#heating & air conditioning

[reasonsforhope]

"Governor Janet Mills announced that Maine has, two years ahead of time, surpassed its goal of installing 100,000 new heat pumps by 2025, a milestone that represents significant progress in reducing Maine’s reliance on heating oil, lowering heating costs, and curbing harmful carbon emissions.

To continue Maine’s momentum, Governor Mills also unveiled a new target: installing another 175,000 additional heat pumps in Maine by 2027, thereby bringing the number of heat pumps installed in Maine homes, businesses, and public buildings during her time in office to 275,000.

If this target is achieved, Maine would have more than 320,000 heat pumps in total installed across the state.

Heat pumps can be thought of as temperature recycling machines. They are filled with refrigerant fluid and contain a compressor, and they work by extracting excess heat and moving it around, either in or out of a house depending on whether it’s hot or cold.

It’s believed they work best in hot weather, but in February, Maine’s temperatures in some places plummeted during a cold snap to -60°F. Efficiency Maine, which aided in the state’s adoption of heat pumps by organizing rebates for customers under the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, did a survey of owners they had helped the previous year.

Many of [the heat pump owners] reported they were comfortable and warm, and offered to bring up the fact that by February they had already saved hundreds of dollars on home heating systems, over boilers, gas furnaces, and heating oil.

“We are setting an example for the nation,” said Mills at the announcement event. ​“Our transition to heat pumps is… curbing our reliance on fossil fuels, and cutting costs for Maine families, all while making them more comfortable in their homes—a hat trick for our state.”

The transition began in 2019 with bipartisan support of the Legislature, when Governor Mills enacted laws setting ambitious targets for transitioning to renewable energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

-via Good News Network, July 31, 2023

[yukipri]

My boys are melted

Cats tag: #YukiPriASLKittens

[newyorkthegoldenage]

A sign listing the day's temperatures outside the Rivoli Theater on 51st Street, September 1949. It looks to entice people into the air-conditioned theater with its temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 degrees Celsius).

Photo: Ed Feingersh via Getty Images

[ianthedebonair]

never a great time to be alone with your thoughts

[runawaymun]

Btw if it’s hot where you live right now and you inexplicably feel like absolute shit, this is your reminder that headache/sleepiness/nausea etc are all signs of heat exhaustion. Please go run some cool (NOT cold) water over your wrists and hands, or if you’re at home take a cool (NOT cold) bath or shower.

If you’re out and you don��t have money to go somewhere then head to your closest library. They’ll have AC and a bathroom. I’m so serious. I deadass was on the verge of puking my guts out an hour ago and assumed I was about to get a migraine but turns out it was just good ol heat exhaustion. Your brain is cooking and it will get harder to realize that’s what happening. Stay safe 🫶

Btw don’t use ice or very cold water. It can kill you.

[fantasiavii]

I know the “this is the coldest summer of the rest of your life” post is funny to share but I’m begging all of you to take it seriously and internalize it. Yes, much of the most effective forms of climate action require the dismantling of whole industries and intense government funding but there are things you can do and I am begging you to learn what they are and do them.

Extreme heat is coming for all of us and it is deadly.

[cookiethebirdthing]

Sanae wiped her brow, flicking sweat droplets onto the floor. Tsukasa practically melted into the cushions, breathing heavily. The heat outside had been nearly unbearable, but they were back in the cool air conditioned rooms of the Moriya Shrine.

It was quiet for a moment, apart from the gentle hum of central air. Eventually, Sanae gave a proud smile and shot her arm into the air. Tsukasa's ears perked up as she heard the telltale intake of breath, her tail already lightly wagging.

“Alright, Tsukasa!” she cheered, “we managed to sell all of the portable air conditioning units! This will bring faith to the shrine for sure!”

Tsukasa quietly yipped in agreement, finding words far too tiring at a time like this. Though she was once used to suffering through the sweltering Gensokyo summers, that was no longer the case. Thank goodness for that.

Sanae continued, “There really is nothing better than air conditioning! It's a marvel of technology!”

Just then, the shattering of glass sounded through the shrine. A black and white blur shot into the room, nearly colliding with Tsukasa. Rather than crash into any of the furniture, however, it halted its movement fast enough to kill a human.

“Heya, Sanae!” Marisa called from where she floated in the air. Or rather, where she sat on her broom, floating in the air. There was an unusual object hanging off it however. Not a lantern, but a sizable glass jar, with white shapes crammed in seemingly as tight as physically possible.

“Oh hi, Marisa,” Sanae responded with a smile. “What's that on your broom?”

Marisa blinked a few times and tilted forward dangerously. She righted herself with a jolt and gave a laugh. “What? Oh this thingy? I call them phantoms in a jar.” She paused. “It's got phantoms in there. Not sure how many, I kinda lost count when I was collecting them and came to with it all full like this.”

