Comments on: The Benefits of Deprivation: 10 Days Without Air Conditioning and Counting! Plus Tips for Staying Cool http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158 'Tis not a crime to pinch a penny Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:50:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: NtJS http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1787 NtJS Sat, 04 Oct 2008 02:07:29 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1787 Amen! I've been saying this for years, but there would always be some joker who thinks his house is closer to the equator or that his part of the country is just hotter and more humid than anywhere else. "Nope! Can't be done here!" Sure buddy, you can pay the bill - I know better. We bought a house a year and a half ago that has no A/C. Granted we're north of the continental divide, but people still think we're nuts for not installing A/C and constantly look to solve this great problem that really isn't so. cheers! Amen! I’ve been saying this for years, but there would always be some joker who thinks his house is closer to the equator or that his part of the country is just hotter and more humid than anywhere else. “Nope! Can’t be done here!” Sure buddy, you can pay the bill – I know better.

We bought a house a year and a half ago that has no A/C. Granted we’re north of the continental divide, but people still think we’re nuts for not installing A/C and constantly look to solve this great problem that really isn’t so.

cheers!

]]> By: Moments of Fame « Funny about Money http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1781 Moments of Fame « Funny about Money Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:16:48 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1781 [...] out ten ways college students can score free food. Our Four Pence Worth has a nice rumination on doing with air-conditioning, leading one to reflect that many a generation before ours survived just fine without chilling down [...] [...] out ten ways college students can score free food. Our Four Pence Worth has a nice rumination on doing with air-conditioning, leading one to reflect that many a generation before ours survived just fine without chilling down [...]

]]> By: Funny about Money http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1780 Funny about Money Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:03:23 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1780 Interesting. Here in the low desert, I tend to think it's not really hot till the outdoor temperature reaches 110. During the months when temperatures drop into the 80s or (yay!) 70s at night, you can usually leave the AC off until it gets to be around 100 degrees outdoors. Air conditioning contractors will tell you this makes your unit work harder because it has to run longer to cool the place down, thereby unnecessarily running up your bill, but I have found that this isn't true. Or if the AC in fact does have to run a little longer at first, it's not enough to override the savings you get from leaving the thing off until it starts to get uncomfortable in the house. I like the whole idea of using a window unit. My plan for next summer is to install one in the bedroom wall (the only window in there is a sliding door) and turn off the AC in the rest of the house at night. I suspect that setting the thermostat to turn on the central system just before dawn will keep from heat-saturating the house when nighttime temps are high. Another coping strategy, if you work at home: do as much of your work as you can early in the morning (I start at 5:00 a.m.) and then sleep through the hottest part of the day. Interesting. Here in the low desert, I tend to think it’s not really hot till the outdoor temperature reaches 110. During the months when temperatures drop into the 80s or (yay!) 70s at night, you can usually leave the AC off until it gets to be around 100 degrees outdoors.

Air conditioning contractors will tell you this makes your unit work harder because it has to run longer to cool the place down, thereby unnecessarily running up your bill, but I have found that this isn’t true. Or if the AC in fact does have to run a little longer at first, it’s not enough to override the savings you get from leaving the thing off until it starts to get uncomfortable in the house.

I like the whole idea of using a window unit. My plan for next summer is to install one in the bedroom wall (the only window in there is a sliding door) and turn off the AC in the rest of the house at night. I suspect that setting the thermostat to turn on the central system just before dawn will keep from heat-saturating the house when nighttime temps are high.

Another coping strategy, if you work at home: do as much of your work as you can early in the morning (I start at 5:00 a.m.) and then sleep through the hottest part of the day.

]]> By: Mary@SimplyForties http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1774 Mary@SimplyForties Wed, 01 Oct 2008 19:22:35 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1774 I went a month without a/c this summer for the very same reason. I also live in the desert and it was tough. I sure loved my electric bill though! One other tip that served me well was to put a small window unit in the room where I spend most of my time. I would turn it on for an hour or two around 5p, when all the heat of day was stored up in the house. It really helped make the situation a bit more bearable and used a lot less electricity than cooling the whole house. Luckily I discovered the problem with my a/c was in the thermostat. I replaced my old thermostat with a programmable one, which saved some money too! I went a month without a/c this summer for the very same reason. I also live in the desert and it was tough. I sure loved my electric bill though! One other tip that served me well was to put a small window unit in the room where I spend most of my time. I would turn it on for an hour or two around 5p, when all the heat of day was stored up in the house. It really helped make the situation a bit more bearable and used a lot less electricity than cooling the whole house. Luckily I discovered the problem with my a/c was in the thermostat. I replaced my old thermostat with a programmable one, which saved some money too!

]]> By: Festival of Frugality #145-The Gratitude Edition | Value For Your Life http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1765 Festival of Frugality #145-The Gratitude Edition | Value For Your Life Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:47:40 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1765 [...] Our Fourpence Worth shares lessons learned in The Benefits of Deprivation: 10 Days Without Air Conditioning and Counting! Plus Tips for Staying Co... [...] [...] Our Fourpence Worth shares lessons learned in The Benefits of Deprivation: 10 Days Without Air Conditioning and Counting! Plus Tips for Staying Co… [...]

]]> By: No Debt Plan http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1714 No Debt Plan Tue, 23 Sep 2008 19:44:42 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1714 We did this back in May, for an entire month. It was brutal toward the end as things heated up. We keep ours off of auto so that at night when it cools off, it doesn't kick on. We did this back in May, for an entire month. It was brutal toward the end as things heated up. We keep ours off of auto so that at night when it cools off, it doesn’t kick on.

]]> By: Uncommonadvice http://pecuniarities.com/the-benefits-of-deprivation-10-days-without-air-conditioning-and-counting-plus-tips-for-staying-cool/1158/comment-page-1#comment-1665 Uncommonadvice Thu, 18 Sep 2008 11:27:33 +0000 http://pecuniarities.com/?p=1158#comment-1665 I applaud you for recognising a luxury, where others just take things for granted. Two years ago my heating packed in but I was too skint to get it fixed. We survived that winter and the next one with no central heating whatsoever. I was really surprised, but in reality all it meant was "layering up"; nothing too extreme. Once again - well done. I applaud you for recognising a luxury, where others just take things for granted. Two years ago my heating packed in but I was too skint to get it fixed. We survived that winter and the next one with no central heating whatsoever. I was really surprised, but in reality all it meant was “layering up”; nothing too extreme.

Once again – well done.

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