It’s been a hot and humid summer. I still don’t regret not having an air conditioner. However, I am a big fan of fans. Right now my office ceiling fan is set to “hovering Blackhawk helicopter.” It’s very nice.
One of the great things about my house fans is that the solar electric system has no difficulty keeping them powered. Even if the grid goes down I’m going to be comfortable.
I also really appreciate the solar electric powered water pump. The well water is ice cold year round. Being able to stay cool and hydrated in a grid down situation is essential.
Fans aren’t that energy intensive, especially compared to air conditioners. It’s pretty expensive to have enough solar power to keep a house AC unit going. Even a small room sized unit really sucks the power down. However, the newer units are much better on energy than the older units. It could be worth having one solar electric AC cooled room in your house. For some people it could be the difference between life and death. Even if you generally do fine in the heat, being able to cool down for an hour or two is a big relief.
Swamp coolers are fairly low energy usage. The problem is they only really work in dry climates. You also need a reliable source of water.
There are a lot of people relying on the grid to stay comfortable right now. They’d better hope it all holds together. If the grid goes down people are going to die. That’s the grim reality of it.
-Sixbears
Naw , we won't die here. But we most definitely will be sweating. Sitting in the shade fanning ourselves lol
ReplyDeleteYep, a sweaty, smelly, possibly intoxicated group of immortals. Right? 80)
DeleteUnlike a lot of Floridians, Spud, you are outside enough to get some heat tolerance.
DeleteSpud, you're posting on the internet thus grid power is UP. I suspect your sweating with a electric fan and a cold beer or ice water from your Grid refrigerator?
ReplyDeleteJust for funisies why don't you turn OFF your electricity for say 24 hours and get back to us about that experence.
It's what the working poor living out of cars and decript RV's are experiencing.
I agree with 6 Bears once the grid fails people will die.
I've been to Spud's place. He's a special case as he's outside in the heat a lot. Spud's a survivor and has plans.
DeleteTry taking an old camping cooler, run a dryer hose to one end and vent the other, then attach a fan to the dryer hose side. Fill the cooler full of ice and poof, Cheep man's air conditioner.
ReplyDeleteWell as long as the grid powered ice maker is running, the grid powered gas pumps for your auto to get that ice. The grid powered fan to blow your ice cooled at you, your golden.
ReplyDeleteAt least as long as that bag of ice is good for.
6 Bears is correct once the grid goes down folks will start dying.
Some folks have plans. Much depends on how long the grid is down and how long the heatwave lasts. A generator to run an AC unit is nice but the fuel will run out. That's why I'm more concerned about cooling with renewables.
DeleteYes 6 Bears some people have plans.
DeleteWould you think that 10% of your neighbors have plans beyond a generator?
Solar is my preferred system, but I do have a generator and ability to power critical systems from my vehicle.
The folks I saw today living in Walmart's parking lot I doubt half of them had options aside from hiding in Walmart.
Homelessness and working poor in their cars is starting to become a serious NH thing.
Sometimes I wish I wasn't involved in the food bank and such. Easy to not "See them".
Like me my neighbors live in a generally cooler climate. They are much more likely to have backup heat sources than backup cooling. They are fond of big generators, which is fine until the fuel runs out.
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