apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Being 'green' month and all, I find it a little strange to see a post that declares that AC is a fact of life in Los Angeles. Dependence on AC is a legacy of bad building design and a strange mentality that altering our living environment for a few degrees of comfort is acceptable, regardless of the cost to the natural environment. Of course, I say this from the relative comfort of a breezy, top-floor apartment in West Hollywood, where I have only turned my AC unit on once over the course of two summers. If I was living in the Valley I might have another opinion entirely... but seriously, learning to live without AC is going to become a necessity.

Come to my second floor apartment in Tarzana on one of those 116 degree days.

Yeah, there's no question that different cooling strategies are going to be important in coming years, especially in the way buildings are built, etc.

That being said, people can and do *die* without air conditioning. Especially in the more hostile climates. It's most visible in countries that don't have as much AC - remember the 100 dead in Paris, the many hundreds dead in Hungary? And these are just the most recent ones that I can recall.

We all need to make sacrifices of luxury comfort - turning up the AC temp, turning down the heating temp - but that doesn't mean condemning *all* modern heating/cooling, which has saved and enriched countless lives.

Right on, Kaete!

I actually live pretty near the beach, so you'd think we'd have a pretty decent breeze going at our apartment. Not so. I don't know if it's the placement of windows or our lack of shade-providing trees, but our place can be pretty unbearable, even when it's only in the mid-seventies outside. Pair this with the fact that our crummy windows barely open, and I don't feel too bad about caving in and buying an AC unit. We tried fans first, I promise. They just moved the hot air around. I feel a little better because it's an Energy Star product. Also, just about every other inch of our apartment is green (CFLs, no paper towels, we recycle like maniacs, compost, etc).

We put on extra sweaters and use blankets in the winter to keep heating down, but we just couldn't do without our AC. I hope that my other efforts offset our one anti-green indulgence.

I think that it's pointless to "hide" a necessary item like an air conditioner. First we have the comforts of modern living and then we have to hide the fact that we have them because someone decided they don't match the decor? If you don't want to see a T.V., air conditioner, etc. Don't get one.

Regarding the use of air conditioners, I've noticed there are two kinds of people. Those who can't live without air conditioners in summer and who put up with as much cold as possible in winter, and those who can live without an air conditioner but crank up their heat in winter. We all have different tolerances and (hopefully) all do our best to consume less. Let's not judge each other's needs.

I don't think you want to put a screen or anything in front of an air conditioning unit. It affects the units ability to push the air out into the space. I think it greatly reduces it's effectiveness.
- MM

People die in Chicago every year without air conditioning. They even set up "cooling centers" during the hottest days for residents without air conditioning. It's not easy to go without - must be easy to say so, however, from a breezy, top floor apartment in West Hollywood.

Yesterday is the first time I've turned my AC on. I have a very breezy apartment shaded by a large, old, oak tree in central Florida. When i leave my front door open to my porch, the air flows absolutely beautifully.

BUT I am in Florida and its really hot and humid.

I'm not the greenest person but I don't think the AC is my major carbon contribution - especially when I use it maybe 4 months out of the year for like... 5 hours a day?

thats really creative thinking "decorating Air Conditioner" and really we can hide it.Dont forgot Air Conditioner Maintenance while you decorating it.
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