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Keeping Your Apartment Cool in the Summer Time?
uvince asks: "Sure, the air is on all day at work, but when you are at home and it warms up (as the west coast is now) what do you do when a fan just won't cut it? Do you install a swamp cooler, set out a standing air conditioner, or install some air conditioner that fits in the window. How can I keep my apartment, or at least my bedroom cool? Anyone have any creative, green ideas?"
turn off your fucking computer!
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
If humidity is really low in your area (which, if you live on the coast, is probably NOT the case!) A simple evaporative cooler can run with a supply of water and very little (or possibly no) electricity.
The idea is that water has to absorb heat form it's surroundings when it evaporates, like sweat absorbs heat from the body. But if there's no other source of heat, it will absorb it from the air. The water doesn't even need to be all that cold, though cold water will obviously absorb more heat.
All you need is some way to expose the water to air. One suggestion would be to build an "evaporator" out of brown corregated carboard, use a small pump to trickle water over it and a small fan to draw air through it.
If you can build a tall "stack" and place the evaporator at the top, you can take advantage of natural convection to eliminate the fan. (Cold, denser air drops down stack, pulling in more air through the evaporator)
If you can get the materials just right, and/or have a pressurized source of water (house main), you can take advantage of capillary action/mains pressure to eliminate the pump.
Silent and green. Too bad it doesn't work in humid regions!
=Smidge=
preferably with a hot chick who will invite you over to spend the night at her (air-conditioned) apartment!
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
swampies can cause fungal growth if you dont clean offen, (high temp + humidity)
I've seen ads on TV for breath mints that apparently turn everything in their vicinity to ice. I'm not sure I understand the science behind this phenomenon, but maybe with a little experimentation you might be able to harness this strange power for your own needs.
Good luck!
- Keep your windows open at night, close them first thing in the morning.
- Don't cook with your oven range (Probably not a problem for most slashdot readers)
- Keep doors shut to isolate heat transition from room to room
- Turn off all PDP-11's in the house.
If you need an air conditioner and can afford to keep it on all the time, ignore previously mentioned solutions and just keep it cranked.However, angels will cry, baby jesus will be vexed, and your PG&E bill will be orbital.
http://www.remix.net/
My Athlon workstation noticed the heat before I did. It crashed three times in one day. Wasn't the OS (LeeNux for heaven's sake), couldn't be MY code, must be the hardware. Cracked the box and sure enough dust bunnies camping out all over, including the cooling fins under the cpu fan. All was well after a simple vacuum, but it got me thinking, at 90F, it isn't even hot yet for the Central California Valley.
I hate using the AC, but most recent architecture around here assumes that you will use it. There is an earth burmed home a short distance from here. Makes perfect sense in this climate.
First entomology, then virology, and finally bioinformatics systems. Bugs follow me wherever I go.
or get an apartment with AC.
Naw, AC is too much of a troll. Can you imagine living with him? Of course the frost piss will cool things down somewhat.
Your credit card information wants to be free.
We're purchasing the Kenmore 15,100 BTU Room Air Conditioner for $380. This is why I like it:
* Highest BTU A/C that runs on 115 volts
* Isn't a no-name brand
* Is cheap.
I researched a *lot* of a/c's and that's what I came up with.
(If anyone else has found a better one, let me know!)
Daniel
I have a drafty apartment, with a bedroom of about 15 ft by 10 ft. Last summer I bought a box air conditioner that goes in the window. It's a 6000 BTU that I got at Wal-Mart for around (I think, dont quote me) $160.
Some nice things about it is that it attempts to maintain a certain temperature. You can set it to a desired temperature and it'll (try to) maintain that temperature by varying it's output over time. I cant tell for sure how accurate it is, but it gets the job of done from the standpoint of maintaining a consistent "feel".
You can also set a timer to turn it off after so many hours, or on after so many hours. This good for when I go to bed, I can set the timer to turn the a/c off after 2 hours so that it's not running all night, and then, when leaving for work/school in the morning, set it to how long I plan on being out minus one hour, this way my room is cool by the time I get home without the system running all day with no one there.
As for how much it's added to the electric bill, I cant really tell (nor remember). I have two roomates, each of whom have their own a/c boxen in their bedrooms. But yes - the bill will go up by a significant margin.
If you choose a box air conditioner - pick one suitable for the size of the room it'll be installed in. If it's a small room like mine, 5000 or 6000 BTUs will do, but if it's larger, go something with more strength. I highly recommend the features like those I noted above.
oh - and the best feature of my air conditioner - It has a Remote Control!
The One Rule Of Chess You'll Ever Need: Don't play someone who carries a kit in their bookbag.
