What car did you buy?
Air Conditioning
- Thread starter stfoskey12
- Start date
-
- Tags
- air conditioning
warpus
Sommerswerd asked me to change this
I live by the great lakes where it is not unusual for it to be -20C w/ windchill in the winter, but also not unusual for it to feel like 40+C w/ humidex or even without humidex in the summer.
So yeah, we need snow shovels and air conditioning, because houses in north america are built out of cardboard. Insulation is sprayed randomly into our walls by intern subcontractors on drugs, and you can't really rely on that.
It would be tough for me to fall asleep if I didn't have AC, even with a fan some nights are just so damn humid. It's not really the temperature that's the issue, even though it's definitely a part of the equation. There's so many damn great lakes around here that the humidity really gets to you. It's also a part of the reason why we get so much snow.
So yeah, we need snow shovels and air conditioning, because houses in north america are built out of cardboard. Insulation is sprayed randomly into our walls by intern subcontractors on drugs, and you can't really rely on that.
It would be tough for me to fall asleep if I didn't have AC, even with a fan some nights are just so damn humid. It's not really the temperature that's the issue, even though it's definitely a part of the equation. There's so many damn great lakes around here that the humidity really gets to you. It's also a part of the reason why we get so much snow.
To enjoy less humidity and stay in Canada, the southern prairies of AB, SK and MT are your best bet.
warpus
Sommerswerd asked me to change this
Yeah, but then you have to live in one of the praire provinces.
Let's break it down:
Manitoba - Winnipeg is the coldest large city in Canada, a bunch of my body parts almost froze off there when I visited a friend in January. And in the summer they're overrun by mosquitos
Alberta - The politics of this province are a bit nutty to say the least. I visited a friend in Calgary once and it was an okay city.
Saskatchewan - Living in Saskatoon would be a downgrade from southwestern Ontario and it isn't really close to anything else except Winnipeg.
The only parts of Canada I'd enjoy living in, I believe, are Southwestern ontario, Ottawa area, Montreal, maybe Halifax or some other east coast city, Vancouver, maybe some other part of BC
The humidity levels here in southwestern Ontario are crappy but you sort of get used to it. What's helped me was visiting places where it's even worse. Spending hours walking around such hot and humid places and having to watch my own sun exposure levels has also made me better at gauging how to best navigate the humidity here. I have a decent sense as to how much longer I can reasonably stay outside before I start speaking in tongues and joining cults.
stfoskey12
Emperor of Foskania
What I find funny is whenever I have gone to the Great Lakes region in summer, it has always felt pleasant. Sometimes it's been a little humid, but nothing compared to the Southeastern US. Of course I'm sure it would feel different if I went there in a heatwave.
One of my friends recently got a job in Southwestern Ontario, and from the time I went to Stratford the region seemed nice.
One of my friends recently got a job in Southwestern Ontario, and from the time I went to Stratford the region seemed nice.
amadeus
Bishop of Bio-Dome
No wonder I felt so at home there when I visited. I come from the American version.
2020 Ford Escape, I got it slightly used and it has all the electronics packages and such.
Thorgalaeg
Deity
I live in a big old house, and would be prohibitively expensive for me to cool it all, so I have AC in a couple of rooms only. Sleeping room and dining room. I have two small heat pump machines and have installed Climalit windows in both rooms to avoid cold to scape (or heat to enter to be thermodynamically more precise), I have some solar panels too, enough too feed both AC almost completely, so the cost of operation is close to zero. I am obviating the cost of the AC machines plus installation, solar panels and Climalit windows (pretty expensive) of course. I hope to amortize the whole installation in about 50 years! 
Last edited:
Are you close enough to the ocean for lots of sea breezes? Are your beaches good for swimming?I live in a big old house, and would be prohibitively expensive for me to cool it all, so I have AC in a couple of rooms only. Sleeping room and dining room. I have two small heat pump machines and have installed Climalit windows in both rooms to avoid cold to scape (or heat to enter to be thermodynamically more precise), I have some solar panels too, enough too feed both AC almost completely, so the cost of operation is close to zero. I am obviating the cost of the AC machines plus installation, solar panels and Climalit windows (pretty expensive) of course. I hope to amortize the whole installation in about 50 years!
warpus
Sommerswerd asked me to change this
Minneapolis? Fargo? Duluth? Grand Rapids?
You don't have to narrow it down if you don't want to. Out of all those I've only ever driven through/near/around Grand Rapids
Thorgalaeg
Deity
Like 5 km away of the nearest beach. Some breeze arrives but not like being at the beachfront. It also depends on the reigning wind. The west wind comes blowing in from across the sea
but the east wind brings hell 
Beaches here are pretty amazing and there are plenty. They all are good for swimming, diving, surfing and whatever. Btw, the most famous one is maybe Bolonia beach, with the Roman ruins of Baelo Claudia at the beachfront (not much after having been in Rome itself I suppose, but combined with the landscape it results in an amazing view)
(Shouldn't do so much propaganda, we have plenty of tourists around here already, so it stays between us
)
thetrooper
Misanthrope
- Joined
- May 24, 2004
- Messages
- 9,089
Yes. As someone else said we call them ‘heat pumps’. Last year saw a temperature difference of -20 to +32 deg C. So during winter it’s a ‘heat pump’ and during summer the ‘inverter’ takes over (if necessary). I use the cooling function during the longest summer days if temperature goes above 30 deg C. Norwegian houses are built to conserve heat. Nice in winter, hell on earth if too hot during summer days. We’d like to keep indoor temperatures in the 20-25 deg C range.
Bestbank Tiger
Deity
I cool my house with radioactive monkeys.
amadeus
Bishop of Bio-Dome
Between Minneapolis and Duluth.
