Who here doesn't have Air Conditioning?

[YellowRubberDuckie]

And Why?
I would probably be sick without mine alot. I'd get used to it, sure, but I have to cold in order to sleep.
Duckie

[datasuspect]

1. air conditioners use plurbyndenum

a metal mined by aborigines in the third world.

they call it the "blood metal."

no way will use it in light of the human rights abuses that take place to procure this substance for industry.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

4. Are you serious?

[Wcross]

28. No, he is not serious.

Air conditioners DO contain copper which is mined by methheads, usually by ripping apart a commercial unit that costs 10,000 for the 100 dollars of copper it contains.

[trof]

14. Plus it has a half-life of 30,000,000,000 years.

[CreekDog]

2. i don't and don't usually need it (i'm near the ocean)

but we do have a handful of hot days, we've been over 100 twice this year and those times, it's miserable.

[mdmc]

3. I didn't for a while, but the heat made my girlfriend sick

we have three in our townhouse. We use one at a time (one in the bedroom, on in the tv room, and one in the kitchen).

[taterguy]

5. People that don't live where it gets hot

My inlaws don't have AC. They live in the mountains.

[datasuspect]

7. maybe everyone should move to the mountains in the summertime

it's their choice to live in natchitoches, louisiana in august after all.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

9. I really wish I could move to Northern Canada or Alaska.

I would love to never have to use the AC. I hate the heat, and really believe I was born in the wrong place.
Duckie

[YankeyMCC]

6. I don't

originally it was just my natural cheapness and stoic nature, in that I generally seem to have a higher tolerance of discomfort than most when it comes to heat or cold. But that reluctance to spend money on something that isn't even going to be used all that much where we live has been reinforced by my growing awareness and concern for the environment and the need to reduce our energy usage and in fact be more connected to the places we live in.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

8. Makes sense.

But I think if you smartly use your ac you can still be environmentally friendly. Like before my mom's house was destroyed by the flood, we'd keep the house dark, used the ceiling fans and it would keep the electric bill down. And we would be more mindful of what lights were on during the summer.
Duckie

[YankeyMCC]

10. I try not to be self-righteous about it

(not that I think you were accusing me of that) but I think people do often take it that way.

Nothing wrong at all for people who need it (for medial reasons or due to age, whatever) or live in places that it gets very hot. The problem is that once a useful device like a/c is invented and someone finds a way to make it "affordable" everyone uses it and they use it even when they don't really need to like for people who live in places that get very hot, they should have it certainly but maybe they don't have to use it every hot day, that's all moderation and conservation when and when it's possible and safe.

It's like that gadget for opening jars. It actually a very good invention for people with arthritides for example but it's marketed to everyone including perfectly healthy people who should not have such trouble opening jars or at least be able to put up with a difficult jar now and then.

[MorningGlow]

11. We don't

Because it would cost a small fortune for central air, and we'd need too many window units to properly cool the whole house. We do have one window unit in MG Jr.'s room but don't use it very often. It just doesn't get hot enough, for too long, here--a few 90-degree days, but 80 percent of the year it's "fuckin' freezing".

[YellowRubberDuckie]

13. I didn't realize the weather was like that where you are....

That's good to know. Thanks!
Duckie

[MorningGlow]

16. Oh yeah

Two seasons: ragweed and winter.
:rofl:

[Wcross]

29. Hey, I grew up in Fairport.

Air conditioning really isn't needed in that area. You are right about the weather, for the most part it is cold. I really miss the area but I am afraid Rochester is a dying city. The job situation isn't really great & the taxes are a killer.

[MorningGlow]

47. No kiddin'!

Well, howdy former neighbor! :hi:

It isn't looking good here, that's for sure. Imploding lots of buildings at Kodak Park, closing and tearing down Midtown Plaza, etc., isn't very heartening!

How long ago did you move away (and where to)?

