a very energy efficient home and try to keep the thermostat at a reasonable level. My next home will have solar power, and an environmentally friendly geothermal heating/cooling system....that I promise....or I promise I'll live in a tent! :D
I think air conditioning goes into the category of "use it, don't abuse it"; kinda like paper towels and cars, for that matter. There's no sense in being miserable. If you're going to lay around and be sluggish because you can't function (as is the case in much of the south and mid-west during the summer months), what's the point in that?
Don't forget that AC controls humidity as well, preventing mold to grow which can damage your furniture, clothes, food, cabinets, carpet, etc... and having the temperature widely varying in your home throughout the year will damage your wood cabinets, wood floors, and wood furniture, not to mention the studs in the walls that expand (and taking the sheetrock or plaster with it).
AC is an energy hog. So is your refrigerator. So is your car. and your hot water heater. You don't feel guilty about those hot showers, do you? ;)
There's no sense in being miserable.
I agree....I refuse to stick to my sheets at night... :o
I live in central Florida with unbearable heat and humidity. Sometimes we have to turn on air conditioning in March. People would be sick and die here without it.
No guilt here.
Air conditioning contributes to global warming, so I limit my use. I use fans in my home. I will sometimes use air in a vehicle if there's someone else with me and it's for their comfort. I think people are more creative when they live in natural temperatures. I have friends who use air in their homes and in the summer they don't want to go hiking or anything because "it's hot outside."
Dave - you've said before that when you build your home in/near Asheville it will be off the grid. I don't have a washer/dryer hookup right now, but will be getting something this summer. What method will you be using to do laundry? Also, will you be using a composting toilet or will you have a septic system?
I live in Tcuson and today we were close to 100 degrees. It is almost impossible if not dangerous to live without an AC unit. My parents house was made up of ADOBE and it kept us cool even when we left the AC at a steady 79 degress.
Now that I bought a new hose, we ripped out the Swamp Cooler and installed a Energy Efficient AC. We keep it warm (78-79).
If I had a choice I was rebuild using solar power (in it is ALWAYS sunny - it boggles me that we don't harvest the sun here!) or use wind power...
Good thing my mom is a ECO-GREEN FRIENDLY ARCHITECT - free services...just need to win the lottery!!!
If you could use fans instead...options options. ::) ::)
Oh the HEAT! AHHH! I grew up in (and currently live) in South Carolina. We didn't have air conditioning in our house until I was 14 years old. I didn't notice it until I went to friends' houses that were 72 degrees in the summer. Anyway, My parents were very conscious about the temp, mostly for cost reasons, but nevertheless, I learned not to abuse the air conditioner. Then when I moved to Miami for grad school, I had a very inefficient window air unit. It didn't really cool and made my power bill skyrocket. So, I just didn't use it. That was a really hot 2 years, but I realized that when you live in a hot climate, you stay outside a lot, where there is at least a breeze (and you would think it would be beautiful in Miami..ehh..not my experience). Now I'm back in SC, (where the summers are hotter than in Miami, b/c there IS no breeze), I just deal with it. I figure, I will use the air cond. to make things a little more comfortable. I don't understand people who keep their houses so cold in the summertime that when they come inside they have to add clothing. Sorry, this post is sort of a ramble...just couldn't really get my thoughts out.
I live in a very small, older (but cute!) house in Michigan... And I have NO central air. Let me tell you when it is 95 degrees outside and humid as crap, I am miserable. I have a few window air conditioners that I use occasionally, and without them I could not be in my house. I can honestly say that I will never move into another house that does not have central air, especially since I am moving south when I leave here.
So kids, turn on your air (like someone above said don't abuse it) and be happy 8)
PANSIES!!!!
I lived in pakistan and india (summer temps up to 50 C sometimes) for 13 years with a ceiling fan and usually no power between the hours of 1 and 4 am.... ohhhh the deadly sound of the ceiling fan slooooowlllly turning off :(
hahaha... i'm just kidding. i don't begrudge any of you your air conditioning. the main problem is that houses in north america aren't always built properly for hot weather. in asia, most buildings are built out of cement, so stay much much cooler... of course, they turn into ice blocks in the winter... sigh, i guess we can't have it all. anyway, be careful with it, open a window or use a ceiling fan if possible.
Ahhhh...the comforts of the temperate Northwest... :)
No need for air conditioners here. (Just need an umbrella...not that anyone here uses one. Oh, and maybe a few sandbags if you live near a river.)
Don't forget allergies! Mine have been horrible the last few weeks. I think everyone in the world cuts their grass when I am near. Plus, it's early May & we've already had a bunch of smog alert days. The only relief is air conditioning, which is part of a vicious cycle. Can't put up with poor air quality, so turn on the AC but the AC is helping to cause that poor air quality.
It's only going to get worse too. What's it going to be like in July & August?
We have just ordered a small AC unit installed. Like Rachandra, I live where temps in excess of 120ºF (over 40 C, sometimes as high as 53!) are not only possible but more and more common in July and Aug. We have toughed it out for 24 yrs with fans only but my DH is now 62 and he finds it hard to breathe when it's that hot. Also 2 yrs ago my CPU burned out due to heat. We intend to install it in the office where the PC lives, and close the hallway so it will cool that and the bedroom. And yes, we'll still tough it out till we hit like 39ºC, if we can. But I have gotten very dependent on OTC sleeping aids over the past few years, directly due to the heat (not to mention noise, with all the windows open). My dependence expanded past the hot season, so I'm hoping with a little cool, we'll both be happier and I can get off the drugs before winter.