Grand Rapids, the only one I have been to is the one in Michigan, home of Gerald Ford International Airport! It was really small, not that I have any complaints about its convenience.
Fun Gerald Ford fact: he was the only U.S. President to have neither been elected as president or vice president, being approved by the Senate after the resignation of Spiro Agnew.
I got his autograph when he made a trip to Albuquerque.
Voidwalkin
Emperor
- Joined
- Jun 12, 2024
- Messages
- 1,696
Oh yeah, 10pm, 11pm is easily the warmest time of day indoors. Buildings just trap heat and get progressively warmer the longer the sun is on them. 10pm in summer is the worst consequently.
7pm to 9 will really get it going. Sun is at an angle, goes through the windows(rather than hit the usually temp insensitive roof from the top), heats everything up quick, and it takes till about 2 or 3 for it to disperse.
Last edited:
amadeus
Bishop of Bio-Dome
Neat! Too bad he was eaten by wolves. He was delicious.
Norway is my go-to example when I see people, particularly North Americans, claim that heat pumps don't work in very cold conditions.
(It averages like -5 minimums here in winter, but people don't accept that Australia has cold weather, and will just claim the extra degrees below zero makes all the difference wherever they are. So an indisputably cold place like Norway is a better example)
Last edited:
Bestbank Tiger
Deity
It was a senseless tragedy.
warpus
Sommerswerd asked me to change this
I had a bit of an AC problem a number of years ago. My (walk out) basement was always like 5 degrees colder than the main floor, which was 1-2 degrees colder than my upstairs bedroom, which was 1-2 degrees (C) colder than the office and my roommate's room (now home library)
My issue was likely that the insulation is crap, or at least that was one of the issues. Initially I thought I need a new AC, but when I got it serviced the guy (who I trust) told me that it's still fairly good and is doing a good job cooling and will last for a number of years. So I gave up looking for a new AC and did this instead:
1. Bought a large ceiling fan and installed it upstairs, at the top of the stairs. In the summer it pulls cold air upstairs and in the summer it pushes warm air down.
2. Bought thermal insulated blackout curtains for all the windows that get the most sun, as well as a number of other ones. Now most of my windows have these curtains up.
3. Bought an ecobee smart thermostat and sensors for the 3 upstairs rooms as well as the basement.
4. I got a new furnace, which means I have a brand new blower fan moving the air around, even when the AC isn't running.
5. Bought woozoo fans that sit beside the AC exhaust in the 3 rooms upstairs, they help distribute the cold air in these rooms. They were on sale at costco and they're just great (and quiet)
6. I got my ducts cleaned. Am honestly not sure if this helped at all or really even did anything, but they hadn't been cleaned out in a while.
These days I have a 1-3 degree difference between any of the rooms in the house, usually closer to 1.5 difference or even less. The AC runs less frequently and the whole house seems to be keeping cool longer and more efficiently. My hydro bills are also down.
The thermal blackout curtains seem to have helped out the most, but I could just be imagining it. They seem to have had the largest impact out of all these things I did, although the ceiling fan seems to also be doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The smart thermostat, who knows, but it claims that my house is a decent amount more energy efficient than it used to be. The new furnace blower fan also probably does a decent amount.
Next on my list was to get the attic properly insulated, I think that the attic basically heats up during the day and retains all that heat, so the upstairs has a tougher time cooling down. Or something like that? My coworker got her attic re-insulated and claims her AC is a lot more effective now, especially upstairs. They found mould up there though, and she had to pay like $15,000 to get all that done. I don't want to spend anywhere near that amount, so I haven't even gone up there to take a look. For now I am happy with the upgrades, they seem to be doing a good job.
My issue was likely that the insulation is crap, or at least that was one of the issues. Initially I thought I need a new AC, but when I got it serviced the guy (who I trust) told me that it's still fairly good and is doing a good job cooling and will last for a number of years. So I gave up looking for a new AC and did this instead:
1. Bought a large ceiling fan and installed it upstairs, at the top of the stairs. In the summer it pulls cold air upstairs and in the summer it pushes warm air down.
2. Bought thermal insulated blackout curtains for all the windows that get the most sun, as well as a number of other ones. Now most of my windows have these curtains up.
3. Bought an ecobee smart thermostat and sensors for the 3 upstairs rooms as well as the basement.
4. I got a new furnace, which means I have a brand new blower fan moving the air around, even when the AC isn't running.
5. Bought woozoo fans that sit beside the AC exhaust in the 3 rooms upstairs, they help distribute the cold air in these rooms. They were on sale at costco and they're just great (and quiet)
6. I got my ducts cleaned. Am honestly not sure if this helped at all or really even did anything, but they hadn't been cleaned out in a while.
These days I have a 1-3 degree difference between any of the rooms in the house, usually closer to 1.5 difference or even less. The AC runs less frequently and the whole house seems to be keeping cool longer and more efficiently. My hydro bills are also down.
The thermal blackout curtains seem to have helped out the most, but I could just be imagining it. They seem to have had the largest impact out of all these things I did, although the ceiling fan seems to also be doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The smart thermostat, who knows, but it claims that my house is a decent amount more energy efficient than it used to be. The new furnace blower fan also probably does a decent amount.
Next on my list was to get the attic properly insulated, I think that the attic basically heats up during the day and retains all that heat, so the upstairs has a tougher time cooling down. Or something like that? My coworker got her attic re-insulated and claims her AC is a lot more effective now, especially upstairs. They found mould up there though, and she had to pay like $15,000 to get all that done. I don't want to spend anywhere near that amount, so I haven't even gone up there to take a look. For now I am happy with the upgrades, they seem to be doing a good job.
