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I recall reading a CNN scrolling ticker headline about the current European heatwave that said ~5% of European homes/offices have AC.

The DOE says 3/4 of American homes have AC, and furthermore, AC uses 6% of all electricity generated in the United States, quite staggering imo and a lot more than I would have expected. Without AC, a lot of America would just be too unbearable to support some major communities.

[0] https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/home-cooling-systems/air-...

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The inside of my apartment peaked at 28°C when it was 40+°C outside. No AC. While that is still a little uncomfortable, I can power through that it it's just a week or two a year and blast a fan, and take a cold shower or two. As for some window-mounted (temporary) AC, no chance, I'd have to get permission to "build" it from the city first, which I won't unless it's a really good permanently installed one (so it cannot fall and hit somebody) aka "major" construction, and then from my landlord too.

I have an AC unit on rollers that has a hose out the window[1] to take the bite out of those hot days. Although I've recorded 38C inside my house... Seems like you insulation is a bit better.

[1] https://www.homedepot.com/b/Heating-Venting-Cooling-Air-Cond...

Those single hose ones are a bit idiotic. They take air from around them (i.e. the room air they just cooled) to transfer heat into and move out. That will then replaced by air from the outside, transporting new heat inside.

Still better than nothing, and cheaper to buy / easier to use, but I'd hope this is one of those kind of tech we'll see replaced by something better rather soon-ish.

There are two hose units that fixes this problem but they are rare and much more expensive, I 3D printed a set to the back inlet of my single hose one to fix this issue. Works wonders, now hot air are forced out instead of drawn in.

Why would you pay to install and maintain AC if we (in Central Europe) literally have 2 weeks of real hot summer (about a month recently though)?

It would literally be a waste of money.

Window mounted AC units are $100 - $200. It sits in a closet except for the 2 months a year that Seattle requires AC. A proper central air system would be overkill, but the small one is worth it.

I wonder if window / removable units factor into the DOE's 75% number. From a real estate recordkeeping perspective, my home does not have AC, despite the previous owner permanently building a window unit into the side of the house. If they're not counted, the real number of American homes with AC could be well north of 75%.

My understanding is that window mounted A/C units do not fit well into typical European windows that swing (instead of slide which I believe is common in US). Or maybe there is some other reason (e.g. permit stuff) for why I don't really see them.

This is what a typical catalog of A/C units looks like in Finland on couple of the largest online retailers:

- https://www.verkkokauppa.com/fi/catalog/10597c/Ilmastointila...

- https://www.gigantti.fi/catalog/kodin-tuotteet/ilmastointi-j...

Most ones are $500+ and out of stock for this summer, though I do see at least one "cheap" €499/$550 unit that is still in stock on the second link (Domair DOM100380). The more expensive ones and split heatpumps seem to be in stock as well.

I had a split A/C / heatpump installed in my apartment ~5 years ago for ~$2000 inc. installation. No permit was needed from the municipal facades committee as it is not visible from the outside (outdoor unit sits on balcony), just a permission from the housing company as a hole had to be drilled for the pipes. Without A/C indoor temperatures of well over 30°C (86°F) were typical for weeks during summers.

Just had a quick look in the UK, and the cheapest decent AC unit I could find was around $450 USD, and that was for a standalone unit (couldn't even find a window mounted one).

> except for the 2 months a year that Seattle requires AC

Huh? 2 months out of the year AC is required? Even if you can not, somehow, stand a week or two of 90-100 degree weather(with NO humidity!) without air conditioning, to months of required AC in Seattle seems like an insane exaggeration.

Lots of modern houses aren't built to function very well in temperature extremes. Windows are too small, don't open wide enough or at all, interior blocks too much airflow, insulation and sealing's too good. Certainly they don't give a damn about which way they're oriented when they plop 'em down, or which rooms are facing which way, or any of that. They're much worse to be in when it's very hot with no AC than an older house. And I write from experience you'll end up on the porch some nights even in those older houses, which ain't exactly fun or restful if you're not used to it and need to get up the next day and at least try to be productive.

Hell, modern interior woodwork and wooden furniture's not meant to take the heat either, for the most part. No tolerances for it, no attention to grain and such.

You're right, I was loose with my language there. It is never "required" in the way that eg Phoenix AZ would demand. It's a convenience. "Desirable" would have been a better word.

Right on.

With new housing built for optimizing energy intake with three-layer windows and 40cm thick insulation etc, slapping a $200 AC unit in a window seems like a dirty hack to put it mildly. It is common with centralized heating systems, so perhaps next step is to adapt centralized cooling systems. Short term I would put my money on moveable outside shades in front of windows, and large green outdoor plants on the balconies. Would also prefer bright colors on roads and building roofs to reflect light instead of turning it into heat.

I live in Scotland, where the winters are long, and at worst we get a couple of weeks a year of a truely horrible heat/humidity combination.

I'm also well travelled, so well used to experiencing the joys of AC in hot countries.

Yet for some reason the thought of buying an AC unit (or even a fan!) has never once crossed my mind!

If I had thought of it though, I would expect the units to be expensive, and installation to be a pretty specialised (and therefore expensive) thing - the number of homes with AC in Scotland could probably be counted on one hand!

It's absolutely fucking horrible just now though, so I might at least look into it...

Brit here, and in 2017 I bought a window venting small ish unit made by Amcor. £199 or so, and worth every penny these last few years. When I don’t use it, it lives in my spare room tucked away and I wheel it to my office for the hot spells.

One thing about human life that is remarkable is the dramatic range of climates we can survive in, compared to other species. Makes us forget that it is entirely possible to have climates that we CAN'T survive in (and even more that we wouldn't thrive in).

> One thing about human life that is remarkable is the dramatic range of climates we can survive in, compared to other species.

We are pretty impressive compared to most other species. One that holds it own, though, is the Yakutian horse [1], a native horse breed of Siberia.

They are kept outside year-round, dealing with temperatures of up to 38℃ (100℉) in the summer, and as low as -70℃ (-94℉) in the winter. That's a range of 108℃ (194℉).

Of course their human owners also handle those temperatures, but they need buildings and clothes and fuel to do it. They couldn't do it standing around naked in a field like the horses can.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakutian_horse

I'm seriously tempted, but at the same time, I remember that it would generate MORE heat outside to cool my bedroom. And the surge in electricity would be probably supplied from burning gas or coal. I feel conflicted.

Anecdotally, Hong Kong is extremely air conditioned (to the point where it gets a little chilly) and the outside is unbearable when I've been during the summer months.

> I remember that it would generate MORE heat outside to cool my bedroom.

That's not really an issue: "For a 2014 paper, Francisco Salamanca and colleagues at Arizona State University modeled the effects of air conditioning on surface air temps in Phoenix. They found a nighttime increase of about 2°F (and nothing much during the day)" [0].

If it is powered by gas or coal though, that wouldn't be good.

[0]: https://www.popsci.com/ask-us-anything-does-using-ac-make-it...

I felt like 6% was quite low.

A/C is one of the highest wattage circuits that homes have, and it runs for a lot more hours than similar circuits (hot water or cooktops/ovens).

Do you mean that it's rated highest, or that you've measured the consumption as the highest? Perhaps it has a high rating for initial inrush currents.

Usually 3-4 kilowatts demand for continuous operation. Depends on sizing obviously.

Dunno if they even have measurable inrush demand from the mains as they have capacitors and can't turn on when they fail.

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