Taiwan and air conditioning temperatures

With the onset of the Australian summer and Victoria in particular being subjected to a very early heat wave, once again the topic of air conditioners and the temperature they should be set at raises its’ ugly head.

I’ve owned property for 20 plus years, it wasn’t until 2007 that we had our first and only air conditioner installed. Not because of cost, not because of a change of location, not because of climate changes, simply because I am finding that with the circulation problems I now have due to injury, life is just a little more comfortable.

Over the weekend – Radio Asia was publicising the fact that Taipei 101 (which is the tallest building in Taiwan) will be encouraging all tenants to raise the A/C temperature to 26’c. This is part of a raft of measures being put into place to make the building more environmentally friendly and allow them to claim an award that says as much.

When the announcement was made, I thought that 26’c was little too high, perhaps 22-24’c but certainly not 18’c as many people here in Australia seem to think is an acceptable temperature.

There is nothing more frustrating that walking into a building and it’s cold on a day that outside is 30-40’c. I believe there is nothing that will make you sick better than walking into a building hot/cold cold/hot. Your body’s thermostat is unable to keep up with the changes.

I suppose you could compare it to a cars speed, just because the dial says you can do 210kph, doesn’t mean it can actually do that. The same goes for air conditioning, just because the lowest temperature you can get on the dial is 18’c doesn’t mean you have to push it down that low.

Set the thermostat at 20-22’c and let the air conditioner do its job. Turn it on a little earlier and not when the room reaches 40’c.

The power saving is HUGE if you follow the above suggestions and other savings may even result in less doctors visits and days off!

Consider it – not just for the dollar value, but for your childrens’ sake and the power grid!

Don’t get too hot under the collar this year and remember – it may be hot outside, but stay in contact with the outside world – it could just save your life.