Air Conditioning Poll

[El Pinko]

Air Conditioning Poll

[LSK]

1. both?????

Its humid and in the high 80s/90s here this week. Kinda need it, but I hate having it on. Would love it in the 70s and mild and the windows open.

[gateley]

5. Yes - that would be ideal. nt

[progressive_realist]

7. 70s and mild?

Sounds like Seattle... :)

Today
High: 71°
Low: 55°
AM Clouds/PM Sun

Tomorrow
High: 77°
Low: 56°
Partly Cloudy

Sun
High: 76°
Low: 58°
Partly Cloudy

Mon
High: 71°
Low: 55°
Mostly Sunny

Tue
High: 74°
Low: 55°
Mostly Sunny

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USWA0395_f.html

[LSK]

22. how is the humdity out there???

Ideally I have been thinking of moving to Colorado in a few years.

[progressive_realist]

53. Usually moves in lockstep with the temperature

The warmer it is, the drier it is. Right now, humidity is around 80%, but we have a thick layer of low clouds keeping things cool. Those will burn off in another two hours or so, but humidity will drop as well.

One handy proxy of the heat/humidity index in various places is thunderstorm activity. Seattle gets very few thunderstorms.

http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/lightning_map.htm

[hendo]

80. Colorado is hot and dry in the summe.

if you don't like the heat, stay away.

Please, stay away, we are overcrowded enough as it is.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

73. BINGO!

[IDemo]

2. Other

Don't have AC, but don't hate it.

[skooooo]

3. Hi TPB fan!!!

Dope dope, dopity fuckin' dope dope!

[gateley]

4. Never had it before I moved to NC six years ago (from Seattle).

Now I can't live without it. Even more and more places in Seattle are being built with air conditioning (unheard of years ago), so I think I'll need it when I get back there, too.

By the way, this is the first time I've had ceiling fans - and those really help, too. I try to only turn on my AC when I'm in dire need and the weather map uses the word "oppressive".

[trof]

6. Couldn't live without it. So how did we?

My first contact with a/c outside of a movie theater was when I was around 16 and we had a window unit installed in the living room.
At night I was allowed to turn the vent so that it blew into my room.
Heaven.

I guess prior to that we were just...hot.

[Clark2008]

47. Two things:

1. The mere act of entire swaths of people running air conditioning makes the outside air even MORE hot and humid (the condenser outside runs warm/hot, heating the ambient air), thus perpetuating the need for air conditioning.

2. Houses used to be built with breezeways and/or under shaded areas, thus keeping the heat level down

[hfojvt]

82. three and four

open the windows at night, close the shutters during the day.

Also fans, electric fans and hand fans.

Plus, people were often really, really uncomfortable, and some died.

[cobalt1999]

8. Hate it and I live in Florida

So many reasons...

It uses more energy per year than any SUV. I laugh at folks that drive a hybrid but keep their A/C running at 72 degrees 24/7 and think they are being "green". They'd be greener driving a Hummer and turning off the A/C.

It keeps people inside and inactive. Sitting on your porch in the evening actually interacting with your neighbor died with A/C.

Changed house designs to be claustrophobic with little or no cross ventilation, no porches, and windows that don't open.

Caused a boom in people moving to the South and especially condos on the beaches destroying dunes and wetlands.

Best thing that could happen would be for home A/C units to go away.

[Clovis Sangrail]

12. I'm one of those people

I drive an old prius and I pretty much keep my a/c on 24/7, though set at 80 not 72.
If there was something else that took the humidity out of the air I'd use that and deal with the heat.

[cobalt1999]

17. That is your choice and you know what your total energy use is.

I'm pointing out the folks that are sitting around patting themselves on the back, while potentially releasing more CO2 than the SUV driver they are feeling superior to.

It's amazing to me everyone talks about what car you drive, but ignores one of the largest energy uses they have. It doesn't provide transportation, it only makes things more "comfortable".

[El Pinko]

32. Powering A/C off of solar cells is not an impossibility...

It's not the A/C that's evil, it's the energy source so many of us use.

I personally could not live without AC in the summer months, but if I can ever afford it want to get pretty much off the grid with a massive solar outfit.

[lpbk2713]

15. Never had it as a kid .... couldn't do without it now.

Been living in Central Florida all that time. The four days without power
in 2004 when the hurricanes came through were really roughing it, LOL.

[cobalt1999]

20. I too grew up in Florida without it.

The only thing is, I refuse to let myself get used to it.