--if your room windows get direct sun, by all means install awnings. Just keeping the sun from streaming in is good for a few degree reduction in temp. Shade *works*. the other examples are good too. sometimes there's no replacement for just normal technology,. If it was a home you could mod away at, there are some alternatives, but in an apartment, just a room, not a lot you can do, bite the bullet, slap in the window AC unit.
well, maybe there's one more thing you can do, if you have no qualms about it.....you can also get a metal detector, probe the walls, find the central HVAC ductwork from the people next door running their AC, tap into it, suck in cool airbandwith, PROFIT!!!!1!
heh heh
In the olden daze, people would sometimes use damp sheets at night, I've tried it myself, it works, The easiest way to dampen them without a big mess and a lot of hassle is to get a towel or three wet, wring them out, lay them on top of the sheet, once the amount of moisture you want (damp, not soaking) is transferred, you slip under the sheets, fall asleep. It actually works, gets cool. Another way is to sleep on an unheated water bed, they usually stay pretty cool and will wick away body heat, unless they themselves get to 98.6 obviously. Do the water bed and the damp sheet trick, at least you can fall asleep comfortable, it takes one or two nights to get used to the sheet, but then it feels real nice. That and fans and an awning is about it in the cheap and low energy range in an apartment.
Keep the windows open at night. Let it get really cold throughout the house (except maybe the bedroom). Close the windows and blinds in the morning. Having tight seals on doors and windows helps here.
In the evening, use fans to bring in cooler air from outside. (This depends on where you live. In the San Francisco area, it gets down into the 50s and 60s in the evening.)
Put the fans in the windows. Block off as much of the window as you can except the area where the fan goes. Ideally, you can find box fans that fit precisely in the window.
Important: point the fans OUT. Open a window on the other side of the house where air will come in. Pointing fans out is more efficient at moving air than pointing them in. Although pointing them in feels better, it doesn't do as good a job at actually bringing in cool air from outside.
Don't use interior fans except when you are in the room.
At night, I cool down the non-bedroom areas. During the evening, those areas are most comfortable, so I stay there. But I'm also cooling down the bedroom so that by the time I go to bed, the bedroom is comfortable.
A swamp cooler will only work if it's hot but not very humid. Here in Boston, for example, it would only make things worse. Note that you can't leave loose papers lying around with a swamp cooler running -- it's like a hurricane in the house.
A ceiling fan makes your air conditioner work much better.
One thing to look for in an air conditioner is the ability to suck in a bit of its air from outside, instead of just recirculating inside air or (with the lever pulled) blowing some inside air out. (Why you would want to do the latter mystifies me, but that's what they do.) Sucking in some outside air helps push some of the cold air into other rooms.
Some ACs can be configured as heat pumps, too, so that when it turns cold they can heat the room, for much less than the cost of running an electric radiant heater, and maybe for less than gas heat, these days. As heat pumps, they cool off the outside air and blow inside air past their hot condenser coils.
Live on the ground floor in summer, the top floor in winter.
And lose some weight. You'll sweat less.
After seeing all these suggestions for fans, I'm surprised no one's suggested a huge copper heatsink and a vat of Arctic Silver III.
Seriously though, having a house in the shade of something else (trees most of the time) does wonders. I know it's not the greatest idea to have trees large enough to overhang a structure (not my idea, not my tree, yes limbs have damaged the roof when falling before) between the shade from the trees and the fact that none of the windows have a clear path to catch sun, it stays a good 5-10 degrees colder most of the time.
If you can't see the value in jet powered ants you should turn in your nerd card. - Dunbal (464142)
I find that when I water my plants, I get a nice cooling effect. Ceiling fans + watered plants + moderate to low humidity (Texas) work like a champ. Plus it makes the plants happy.
The first time I saw an air conditioner was when I was 7 years old and moved to the east coast.
Dispite the pacific north west's relitivly low cost of electric... air conditioners are none too popular. I mean it would be kinda cool to have one in the car, and I plan to upgrade to having one in the future, but for the most part they are they are rare items to find.
For me, a large attic fan is most adquate for my cooling needs, though it wasn't quite enough when I was operating a sun 4/260 i'll tell you.
----
While this wouldn't nessicarly apeal to the apartment dweller, I saw something on telivision regarding terrestrial heating. basicly it went like this. Antifreese in copper pipes underground. In the summer time, ground temp in most enviroments is cooler then air temp, just flow water through system, blow air over radiator, radiator = heat. In winter, assuming ground temp is greater then air temp, same deal but just add a touch of heat. The idea was to lower heating bills.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
...that way, when you go in and out of the kitchen, you'll notice just how cool the rest of your house is compared.
Move to a place with central air. My place is no more expensive than any other.
Either that, or move to Alaska.
One future, two choices. Oppose them or let them destroy us.
My apartment's AC isn't that good, so here's some of the things that I try to do:
1. Change your lightbulbs. Either switch to a lower wattage incandescent, or use the compact flourescent fixtures. The halogen torches stay off all summer.
