Passive Cooling and Why We Ought to Avoid Using AC

In this moment, while I write this, it is blissfully cool and raining. However, the Weather Network’s prediction right now is that the summer conditions in western Canada will be hotter with above normal temperatures. Luckily it seems like the heat won’t be as intense for as long as in previous years and that we will get occasional reprieves with cooler weather. It is estimated that 619 people died of heat in BC during the heat wave of 2021. Most of those deaths were in housing with inadequate cooling.


Whatever the weather will be, it is good to be prepared to keep yourself and your loved ones safe and comfortable. It is easy to reach for that AC switch when the temperature rises. I want to show you why we should think twice about turning it on out of habit and some other ways to cool your house down that is better for the environment (and your wallet).

Excerpt from Scientific American magazine: 

"One of the great ironies of climate change is that as the planet warms, the technology that people need to stay cool will only make the climate hotter. By 2050, researchers expect the number of room air conditioners on Earth to quadruple to 4.5 billion, becoming at least as ubiquitous as cell phones are today. By the end of the century, greenhouse gas emissions from air conditioning will account for as much as a 0.5° C rise in global temperatures, according to calculations by the World Economic Forum."
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-prevent-air-conditioners-from-heating-the-planet/


Below is an excerpt from the Audubun Magazine about some of the problems with air conditioning:
"Current AC technology incurs another climate cost: hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), the industrial chemicals in AC units that cool our rooms. Once in the atmosphere, the five most commonly used HFCs absorb 150 to 5,000 times more of the sun’s energy than carbon dioxide does."

-Audubon Magazine
https://www.audubon.org/magazine/summer-2022/how-air-conditioning-creates-climate-conundrum

What our family is doing to keep our house and ourselves cool

We have put up a shade cloth on the west side of the house (where the sun bakes in the afternoon) and this has helped so much. By having the shade cloth over the entire west side and effectively cutting off any sun rays from hitting the façade I estimate we have cut the temperature in the house with more than 8°C. It helps to pull the drapes over windows on the side where the sun is as well. The cloth is not so pretty, but when the temperature gets up in the high 30s or 40s, I don’t care about pretty, all I want is a cool space to hide from the heat.


We open all our windows wide at night and close them all before the temperature rises in the morning. On really hot days we have fans to cool us in the space that we are in, making sure to close doors to any room we are not in. When the temperature really soars, we turn on our evaporative/swamp cooler and this has helped us.


Sometimes if we need to cool down quickly after being out working in the fields, we will take cool cloths or even ice packs and place them on our necks or in our armpits for a moment to quickly cool down. A quick cold shower works great too but could be a problem in drought-stricken areas if you take them too often.


Not cooking hot meals inside is another way to stop your house from heating up. If you have access to a barbeque to cook your meals over, it can make many memorable summer moments while keeping that heat out of your kitchen. Right now, I love vegetable skewers with chicken and squeaky haloumi cheese, with a side of green salad and watermelon.


There is the obvious solution to wear less clothes while inside your house. I have always wondered about buildings that they cool down so much so that everyone in them need to wear sweaters inside while it is blazing hot outside. How does that make sense? Why not shed a layer and cool the building less? This seems so simple, but our society sure likes to make simple common-sense solutions seem less attractive. Odd!

I remember being in Texas one summer and I ended up getting so sick with respiratory problems from constantly being freezing and having cold air blowing on me. Whenever I went to a restaurant, I asked for hot tea and they would bring me iced tea with extra ice. In order to get away from the AC where I was staying, I slept outside on a yoga mat on the balcony. Everyone looked at me as if I was crazy. I have never been so cold as that super hot summer in Texas, I think that is crazy!

Some ideas on how to keep your house cool 

Compiled for you by Armstrong/Spallumcheen Climate Action.

• Install a geothermal heating and cooling system that uses ground temperature to heat and cool houses via pipes underground. For some info see link: https://www.epa.gov/rhc/geothermal-heating-and-cooling-technologies
• Opening windows during cool times such as nighttime and morning and allowing for cross ventilation during this time. Closing all windows before the sun hits them to keep the cool air inside the house.
• Use dark blinds and drapes to block the sun from shining in through the windows.
• Install awnings on the outside of the house (especially on the south and west side).
• Use shade cloth to shade the south and west side of the house to stop the sunlight from shining on the house. Many farmers in the region have been using second-hand ginseng shade cloth from Shepherd’s Hardware Store to block the sun from their houses, barns and animal enclosures. 
• To add extra cooling, a transpiration, drip irrigation system can be installed together with the shade cloth to further wick heat away.
• Make an evaporative/swamp cooler by placing ice, cold water or a cold wet cloth behind your fan to create a cool mist. See diagram of a DIY swamp cooler and/or check out this link:https://www.backyardboss.net/diy-swamp-cooler/

• Use fans to cool the air and use existing extraction fans to pull heat from the house e.g., stove top and bathroom fans. Set ceiling fans to blow in a counter-clockwise direction for increased cooling effect.
• Ensuring adequate insulation in attics and crawl spaces and making sure that the hot air in these spaces is drawn out via fans.
• Change heat emitting lightbulbs to energy saving lightbulbs 
• Seal gaps and insulate your house to keep heat and cold out.
• Plant deciduous trees on the south and west side of your house that will allow for shading during hot summer as well as light and sunlight to enter the house in winter. 

• Trees such as cottonwood, plane trees, maples and catalpa can hold a lot of moisture and give shade at the same time as they can function as fire walls due to the moisture they hold. 
• Keep wetlands, creeks and parks from being developed. Green spaces are crucial to keep people cool and safe. 
• Ask for changed bylaws that insist on houses being built using passive heating and cooling systems and other energy-saving methods. Here is a link to webinars on the topic: https://www.efficiencycanada.org/empowering-municipalities-to-adopt-net-zero-building-codes/
• Learn about traditional ways of building houses in your area in order to make healthy and safe homes.
• Do research if a solar powered air conditioner can work for you. Link to info: https://cielowigle.com/blog/solar-powered-air-conditioner/

Imagining a better reality- it's possible 

There are many more solutions out there, and new and old technologies to explore. I think the most important part of this is to look at the impact of what we do and make sound decisions with all the facts at hand. Just because society, or everyone around you, does it one way doesn’t mean that you have to keep doing it that way, especially if it means that the planet suffers and that our climate will be hotter. We can imagine a better way to live. Why not make it the new normal to create passive cooling systems to cool us down, build our houses in ways that keeps us comfortable and safe while saving energy all year round?

Imagine a future where our homes are cooled down by the landscaping around and on the buildings. The gardens on our roof tops and on our façades feed us healthy food and cool us down while providing safe habitat to many endangered species. The buildings themselves can regulate the temperature using less energy and effort on our part. Our clothes might be designed to keep us cool while at the same time being completely biodegradable and carbon neutral. We work together with the ground and the winds to create healthy buildings with comfortable temperatures. Our buildings are built with natural materials that function in their region and we are safe from harmful chemicals. The material of our houses can be broken down and reused in the next building without creating any waste. Our system is a closed-loop system where everything can be reused, and nothing ends up in the landfill.

I don’t think this is an impossible utopia. I believe this is within our reach, this is possible if we want it. Do we want it?


Thanks for visiting my blog

I look forward to connecting with you again.

Mikaela