When building my house I designed it based on the old Florida designs. High ceilings, wrap around porches, lots of windows and cross ventilation, and raised off the ground. Throw in a few ceiling fans and it's not even required in the middle of a Florida summer.

[napi21]

83. I'm with you! I never had A.C until I was 42 and moved from Pgh, Pa. to

Greenville SC. I've had A/C ever since, in Tx & now in Ga. There's no way I could survive without it in the south! I keep the therm. set at 80, but there are some days I can't even go outside! Something happened as I got older. I litterally get light headed and lose my balance when I try to go out when it's so hot.

[The2ndWheel]

16. Those damn consequences of actions

What a utopia we would live in if it weren't for those meddling consequences.

[AndyTiedye]

9. What A/C?

[dipsydoodle]

10. Hardly necessary

in the UK :)

[bikebloke]

11. Have it, but don't use it.

Last year, I used it for a couple hours. Just used the fan. This year, I'm acclimatizing with less fan. That's making a big dent in my electric bill.

By the way, I like the heat. The DC summer swelter is my time of year.

[MadrasT]

13. Well...

I'm in PA... I avoid using it until it gets above 90 degrees... and then I only turn it on because I feel sorry for my cats, who by that time are all lying around playing dead. (It's about then that my husband starts to complain, too.)

If I lived alone, I could live without it entirely.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

14. On Days Like Today It's A God Send.

[tpsbmam]

18. A LOT of people need it for health reasons......

including me. I have MS and do very poorly when it's hot....to the point of passing out. I'm useless when it's hot -- everything gets weak. I've usually lived in old houses and renovating to include central A/C was too expensive, so I made do with room A/C. When I bought my last house I told my realtor central A/C wasn't negotiable -- no central A/C, no interest in the house. And then there's that post-menopause thing that still leaves lingering hot flashes....NOT funny! :grr: Wouldn't be a huge issue though without the MS.

That said, I live in the mountains of NC and I'm in a small grouping of houses in a rural area. It gets pretty cool at night (55 degrees last night). I'm appalled when I go outside at night during the summer -- all of my neighbors' windows are shut tight and their A/C is kept running. Now, i get hotter more easily than most people I know -- when everyone else is putting sweaters on, I'm ripping mine off (when I even bother to wear one). Last night, for example, I had one fan on in the bedroom and the windows open -- woke up this morning with my quilt pulled over me (hell, I throw it off most of the time during the winter....keep the house at about 60* all the time). And there have been many, many days during the summer I can get away without turning on the A/C. I know there are health reasons that may necessitate the A/C even on a cool night, but I know all of my neighbors and they don't have health excuses. So keeping the A/C running like that 24/7 all summer is just wrong IMO!

That said, I've blessed Willis Carrier many times for his health-saving invention!

[cobalt1999]

24. You should be blessing John Gorrie instead.

Or cursing him, depending on how you voted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Gorrie

[tpsbmam]

28. Well I'll be damned! Thanks for the info! n/t

[El Pinko]

34. So people that like or use air conditioning are republicans?

Wow.

[cobalt1999]

37. What are you talking about?

You are reading WAY too much into my post or are projecting something into them that isn't there.

Everyone needs to make their own informed decisions. For some, A/C is a large part of their footprint, for some it's a small part, for others it is something they can do without. Simple.

[tpsbmam]

39. Nah, he's got a point.....probably unintended on your part but....

your post does sort of read like if you're a good progressive you'd be cursing the invention of A/C. As I said, I have suffered without it in the past and am glad I don't have to now. And frankly, I'd still use it about 10-20 days a summer even if I didn't have MS.

[El Pinko]

43. If you lived in South Florida you'd be using it 9 months of the year.

It's over 80 and humid most of the time.

[cobalt1999]

44. Definitely unintended.

Just listing MY reasons for Hating A/C, but I'm definitely not judging anyone on how they live.

It's what I get for posting while listening to long conference call, probably not typing my clearest posts.

Sorry all.

[tpsbmam]

51. Oooooo, bad cobalt! ....

You should be listening to your conference call.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
(Or doing what I do and playing with your dogs, filing your nails, cleaning out your desk, reading email, seeing what science experiments you have in the fridge and wondering what year they're from........)

[El Pinko]

42. You said we should bless or curse the father of air conditioning based on how we voted.

How is that anything other than an implication that the use of air conditioning correlates with conservatism? Or did you mean it's liberal?

In several posts, you've backhanded hybrid drivers for their superior attitudes, but seem to have a rather self-righteous and superior attitude about AC's yourself.