[Wcross]

51. I moved away in 1981, parents still live in the house I grew up in.

I visit every year, most of my family is there. I finally settled down in Tennessee. I would have loved to have stayed but I see it as a dying "company town" with a very high cost of living. I hope the new "underground bus depot" works out better than the "fast ferry" to Toronto. It seems as if people in that town are eager to spend money they don't have for things they don't need.

I miss a LOT of things though. The real change of seasons, a zweigle's white hot, REAL pizza from T.K's pizzeria, a great sub sandwich from any number of independent stores & the great outdoor recreational opportunities.

[MorningGlow]

53. There's a lot of flailing going on

It astounds me how our local government officials have no clue about how to revitalize the city, so they grasp at straws, relying on the weirdest plans to really give the place a kick in the seat of the pants. The fast ferry was a ridiculous debacle (which I had pegged from the first mention); now Renaissance Square in the heart of downtown is supposed to be the Next Big Thing (that we waste money on). To Rochesterians' credit, they're a lot more cautious and skeptical than the gov't folks, but we all get dragged along as the officials "insist". They just haven't figured out that they should capitalize on what succeeds organically (like the East End--that just "happened", so they capitalized on it with the East End Fest) instead of trying to force something to succeed out of thin air.

But you're right--there are a lot of great things about this area that we appreciate. I learned that when I moved away for a few years--it took some time and distance for me to realize it. (My brother lives in California, and when we visit we have to bring an extra suitcase full of Zweigle's!)

[fight4my3sons]

12. I don't.

I don't think they are necessary where I live (coastal Maine). It has been warm the past few days, but nothing a fan can't take care of. I like the heat. I grew up in upstate NY and West Texas where it got pretty hot. The kind of heat that requires some people to have an air conditioner. Air conditioners tend to make my sinuses hurt though and I so prefer a fan. I'm not fond of the cold - I know, weird that I live in Maine.

[JonLP24]

15. Air Conditioning is a must in Arizona However

when I lived in Washington state most places didn't have AC's and you never needed one even in the summer time it doesn't get hot enough, maybe in Yakima county but up in the Seattle and Vicinity area it doesn't hot that often. But to answer your question I do and so does every person I know has AC

[YellowRubberDuckie]

17. Isn't an AC required to live in the desert?

Wouldn't you just melt if you didn't have one?

[JonLP24]

19. Probaly

I don't know the officially but it would make sense, without AC you'd just continue to sweat and sometimes you can't turn your AC above 80 or so, if you do you end up 2x'ing your bill. So even then it's not cool enough. I live in the East valley of Phoenix which is part of the Sonoran Desert. Important to eat and drink water regardless of whether you have AC or not.

[jobycom]

25. My in-laws have roof evaporators instead of ACs in Albuquerque.

No idea what that meant, though the FIL gave me long explanations of them.

[Kali]

44. phx and yuma, yeah

but there are still a lot of homes in Tucson that only have swamp coolers.

I'm at 4.500 feet in Cochise county. Mid day in June can be pretty nasty but we don't have AC and get along ok.

[DarkTirade]

18. I don't and it's been driving me nuts the last few months.

[GOPisEvil]

20. Madrone doesn't.

But then she lives in Washington State where it isn't needed.

You CAN live without it here in Texas, but you have to have a house with 10-foot ceilings, ceiling fans and transom windows over the doors. Even then, it's tolerable. Barely.

I couldn't sleep without a/c either.

[nemo137]

21. Theoretically, but its useless.

We had a spate of minifloods here, and water got in the ducts and got all moldy. So, no AC or death from allergies and smelling like butt.

[elocs]

22. I have one in the window in the bedroom, but have not used it this year.

One reason is because when I got a big new bed last fall they had to put the head board virtually up against the air conditioner, but primarily because we have only had 1 day here so far where it got up to 90. I've got lots of windows and fans and it has been decent so far.

The truth is that you can get more comfortably warm in the winter as opposed to cool in the summer. In the winter when you go outside you can wear enough clothes to keep you warm, but in the summer when it is super hot you could take them all off and still be miserable.