2. Turn off computers, lights, monitors and TVs when they're not being used. Yes, it will ruin your uptime, but most computers from the past few years dissipate 30-90 watts of heat. CRTs and TVs also generate a lot of heat. I had a room that I kept 10 degrees F warmer in winter just by leaving the computers (P3-866 and Athlon 1800+) and their monitors on all night.
3. Use your bedroom for nothing but sleeping. Turn on as few lights as possible, keep the TV and computer out of there. And sex will heat up a room (done properly).
4. Control your apartment's airflow. Put a fan in the window of your bedroom, aimed in. In another room, put a fan in the window, aiming it out. Close all other windows, and you should get a nice amount of airflow -- either to cool down your bedroom, or take heat out of the rest of the apartment.
5. Put a fan at the foot of your bed, and crank it up.
#2, #4, and #5 have the greatest effect in my apartment. Just remember that everything that uses electricity is going to generate some heat, and decide what you want to do from there.
The cheapest solution (green too) that I can think of is to move underground. Have you ever been in a cave? Once you get about six feet underground the temperature never changes. It's always nicely cool. Some caves even come with filtered running mineral water. Bonus!
Once underground, your only real environmental problem is lighting, for which you should use fibre optics and solar collectors during the day and use LED lighting powered by batteries when the sun is not out. Oh, and charge the batteries using solar too.
If there are no caves on the market in your area, just bury your house. Remember, the dirt needs to be at least three feet thick, but you will reach a point of diminishing returns at around five or six feet so there's no need to waste your money and labor on extra dirt. Where you get the dirt is up to you, but please ask your neighbor before digging in their yard!
Note: author not responsible for damage to buried houses
Ouch! The truth hurts!
Athlons are perfect in the winter time as the keep you warm all day/night long. Your prolly thinking this will save you alot of money on the heater bill, which it does (CPU is a multi-purpose device now acting for both PC and climate comfort). But.....durring the summer time. Muahahhahah, payback's a bitch. Enjoy ;)
Life is not for the lazy.
I've always wondered how effective running cold water from the tap through a radiator would be. Point a fan at it and let the heat go down the drain!
Since I own my house, I decided to get my walls injected with tri-poly insulation. My house is all brick and hollow tile construction, so it was a bit difficult for them to do the task, but it's worth the money. On days where we hit 80 degrees here, the house has warmed up inside to at most 68-70. This, combined with opening windows at night, should make life bearable inside this summer.
Heute die Welt, morgen das Sonnensystem!
When I lived in Southern California, I rented an apartment on the top floor. Typical California apartment complex- the roof was six inches think, maximum. The landlords reroofed the place and all that black tar up there would help the sun cook my place in the summer. The "property managers" were unresponsive so I took matters into my own hands, climbing up on the roof with a bucket of white paint and basically spilling it about where my apartment was located (the roof was flat and not visible from the street). This made a huge difference in temperature.
I subsequently learned that they make a paint specifically for this purpose (reflecting sunlight off of roofs instead of absorbing it) and that a lot of large buildings in the LA area were using it to lower energy usage.
Also, the previous post about awnings was spot on. Having shades is one thing, but the heat is already inside. Being able to block direct sunlight before it gets to the window will shave a few degrees off of the temperature.
Actually I spent some time thinking about this long ago (what kind of person overclocks his house?) I often thought that the evaporative cooling might work wonders on a brick house, set up a sprayer outside to spray enough water to saturate the bricks, let it trickle down and entirely wet the whole wall.
My thinking was that when we as people get out of the pool / ocean / whatever and are still wet, even a moderate breeze cools us off very quickly, to the point of chills. Soak down the outside walls of your house to do the same thing.
Didn't work, the red bricks were retaining ungodly amounts of heat from baking in the sun all day, the first splashes of water evaporated almost instantly. I guess the solid mass, a few tons of bricks, can retain way more heat than can be quickly drawn off by applying water to the surface.
At least I tried. At first I thought it had worked, but while I was outside goofing off with water cooling my house, my girlfriend was inside turning on the central AC and cranking it down to 72, which she generally does when I am not looking. Pretty effective way to cool a house, in her mind, and I have to say she is right.
Glonoinha the MebiByte Slayer
Humid heat is unbearable - and that is the kind of condition when evaporator fails.
Evaporate pure grain alcohol! At $35 a galon, it is not too expensive. (Albertson's vodka is even cheaper than Everclear). Alcohol will prevent growth of mold, give out a nice refreshing smell and make your hot appartment very enjoyable. Biodegradable - and will not hurt ozonosphere.
If you are willing to invest, buy a big dewar. Liquid nitrogen in bulk volumes is cheaper than milk. Wach out for a frozen mailman on doorsteps.
I doubt that we will ever figure out - and I suspect that even if we did figure out we couldn't do much about it