I spent 4 years living in the miserable sweatbox that is Miami, and no amount of ceiling fans, porches, good ventilation and shade trees would have made that climate tolerable to me without air conditioning.

When my building in Brickell Village was torn down to make way for one of the many now-empty "luxury" highrises there, I took it as my cue to get out.



I don't blame anyone for using AC in Florida. It is too hot for most people. But I do think that snowbirds keeping empty houses air-conditioned all summer is ridiculous, and so is setting the thermostat at 72.

[cobalt1999]

46. Simple

If you hate A/C, you'd probably curse the father of A/C.
If you love A/C, you'd probably bless the father of A/C.

A republican may fall into either of those two categories same as a liberal.

As for the hybrid drivers, I was poking at THEIR self-righteousness.

[El Pinko]

49. Ah, voted in the POLL - Stupid me. Gotcha.

I didn't think of it in terms of "voting", just meaningless clicking.

I guess I think of "voting" as kind of a big deal...

[tpsbmam]

38. Geez, I didn't even notice that, EP.....

shit. Guess my voting record is a delusion and I'm a secret Republican.....I'd want A/C for the "oppressively hot" days even without MS.

Have I mentioned lately that I freaking HATE summer? Bugs.....heat.....it's still light out when I go to bed (shut up....I'm pathetic :P).....I should have moved to northern Alaska!

[iamthebandfanman]

19. i love the 70s

what can i say.

im just a product of my environmentally controlled home.
*shrugs*

[Captain Hilts]

21. Hate it but can't live without it. Here in DC I sure can't. nt

[lonestarnot]

23. Not easy but doing without it at home. Swamper is still going strong.

Humidity is well, it's raining in da house. :D

[MilesColtrane]

25. I imagine it's possible that living without, you gradually become acclimated to the temperature.

But, even with that, I don't see how people could sleep at night when the low temp for the day is 80+ degrees like it's been here in Texas lately.
Don't know if I could ever get used to sleeping in a pool of sweat.

Oh, and I'll bet there was lots o' stinkin' going on, especially given that people wore layers of clothes back in the 19th century.
Shirt, vest, and topcoat in the middle of summer? Peeuu!

[azmouse]

26. AZ.... must have a/c.

Couldn't live here with 110 degree temps all summer long and no a/c.
Of course, many areas of the country would struggle without some way to have heat in the winter so I guess every
area has its problems to deal with.

[cobalt1999]

29. Peoplelived in AZ for a long time before A/C.

It's only in the last generation or two that A/C has taken off. Your grandparents generation lived there without it,so no, it is not a must have.

[azmouse]

56. So you'll tell the people in New England that they don't need heat too I guess.

Yes, living here would be unbearable without a/c.
Phoenix didn't take off as a city until a/c became available in the 1950's.

I moved in here in 1990 from PA where I mostly could do without but it was still nice on some very humid days to cool things off in the evening for sleeping.

[El Pinko]

58. I could live without heat, but not without AC in a hot climate.

If it's cold, you can dress warm. Unless you live in the arctic, enough layers can do wonders.

But if It's 90 degrees and 70% humidity, even stripping to your skivvies and sitting in front of a fan all day would not be comfortable, and forget about being able to sleep.

To the contrary, chilly nights are the best for sleeping... The problem is getting out of bed in the morning...

[azmouse]

61. Exactly.

I should be used to the rants some make against a/c but I'm not. They act as though it's so awful to need to be cool but these same folks have no problem at all with those that use tons of fuel to heat in the winter. There is no difference. Both groups need to be comfortable, whether it's warm in the winter or cool in the summer.

I seldom have heat on in the winter and my electric bills are often under $100/month for a 3000 sq ft home... the summer they can be about $350 for the months of June, July and August. It all balances out.

[cobalt1999]

62. We've used fire for heat for 10's of thousands of years.

We've only had A/C for about 70 years.

You tell me which one we can't live without.

[azmouse]

63. Most heat generated today comes from the same power sources as a/c.

Six of one, half dozen of another.

[cobalt1999]

65. It's not about the power source

Almost every city in this country had some type of heating device (regardless of it's power source) for its entire history.

Almost every city in this country did NOT have an A/C unit for it's entire history.

It's amazing to me that a relatively new invention that most of the world does without and WE used to do without, is now considered so important that it's heresy to say "It's not really required".

We as a people are suddenly so dependent on all our modern industrial, energy using comforts, that we think of them as necessities.

JMHO.

[PVnRT]

74. Ever heard of this "global warming" thing?

I can remember when we might have a day or two in August with a heat index above 100 F. It used to be a big deal. Now, it happens in June and enough that it's just a quick, passing mention on the news.

