There is a trend to convert homes to refrigerated air, mostly because you just flip a switch to go from heat to a/c. Evaporative coolers require maintenance. Romeo always replaces the pads every year, cleans out the accumulated minerals from the water, removes rust from the housing, checks belts and so on. Once you have yours ready to go, there's not usually anything you need to do unless one day it starts to make a noise (usually the belt or the water pump). Like I said, they require maintenance. Which is why the locals want refrigerated air. Flip the switch and all that.
I grew up with refrigerated air. In Texas, you have no choice, due to the humidity. I know what it costs to cool your house with it....and most of you probably have it. Romeo grew up with evaporative air in El Paso, so he knows how to maintain it. And I like it for two reasons: it's less expensive and the air is circulated from outdoor air. Down side: if you neighbor uses half a can of lighter fluid to light his charcoal grill, you have to turn it off if the breeze is blowing toward you. Yeah, it has it's ups and downs.
And as you can see, lots of people don't have a clue how to maintain it. You see lots that look like this too, :D
We are predicted to have temps close to 90 in the day or two, so there is a huge run at the hardware store to buy the necessary supplies. Add to that the rush to put in your garden, and it's ridiculous. I have been waiting to plant, but I won't be doing it this weekend.
But it is a lovely Saturday. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Love, 365
We lived in Victorville, CA., smack dab in the Mojave desert. Evaporative coolers are still used. We did have an A/C in our bedroom.
ReplyDeleteIt has been rather tempting to put a window unit in our bedroom, but with fans and keeping a couple of windows cracked, it's fine. The Mojave is a lot hotter than Albuquerque!!
DeleteI've never heard of them, of course they would not work in North East humidity. Best cooling is outside night air in the spring and fall.
ReplyDeleteYes, until it reaches the 90s, we probably won't turn it on. The evenings are still very cool and nice.
DeleteHere in Piraeus our neighbours (same building) were still running the heating earlier this week. The building heating gets decommissioned for summer on 30 April, so they are forced to go without. Today the temperature is forecast to reach 30 degrees C. The air con will go on. We don't use either heat or cooling, but wonder how humans became so ill adapted here that there doesn't seem to be for them a day with a comfortable temperature. I have to admit our summers are too hot for us but we are seriously cold-conditioned humans and we live in rented apartment with no air con (and we can't install it).
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure it has so much to do with adaptation, but the knowledge that we don't have to be hot or cold!
DeleteI had no idea these even existed. In FL we had central A/c and we had central A/c put in our house here (New England) 7 years ago. Bets money we ever spent. Course, the humidity in both of those states can get to 90% for days on end.
ReplyDeleteWe just did our flower boxes and went back later today to get the rest of our annuals. The place was a zoo, and it will only get worse as the weekends keep coming.
Lol, I didn't know anything about evaporative cooling until we moved here! It doesn't work well ~ or at all ~ when the humidity is high, such as during our monsoon season in July/August.
DeleteI'm off for the next few days, so we'll see how busy the nursery's are.
We lived for 13 years in a home in Phoenix that had both an evap cooler AND an air conditioner. We could use the evap until the temperature got up to 100 and then we'd have to switch for the hottest part of the year. Saved on the electric bills though.
ReplyDeleteI guess I don't understand why people are attracted to living in Phoenix, unless it's because there isn't much of a winter. It's way too hot for my taste!
DeleteNever knew about these only A/C. My dad was a master plumber and he did heating and air conditioning as well so I always had A/C but we didn't need it much up north. Then I moved here. Oh my God you must have it or you will die. Exaggeration? Perhaps but I know I would die. I would rather be cold than hot. I have never lived where it is dry heat. Anywhere like that is too damn hot for me like Arizona. I'll wait until I get to hell for that kind of heat 😁 Besides the brown desert landcape is not attractive to me so I will let the desert lovers keep arizona. I'd rather go to snow than a desert.
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