Sanae tilted her head, “Why would you put phantoms in a jar? Is this one of those Gensokyo things?”

“Huh? Nah.” Marisa shook her head. “During the Summer, I collect these little guys so I can do this!” She shook her broom violently, jostling the container. The shapes inside suddenly started pushing their way past each other as if trying to escape.

“What's that supposed to do? Oh, by the way, Tsukasa and I spent all day installing air conditioning units around the Human Village! Being freed from the oppression of Summer heat is sure to bring lots of faith to the—” Sanae’s ramble was cut off as the temperature in the room dropped far below what the air conditioning was capable of. She stuttered out the rest of the sentence, “—shrine… Oh.”

In the end, the air conditioning units they sold became little more than non-functioning trinkets to most of the villagers. With the cooling power of phantoms, why would they need something as silly as that anyway? A few villagers did find some use out of them, and so a bit of faith trickled in. At least it wasn't a complete waste of time.

[theoptimisticdaydreamer]

It is not like they do not consistently have chocolate week during the hottest times of the summer. The heat has always been an issue during chocolate week. So it’s not like it’s a surprise. You are telling me after over a DECADE, they haven’t modified the tent to make it bearable?!! You have not put in measures for the BAKERS OWN COMFORT?!

It is at this point that it is jeopardizing their health!

Put in fans, put in air conditioning, give the bakers WATER, allow them to REST. Modify the challenges to account for this temperature inside the tent.

PUT THE BAKERS SAFETY FIRST.

I should not be seeing bright red bakers and bakers on the verge of fainting!

Bake Off HAS THE FUNDS!

Take some of the money off of Paul and Prue’s paychecks and MODIFY THE FUCKING TENT.

Because I betchu that in the hottest days of the year, Paul and Prue are not feeling that heat one iota. They are in their trailers or inside a building and cool as a fucking cucumber.

Don’t deprive the bakers of that same accommodation.

To do otherwise after thirteen fucking years is perpetual, intentional negligence.

[cinderpaw11]

Beautiful women named excessive heat warning keep messaging me

[reasonsforhope]

"The search has intensified for alternative energy-saving technologies for heating and cooling that don’t run on fossil fuels.

Now, by mimicking a desert-dwelling chameleon, Chinese scientists have developed a cheap energy-efficient, cost-effective coating on houses.

They say the new material could keep buildings cool in the summer or warm in the winter without using additional energy.

“Many desert creatures have specialized adaptations to allow them to survive in harsh environments with large daily temperature shifts,” said Dr. Fuqiang Wang, author on the paper describing the invention and researcher at the Harbin Institute of Technology. “For example, the Namaqua chameleon of southwestern Africa alters its color to regulate its body temperature as conditions change.”

Pictured: A Namaqua Chameleon

...Many systems, such as cooling paints or colored steel tiles, are only designed to keep buildings either cool or warm, and can’t switch between modes.

Inspired by the Namaqua chameleon, Dr. Wang and his colleagues wanted to create a color-shifting coating that adapts as outside temperatures fluctuate...

When heated to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, the surface began to change from dark to light grey. Once it reached 86F, the light-colored film reflected up to 93% of solar radiation.

“Even when heated above 175 degrees Fahrenheit for an entire day, the material showed no signs of damage,” reported Dr. Wang.

The team then tested it alongside three conventional coatings—regular white paint, a passive radiative cooling paint, and blue steel tiles in outdoor tests on doghouse-sized buildings throughout all four seasons...

In summer, the new coating was significantly cooler than the white paint and steel tiles, according to the findings published in the journal Nano Letters.

“During spring and fall, the new coating was the only system that could adapt to the widely fluctuating temperature changes, switching from heating to cooling throughout the day,” Dr. Wang added.

The researchers say that the color-changing system could save a “considerable” amount of energy for regions that experience multiple seasons, while still being inexpensive and easy to manufacture."

-via Good News Network, September 21, 2023

[i-was-today-years-old-when]

i learned that 88% of households in America have air conditioning while only 20% do in Europe (x)

[jakemyboy]

Happy National Grilling and Macaroni Salad day!!!! Yep, it's ALL about the Macaroni salad for me! 🤣

[hussyknee]

That's 91.4F and real feel 105.8F to you godless USAmerican heathens.

I'm too fat for this. I'm going to die. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Edit: this is about Sri Lanka btw. Shit's unliveable even for a tropical island on the equator.

[fly-the-pattern]

[danmei-trash]

Just for the sake of the climate itself, I hope Yak goes back to how he dressed before he tried to improve for Taem. Those elephant trousers are extremely cute and are breathable and light for Thailand's climate. Wearing a jacket and a shirt underneath? In this heat I wish I could go shorter than crop top and shorts forget jacket