Of course, lots more poor people died during heat waves back then; the rose-colored "good ol' days" glasses must be obscuring that.

[cobalt1999]

81. You're saying because of global warming we need to use even MORE energy?

Seems we should be trying to use less.

Poor & old people die in heat waves today. Living in A/C without acclimating and then going through a power failure when they have to adapt suddenly takes folks out by the dozens. Also, people who suddenly find themselves unable to pay the electric bill and have to turn off the A/C for the first time in 20 years die too.

No rose-colored glasses to see Americans don't like giving up our comforts even if we use more energy per capita than the rest of the world.

You believe it's required; I don't. Since we don't see eye to eye, I'll leave it at that.

[progressive_realist]

41. That may be true for your car

But evaporative "swamp" coolers are much more effective for homes in the desert.

[El Pinko]

45. Some people call swamp coolers air conditioners...

...just sayin ' I grew up in El Paso, and we called them coolers, swamp coolers, air conditioners, whatever. We weren't really concerned with the mechanics of how they worked, just that when they were on, the temp inside the house was bearable.

It could very well be that the poster has a swamp cooler.


PS - you don't need AC in Flagstaff...

[azmouse]

57. Swamp coolers only work effectively when the dewpoint is under 50 degrees.

Over that and it feels like the tropics in the house.
I once had a house with both swamp and a/c. Yes, the swamp cooler did a great job when the humidity was low and it saved a lot of money. But we're are now in the monsoon and it is too humid for the swamps to work.
My current home does't have a swamp cooler but I wish it did.

[Squatch]

84. I walked into an adobe house 2 years ago, S out Tucson

Outside, it was well above 100. Inside, a nice comfy 75 to 80 or so. No air conditioning, but the windows were open.

[Warpy]

27. Somewhere in the middle

I live in the desert southwest. Most homes and businesses here use evaporative cooling systems (swamp coolers) that cool us off by blowing hot, dry, desert air over a saturated pad. Our houses are a little on the humid side, but a good 20 degrees cooler than it is outside. My cost for summer cooling is about fifteen bucks a month.

Fancy houses and some businesses have turned to refrigerated AC. Their bills are astronomical and the air seems canned and stale.

Still, when I lived back in Boston, I slept in a tiny "bonus room" with a window AC unit. It was the only way I could sleep during heat waves.

[melm00se]

30. i use it

and try to run it so the temp gradient between in and out is about 5 degrees, that's enough to make a big difference

[liberal N proud]

31. Both

There are times when it is the greatest thing in the world.

We just put a new furnace and AC in our house. The existing system was 30 years old. Not that efficient.
My wife just had surgery and will be laid up for several weeks, the hottest week of the season. I was able to get a great deal on a 95% efficient 2 stage furnace and AC unit.

She needed to be comfortable laying in bed as she can't move too much for a few weeks.

In this case it is definitely worth it but we lived without AC for 8 years. Even with AC, we will not use it unless the humidity is high. Even then we will keep the temp at 78.

[slackmaster]

33. Would use it occasionally but don't have it

:nuke:

[bullwinkle428]

35. My rant : Please consider installing a programmable thermostat!!

I've got one for my little 2-bedroom condo, and I keep it set to 80° for the 12 hours that I plan to be away from home each day. It actually rarely gets to 80° inside, so electrical usage is minimal to non-existent during the warmest part of the day. The A/C is really only working for a fraction of the day.

It's a very simple conversion from the old OE thermostat, for those who haven't switched...

[MiniMe]

54. Have one, use it

I've had it for years, it actually saves energy because it "learns" when it has to start cooling again, or heating again for that matter in the winter, to get it to the temp when you come home, so you don't kick off extra AC when you change the thermostat.

[Adsos Letter]

36. It was 117* out here a few days ago....

simply pulling the shades doesn't cut it in that kind of weather...

[ZombieHorde]

40. I own an AC, but I am not alowed to use it, so it sits in my closet.

[jus_the_facts]

48. Highs down here in NE La. will be near 100 with heat index of 105 or greater...

...so YES it's necessary...I only have two windows in this apartment and they're heavy storm windows without any way to keep them open without them possibly slamming shut on my kitties...summer before last my A/C quit workin' while it was 105 degrees outside with a heat index of 115. :grr:

[krispos42]

50. I've used it once this year so far

I work nights and my apartment is on the west side of building, so I just turn my fan off and closet he blinds when I go to work to keep the sunlight and hot air out. When I get home, it's cooled off quite a bit and I just turn the fan back on to suck that nice cool air back in.

