sile

I must say, I am surprised when I watch Sky News and they interview people about the heat, that no one ever mentions buying an air conditioner! They just talk about how hot they are! I realize not everyone can afford them, but I would think there would be a run on them in the stores. No mention of that happening. I can tell you if I were there right now, at least one of my rooms would have a/c!

robin1234

It seems wasteful (and environmentally irresponsible) to get air conditioning for discomfort maybe five or ten days a year. Here in far northern NYS, we could use AC right now ... we've had 90+ and humid for nearly a week .. but I'm prepared to grin and bear it rather than buying yet another inefficient electrical appliance for occasional use. I suspect that's how folks in the UK look at it too.

WEBlue

We've recently moved into a new house in New England, and we're trying not to buy AC either, but this week has certainly not made it easy.

All the surfaces inside the house are getting very damp from the humidity, the husband & I are taking several showers a day, and the washing machine is having to handle us changing our clothes a lot.... I don't remember such high humidity where we lived in SE England, though we did have some uncomfortable heat waves. Oh well, it'll all be fine if the weather changes at the weekend & temperatures go down a few degrees. If not...we may break down American-style & buy a window air con unit.

Jerseygirl

You have a lot to learn about the UK.

sile

I'm sure I do.

Pulaski

Personally I think it is much more irresponsible to use your installed AC system for weeks longer in the spring and autumn than is really justifiable. We turn the heat off in the spring, usually before the end of March, and then hold off on running the AC until the heat really picks up, last year we had a gap of about six weeks, and even though it was cold enough to need a little heat into the middle of April, it was almost six weeks after we turned the heat off before we had to resort to using the AC. In the autumn we can usually go from sometime in October into November without heat, though last winter we only made very light use of the heating until mid December.

Back to your point, I wouldn't begrudge someone a small room/ window AC unit to run for a week or two in the summer.

sile

To whom does one have to justify the use of a/c? I see no reason people should not be comfortable in their own homes, not to mention the fact that some have allergies or heart conditions that are helped by a/c and other reasons to use heat. Why should people suffer when a/c and heat are available?

Pulaski

I agree, nobody. I was just responding to Robin who seems to begrudge people a little comfort on the hottest days of the year.

Jerseygirl

Most homes in the UK have a hot water heating system...which heats up radiators...which in turn heats your home. Separate duct work would have to be installed for AC. In the US most homes have forced air heating...and the same duct work is used for the AC. The internal walls of a home are not built wide enough for ductwork to be installed. I remember several years ago Elton John had AC installed in his UK home...but he can afford it. Even then he regarded it as a luxury.

Even when the weather is warm in summer...which is not very often...it usually cools down at night so you sleep with the windows open.

This year's weather in the UK is quite exceptional. A few years ago I spent 7 weeks in the UK (July/Aug/Sept)...I had to buy a coat, sweaters, jeans, shoes because it was so cold.

Pulaski

AC systems in so far as they are installed in the UK are typically ductless "mini-split systems", which recirculate air directly in the room, and pipe the "warm" coolant outside through microbore copper tubing to a compresser and condenser coils (effectively a smaller version of the "split" AC systems in the US, and somewhat similar to the system used in many hotels). I believe that the largest minisplit compressor/ condenser units can support cooler units in upto three rooms.

Google <mini split ac> if you're interested enough to want more information.

BristolUK

Mini splits seem an excellent idea for an apartment or maybe two for a house - depending on layout.

More expensive than window units but I imagine quite a bit quieter.

But our AC use here is continuous for days at a time and other times 'just' afternoon/evening. It gets a lot of use and doubles as the heating system.

It's not yet midday and we're already 90 with humidity giving a 'feels like' of over 100.

In the UK I'm sure a fan would do even with the extra noise. How about one of those fancy ones without the blades?

Just noticed we have a severe thunderstorm warning for this afternoon with heavy rain, wind, hail, toads etc

Jerseygirl

I don't know anyone in the UK who has any type of AC equipment in their home...therefore the above is new to me.

Pulaski

Neither do I, I just know they're available, and as they don't require ductwork, are ideally suited to retrofitting into British houses.

Coincidentally, the totally refurbished apartment we rented in Westchester county, NY had a minisplit AC system, and it was both effective and fairly quiet.

Bluegrass Lass

I hope a/c is something we never have to worry about up in Scotland. I get pretty sick when I get overheated. At a minimum, I'm sure we'll buy some kind of fan to help the few warmish days. I'd love keeping the windows open all the time, if only they had screens on them to keep the bugs out (and our cats in)! In the past, we were only able to crack the windows a little, so our cats wouldn't jump out the 4-storey window. The lack of screens is one of those things that I just don't get about UK homes.

jemima55

Maybe we just don't have very threatening bugs! It's a cultural thing!
BTW, good luck with the move, Bluegrass Lass!