Here in South Texas it gets very, very hot and too humid to use a swamp cooler. An air conditioner is a necessity. In our house, we try to keep the temperature as high as we can stand and still be relatively comfortable. I say use it when you need it and don't worry about what that yoga classmate thinks. She's probably jealous.
I work indoors and outdoors (in the direct sun). In the summer the highs average around 110F (43C) and as long as I stay hydrated working outside is fine. I think people are conditioned to need controlled environments more than they actually need them. That being said, although I don't use air, I do use heat. I'm completely miserable in temperatures below 50F (10C). Some people are more heat sensitive, so I can see some people using air. There are a lot of pro-environment options out there for people to use before they turn on the A/C.
I like heat, better than being cold, anyway. So, I keep the AC set warmer than most people around here do. But the AC has to stay on. I would prefer to use fans and open windows but Hubby has allergies -- BAD. And if I have to listen to him sneeze all day and night -- the things I would end up doing would NOT be vegan. ;) Hubby is one of those really loud, see-how-very-close-to-death-I-am? sneezers. And the dude never remembers to take medicine.
Grocerynymph: Were you saying you turned the AC on in your car? I had heard many times that you should drive with windows closed and AC on rather than open windowed bc the drag on the car with AC not on does a real number on gas mileage. I have NO idea if that is actually true.
I live in central Virginia. It gets hotter than Hades here for most of June through September. No, we rarely go above 100 degrees here bc the humidity is so high there is too much water in the air and not enough hours of blistering sunshine to get the temperature that high before it gets dark. As a result, there isn't even relief at night.
Still, I rarely turn the AC on. But that's because I am ALWAYS COLD. I don't know why, but if the AC is on lower than about 78 degrees, I start putting on the sweaters (albeit cotton ones.) Also, my house is brick and shaded by 16 oak trees on my < 1/2 acre of land. I also do have many ceiling fans.
So, while I don't use the AC, (mostly bc I don't like it) I don't begrudge those who do. I know I would probably be driven to it if I weren't living in this house.
BTW, I absolutely use the AC in the car.
I am inclined to agree with Humboldt here. my parents always used the AC very moderately. Last summer, however, when I wasn't living with them I was living in place with no AC and relying exclusively on my bike and feet for transit. At first I thought i was going to die not having a cool retreat to come home to after working outside and then biking across town. but i definitely felt my body adjust to the conditions it was presented with.
OK, I have a window air conditioner in my livingroom window which pretty much keeps the complete downstairs cool. I just got a new one at the end of last summer and it is an energy star. I am also going to get a small unit for my bedroom this year.
I lived with high humidity and stinking hot temperatures in my place for years during the summer. No cross breeze as all my windows except one are on the same side. I suffered with my allergies.
I only bought one when two of my cats got extremely old and two of my dogs. The vet told me that older animals hearts can't handle the heat and they were perfect examples of it. Lethargic and not so great looking. During an extreme heat wave, I thought I would lose the four of them so I bought it for them. Oddly enough, once installed I could breathe! As well, Willie, my old Affenpinscher had a collapsible trachea. Extreme heat could cause him stress and his throat could close......in other words a death sentence.
When the man came into install it, he asked if one of my cats lying on the floor was dead. Looked like Pie just about was.
I also don't have a basement or anywhere that it is cool. I keep it on pretty much all summer. I slept in the livingroom in the summer for about 5 or 6 years. This will be my first year now that the mould is out of my bedroom and I have a bedroom that I will sleep in it.
Last year, the old A/C died. Harold my old cat nearly did too. She got constipated and her kidneys started to shut down.
She spent a week at the vets having enemas and fluids. $500 or $600 later, I knew that for the health of my pets, I needed a new one.
My new livingroom one will be installed in the next couple of weeks.
Even my birds suffer in extreme heat and humidity. Unlike some on this board, I only need it for a few moths a year but now I couldn't live without it.
Harold is now 19 and I know she wouldn't last through another heat wave.
You often read about old people dying in their apartments in the heat because they can't cool off the way younger people can. Guess it is a catch 22 situation but for the health of my pets, it will be on when needed.
For the health of my allergies, it will be on when needed. I didn't realize how wonderful it was until I bought the first unit for my old critters. They have all since passed but Harold is still here and my younger cats and birds live more comfortably with it.
I guess the best I can do is buy energy star units. When I get the one for my bedroom, it will only be turned on a couple of minutes before I go to bed and turned off in the morning.
The livingroom one will be on whenever it gets too hot in my place.
I know some don't believe this but Canada does get some extremely hot weather. We don't down hill ski all year! :-) hee hee hee.
Di
Grocerynymph: Were you saying you turned the AC on in your car? I had heard many times that you should drive with windows closed and AC on rather than open windowed B/C the drag on the car with AC not on does a real number on gas mileage. I have NO idea if that is actually true.
They talked about this on CarTalk last weekend (on NPR). Total myth; it doesn't matter one way or another. I don't remember all the details, but windows open & drag cancels out the energy use by AC.
The best thing you can do to improve gas mileage is make sure your tires are inflated correctly.
They talked about this on CarTalk last weekend (on NPR).
I'm not into cars at all...but I do love those guys! One of the best shows on radio.
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