[GreenPartyVoter]

23. We have one but have not gotten it out of the shed in years. We got it during the heatwave of

'98. We had a brand new baby and this trailer can get up into the high 90s and even higher. In fact the baby's "room" (read closet with a teensy window in it) was so hot and stifling we opted to let him sleep in the living room under the AC.

Since then we have just used fans and suffered through the worst of the heat during the day and been grateful at night that we only live in Maine and not somewhere _really_ hot.

[u4ic]

24. I don't

but I don't need it, either; we don't get hot summers, and I live in a basement (technically half-basement) apartment. It's naturally cool.

I've become something of a reptile in my old age - I now prefer the heat. It's mid-80's today, and I feel like I'm finally coming to life. :woohoo:

[ironflange]

40. Mid 80's? In Edmonton?

Oh, wait, you're using the Kelvin scale, right?



Howzitgoin', kid? Long time no see!

[u4ic]

55. Are you just jealous because you're under a foot of snow?

Or has the weather changed that much in the past ten minutes? :P

It got to 30 today. :woohoo: It'll probably be the last bit of summer we have, though. :(


I'm doing good, but very busy! I'm off to the west coast this week for a vacation.

I got your email, but am way behind on all my personal correspondence. How are you?

[jobycom]

26. All the cool people in the South have them.

[texanwitch]

27. We have AC but we could live without it.

We went without for two weeks, but we have a old house in a big yard.

With the windows open and window fans we do OK.

If it was just me I would try to live without it, but other people live here.

[NV Whino]

30. Don't have it. Don't need it...

except for about 5 days a year, and generally those are not consecutive days.

My air conditioning is opening windows at both ends of the house and/or sitting on the deck.

[Wcross]

31. It was 98 degrees today with 50% humidity.

It would be uncomfortable to not have it here. I have a very small house so it only takes a window unit to cool the whole house. What energy I waste to cool this place in the summer is offset by the mild winters where heating the home is only needed two or three months of the year.

[zanne]

32. I have a window AC in one bedroom...

I'm often stuck in there during heat waves. The heat actually makes me sick. I guess I'm living in the right part of the country.

[greendog]

33. No AC. No fan.

I live in NW Montana. I'm still putting on a jacket most mornings. :)

[YellowRubberDuckie]

35. I'm freaking jealous.

I am longing for the fall/winter.
Duckie

[greendog]

54. No shortage of winter up here.

8 months worth. :crazy:

[sarge43]

34. No AC, ceiling fans in all the rooms.

So far in central NH really don't need it. Besides, both the spousal unit and I hate it.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

36. Ceiling fans really do save a ton of energy for people in the south in the summer.

Some people think they are just tacky, but in the south, you really need them, I believe.
Hell, knowing me, I could live in Northern England and would still have ceiling fans. I love them. :evilgrin:
Duckie

[sarge43]

43. I love them, too.

Because we have to have the house buttoned up tight during much of the year, it's lovely have to windows open and fans on, especially at night. I love going to sleep to the sounds and scents of summer -- crickets, frogs, owls, the lilacs and roses. The anticipation keeps me from going barking mad toward the end of March.

[femmocrat]

37. Our schools aren't air-conditioned. It's miserable.

We go back in mid-August and I'll drip with sweat until Halloween. Then again from Easter to the last day of school. I wear capris and sleeveless tops 4 months out of the school year. I gave all my sweaters to the Thrift shop!

They pack 27-28 kids into a hot stuffy classroom and expect them to learn boring subject matter. It's inhumane.

I'm in SW PA. I do have central AC at home. I get migraines from the heat and humidity. Can't stand it.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

38. Those idiots.

Window units are not expensive enough for them to not have them. Kids will start passing out.
Duckie

[femmocrat]

39. I agree!

But... we have Astro-turf in our newly renovated football field!

It's all about priorities, I guess. :banghead:

[KamaAina]

50. Best argument yet against year-round education

Few public school buildings are air-conditioned, precisely because they weren't meant to be occupied from June through August.

