Summer is the anti-flashaholic season

[FalconFX]

I actually find that a fan that blows air (in my case, a Vortex fan; really good fan, too) around a room or even directly at you, in a dry heat environment inside your home can actually keep you cool. Your sweat's your best friend in that aspect. But a room with high humidity, even if it's 20 degrees cooler, would not only feel hotter, but even if air is being circulated inside that room, it won't feel any cooler because moisture would probably keep the temperature at a steady level longer.

I would assume that the lower the humidity, the less AC needs to be used to cool the air out. A refrigerator works best by taking moisture (humidity) out of the freezer and introducing cold air. As moisture can keep energy/heat for longer periods of time, it makes sense to devoid a place of moisture before introducing cold air. From my limited meteorological classwork (or class spanking), I believe the more moisture you have in the air, the more energy it would take to evaporate that moisture. Premise behind evaporative cooling dictates the energy needed to evaporate the water is absorbed from the air (heat is absorbed as energy to evaporate the water), and resulting air is cooler...

In Fresno, if heat ouside is 100 degrees, and humidity is 80%, it feels like an underwater sauna... Turning up the outside water cooler doesn't do much at all, as certain parts of the house would actually feel warmer because of the increased humidity. That's when the dehumidifyer comes in handy, and the Trane AC is used...

So to answer the question, after all this /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rant.gif 'ing , I'd say your AC will work harder to cool down a place that is 90/80 heat/humidity, rather than a 110/40 heat/humidity...

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rant.gif , correct or not, is over...
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinser2.gif

 

[B@rt]

Since you need mass to contain energy (warmth), I'd say the more humidity (more mass), the harder your AC has to work...

I prefer "dry" heat anytime, since it doesn't interfear with your natural cooling system (evaporation) as much as humid conditions. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

BTW, I really don't like AC all that much. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif Most people tend to cool it down too much, so you never get adjusted to heat, and you catch a cold as well... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[FalconFX]

BTW, I really don't like AC all that much. Most people tend to cool it down too much, so you never get adjusted to heat, and you catch a cold as well...
---------------------------

Kind'a interesting, since my roommate will wear a full-sized winter coat when it's freakin' 100 degrees outside (I'd like to think of it as 1000 degrees)... He's a Phillipino, too, and I rarely EVER see him sweat. When he gets a sunburn, and his back looks like it's "rare meat" and ready to eat, he never feels the burn. And heat almost never seems to bother him at all. Even when playing basketball, he never sweats, and when we went on a trip to China last year, more than a handful of people thought he was actually Black...
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif

Well, it turns out, if he's outside in hot air, and walks into an air-conditioned room, he's almost guaranteed to catch a cold. And then, when he's acclimated to the cold, and he walks outside into hot air, he starts sneezing, wheezing, just as if his allergies started exploding.

At first, I thought it was just psychosomatic. But thinking about it, it may be a natural body biofeedback mechanism that forces your body to recognize and adapt to a "shocking" climatic change.

 

[B@rt]

LOL!
A wintercoat is a bit much for me, but once accustomed to the heat, I get chilly when temps drop below 24 C and wear a sweater. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif Most people think I'm nuts... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/twak.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thinking.gif

 

[Mr. Blue]

why do you think I spend time in a closet?



just kidding

 

[Brotherscrim]

[ QUOTE ]
DavidW said:
I'm baking biscuits in my car right now. It's just below the temperature of the sun even though the sun has been down for a while. Any more humidity and I'll be under water. Wait! We've been on and off flood watches for the past week now from all the rain. I am basically underwater. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Hey David, things calm down there any? My parents have a house about a mile from where you live (their house is on Socrum), but they're in their "main" home in Michigan right now. Hope there hasn't been any flooding or anything - for your sake and my parents'!!

 

[PlayboyJoeShmoe]

Ah, heat and humidity...

This is Houston. The humidity is usually about 150% or so.

This morning, up until about 11a... felt heavenly here in the south part of Houston. It was almost cool. And the humidity seemed lower than usual. By 1p we are at high 90's heat and it feels wet out there.

Saturday in Waco it was pleasent until about 3p, then got brutal out in the sun.

Texas. Where when parking, you WILL choose shade over distance!

But I carry my EDC in an original M*g holster, and always wear Wrangler Jeans and a belt. Also have ARC AAA in watch pocket.

So summer is just the same as "winter" around here.(winter is AKA The Rainy Season)

 

[avusblue]

[ QUOTE ]
B@rt said:
BTW, I really don't like AC all that much. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif Most people tend to cool it down too much, so you never get adjusted to heat, and you catch a cold as well... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't like AC either. Here in Minnesota it does get hot and humid in summers, but I'd rather grin and bear it, knowing we waited all winter for this. So I leave my AC off, but I also leave as many house lights off as possible to prevent making more heat. Thus . . . MORE opportunities to use my flashlights, despite the longer daylight (not dark until 9:30 - 9:45 up here this week.)

Dave

 

[PlayboyJoeShmoe]

It MIGHT be better for my health if I just lived in the elements at all time.

But telling a Texan not to use the AC would be getting your butt shot!

And I leave my truck idling with the AC on a lot during the day... so I can relax a bit before my next stop.

I did learn about a great trick today. I put on a pair of spandex shorts on under my jeans. I didn't get nearly as wilted as usual today in the welding shop.

 

[DieselDave]

Houston wins the award for the worst summer weather of anywhere I have been. I say this with all due respect to the great state of Texas. I would rather be strapped to the ground naked in the Arizona desert than spend 3 hours at any outdoor event in Houston during the summer. I was born down the road in Texas City. I remember going to Houston as a boy and being so drenched in sweat it would look like I had been playing in a sprinkler. I have been in steam rooms with less humidity. You can't make it from the front door of your house to your car without breaking a sweat and that's not an exaggeration.

I am glad Playboy posted. Pensacola is feeling more like "dry heat" all the time.

The wife and kids are over in Austin and College Station this week visiting family. I am batching it and will put off all yard work until my wife returns. I want credit for sweating and if I do it now no one will see my great agony, listen to me complain or bring me water.

It's funny, my grandmother rarely ran the AC when I was a boy. They lived in Lockhart, Texas and the house would be in the mid to upper eighties when we would go to bed, no big deal. Growing up in Austin I would play golf, tennis, jog or any number of other things during the hottest part of the day and again, no big deal. Now days I refuse to fish, play golf or participate in any other outdoor activity during July and August. I can no longer tolerate the heat. I think my sit-down indoor job has ruined me forever.