[Maine-ah]

52. with out it, during the summer, my house would reach

temps of 90 degrees or more. If it was just us, and not the baby, we'd probably go with out. In the winter it's fabulous having the sun on the house all day (when it's out), but with no landscaping, it's damn near torture in the summer.

A love hate relationship for me. I love being cooler, I hate the noise and I hate the electric bill.

[emilyg]

55. God made A/C for me

I live in Georgia - July and August get nasty.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

59. We live in a climate where A/C would be useless most of the year.

Generally speaking, our summers are relatively mild here about 1000ft up in the foothills of SW Washington. Usually, we get a total of about 10 days of really hot weather. The fans are usually enough to take care of that. Being surrounded by giant fir trees also helps.

Consequently, we don't have air-conditioning.

[babylonsister]

60. Where people live has a lot to do with it.

I can't live w/o a/c, but I'm in Houston. It gets turned on by May and off by November.
And it's stinking hot out there.

[The2ndWheel]

66. In a global world, place can't matter

Especially when it comes to equal access to resources.

[babylonsister]

68. OK, come on over and try it w/o Aircon here; you'd melt.

And yes, I'm spoiled, but so is everyone else in this state and similar ones.

[The2ndWheel]

71. No, I know

I'm not saying that I'm not in the same boat in some aspects.

Still, unregulated energy use is the same thing as unregulated capitalism.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

67. Totally agree.

Having lived in really unpleasantly (miserably) hot places like Florida, NJ, Nevada, L.A., and Tawiwan, where A/C is a blessing, (if available), I sympathize with those who are unable to flee to more moderate climates. Which is one of the biggest reasons that we moved here from California.

[Thothmes]

64. Live in Tidewater Virginia,

If it were not for my wifes health condition I would unplug the A/C, fold it up with an ax and put it in the trash. Nothing wrong in running around the house in cutoffs and a t-shirt.

[sudopod]

69. It's the humidity that kill ya.

I know it's cliched, but it's true. We evolved in an arid savannah region.

It probably looked kinda like this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olduvai_Gorge

[Occam Bandage]

70. Try to leave it off. Nice to have on 92+ days.

[watercolors]

72. Hate it, but living in Fl

it is a neccessary evil! We put off turning it on as long as possible. I'd rather have windows open and enjoy the breezes.

[Neshanic]

75. Live in Phoenix, and use it. Swamps don't cut it. I also though in summer turn off the..

hot water heater until October 1st, and do not use the heat EVER in the winter. So maybe that's a wash and placates the AC storm troopers/unnatural living police.

[hogwyld]

87. LOL! The A/C police

I like the storm troopers one also. It's always the holier than thou ones that crack me up. I guess we should all be living in adobe houses with manual pump wells. We can have our choice of biking to work, carpooling with 6 others, or riding horses.

[SidDithers]

76. No option for "Other"?...

Have AC at work, 'cause in a business environment it's necessary.

Have AC at home, but we don't use it, 'cause our basement stays cool, and we have fans instead.

Have AC in the car, and use it all the time, 'cause the sun can make your car FREAKIN' HOT.

Sid

Edit: I should add we're in Toronto, where we really only need AC July and August (though some of June, Sept/Oct can be hot too)

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

77. I never use it where I live

I live along the southern California coast and it's always cool and breezy outside. And I haven't turned on my heater at all during the last few winters because it never gets that cold. I never turn the AC on in my house and none of my old cars have air conditioning. If I lived in the desert and a certain distance from the shoreline, however, I don't think I could survive in mid summer without air conditioning. In the latter case, I would love it and wouldn't be able to do without it.

[AlCzervik]

78. have it, use it. I don't eat meat, i drive basically a clown car, i recycle everything i can

and i have all energy efficient appliances plus i turned my sprinkler system off so my lawn looks like shit. I am using my a/c thank you.

[cherokeeprogressive]

79. Use it when I feel like it, leave it off when I don't. Don't hate it, don't love it.

Don't really think about it much one way or another.

[ljm2002]

85. Never had it until 5 years ago...

...when I moved to the desert.

Scoffed before.

Could not be without it now, for certain months of the year. Not only do temps here reach 110+ routinely this time of year (and as high as 120 at times), but the nights rarely get below 85 and often bottom out at 90-95.

Try to use it reasonably, keep it at a high temp, keep fans running in the upstairs rooms to keep it from kicking in too soon.

[uppityperson]

86. Other. Don't need it, but if lived where it got hot, would need one to survive