[ironflange]

41. Not here

It can get a little warm upstairs, but ceiling fans can take care of it. I just put one up in iodelta's room today; it's a very nice one.

[BuddhaGirl]

42. we don't

but we live in the Bay Area (southern Marin county) - lotsa fog here! :-)

[bixente]

45. We don't

Summer is by far the most undesirable season in my eyes.

That will change this year though - I have a handy special illness and some group will very kindly give us one.

I was lucky - when I was admitted to hospital, it was summer time. They do have air conditioning. It's now winter. I have been released.

[ThomCat]

46. I have one I can't use.

The knob broke off so I can't turn it on. I haven't been able to find a replacement knob, and I don't want to buy a new AC because of a broken knob.
x(

Even if I did buy a new one, in my building, ACs have to be installed by the super in AC vents built into the wall in each room. You're not allowed to put them in the window. So i'd have to pay him to remove the old one, and then pay him to install the new one.

It's not worth it. I'll survive with a fan. I have AC at work.

[mikeytherat]

59. Broken knob? Get thee a pair of needle-nose pliers!

Best broken knob replacement ever.

mikey_the_rat

[applegrove]

48. I don't. I'm in a basement apartment and it is nice and cool all summer long.

[KamaAina]

49. Right here.

Not sure it'd be allowed in the condo anyway. In any event, the landlords would have apoplexy, seeing as how electric is included in the rent (the building was built as vacation rentals, so the units aren't individually metered).

Then again, somewhat counterintuitively, it doesn't really get all that hot out here. If it touches 90, it's only for a day or two, and in my experience (seven and one-half years), not much over that.

[fizzgig]

52. i don't

my house is well-shaded and, even though it gets into the upper 90s a lot in the summer (i'm in n. colorado), we just have a ceiling fan and a bunch of window fans throughout the house, so we get a nice cross breeze going. if i lived somewhere with high humidity, however, that would be a completely different story.

i will say that i wish i had a/c in my car...it's like a damn oven in there from early june through late september x(

[RushIsRot]

56. I haven't used A/C in years. And I lived in Louisiana. I used a

window fan when the attic fan died. Now, I live in NW Arkansas and use an attic fan with which I cool the house every evening plus I use a box fan to blow cool air at me, and then I do not open the doors very much except to let my dogs out until the next evening. Life is good.

Right now, the attic fan is sucking in coolish outside air. I LOVE attic fans!

[harmonicon]

57. I don't

It just doesn't get all that hot, and it's always at least a bit cool at night. I honestly don't know where I would buy an air conditioner in this country (UK) - they don't seem to be very common, apart from in offices and things.... I don't even think a US-style window air conditioner would fit in any of my windows. My shared office, which I rarely use, is air conditioned, but it has yet to be hot enough that I would go somewhere just to cool down.

[mwooldri]

58. My parents, and my sister...

... but they live in England anyway...

Flying over on Wednesday (whee!!) ... comparing forecast, so I know what to pack. Surprise surprise, it's only going to be 10 degrees cooler (fahrenheit that is) than it is here in NC. So I will need to pack my shorts. But them 10 degrees make the difference between AC required (as here in NC it usually is) and very much optional (which most of the time in England it is).

Mind you when growing up we were one of the few houses with AC and on the occasions it got real hot it was very pleasant staying indoors.

Mark.

[malta blue]

60. No AC in my home.

It has been really hot the last few days, but we have managed.

I would probably be doing a heck of a lot better with my asthma and allergies if we did have it, but I probably could not afford to run it anyway.... :shrug:

[raccoon]

61. I would add, and if you live in a cold area, it doesn't count. :-) nt

[1gobluedem]

62. I don't

I live in SE Michigan and it can get hot and sticky but my house is very shady and I have ceiling fans and tower fans that usually do the trick. I might have one or two really uncomfortable nights but that's it. And I love the low electricity bill in the summer!