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AC is much more energy efficient than heating. (Other than heat pump heating, which is not yet common worldwide.) And yet I always hear people fret about the e

AC is much more energy efficient than heating. (Other than heat pump heating, which is not yet common worldwide.) And yet I always hear people fret about the energy use of AC but not heating. I think it's based in our naturalistic fallacy. Heating all of Chicago to be bearable in the winter is seen as "natural" as humans have been heating our homes for millennia. But Las Vegas cooling it's interior spaces is seen as strange and unnatural. And yet, cooling a warm environment is better from an environmental point of view than warming a cold one.

reportgunner 3y ago
People fret about heating too. The difference is that your dwelling usually comes with a system for heating but it doesn't come with an AC. I think people who need AC in the summer are the same people who overheat their homes in winter.
vanattab 3y ago
> And yet, cooling a warm environment is better from an environmental point of view than warming a cold one. Is this true? Why would it be better for the enviroment?
- nostromo 3y ago
  Because all cooling (air conditioning) works by moving heat from point A to point B. Most heating works by directly generating heat, via electric resistance or burning a fuel source. (Heat pumps are the exception.) More details here if you'd like to jump into more details: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/8/1/014050 https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/8/1/014... > results indicate that climate control in Minneapolis is about 3.5 times as energy demanding as in Miami
epolanski 3y ago
Yes I also try to use as little heating as possible. I don't think that comparing the two is fair though. It's very hard to not get sick in a house at 10 degrees Celsius. 40 degrees Celsius is an immense discomfort but won't get me sick.
- fomine3 3y ago
  Is it? My thought (note: high humidity area) is opposite. I can live in 10C room with proper winter clothing. I can't live 40C/60% room, I no longer have any cloths to remove.

reportgunner 3y ago

People fret about heating too. The difference is that your dwelling usually comes with a system for heating but it doesn't come with an AC. I think people who need AC in the summer are the same people who overheat their homes in winter.

vanattab 3y ago

> And yet, cooling a warm environment is better from an environmental point of view than warming a cold one. Is this true? Why would it be better for the enviroment?

nostromo 3y ago
Because all cooling (air conditioning) works by moving heat from point A to point B. Most heating works by directly generating heat, via electric resistance or burning a fuel source. (Heat pumps are the exception.) More details here if you'd like to jump into more details: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/8/1/014050 https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/8/1/014... > results indicate that climate control in Minneapolis is about 3.5 times as energy demanding as in Miami

epolanski 3y ago

Yes I also try to use as little heating as possible. I don't think that comparing the two is fair though. It's very hard to not get sick in a house at 10 degrees Celsius. 40 degrees Celsius is an immense discomfort but won't get me sick.

fomine3 3y ago
Is it? My thought (note: high humidity area) is opposite. I can live in 10C room with proper winter clothing. I can't live 40C/60% room, I no longer have any cloths to remove.