13 Crazy Facts About Air Conditioning

Air conditioning is something many of us probably take for granted. Most of us in the U.S. don’t even realize how dependent we are on air conditioning. While the numbers of AC users have spiked over the last decade, what do we know about AC units? Aside from replacing air filters, checking the thermostat and adjusting the temperature, how much do you know about your AC system? Find out more fun facts about ACs here.

 

1. In 1902, Willis Carrier invented the first air conditioner not for comfort, but to control the humidity in a New York publishing house. He originally designed it to keep his paper from expanding and contracting and to help the ink dry faster without smudges.

 

2. Even throughout the Great Depression, movie theaters were some of the first businesses and buildings to use air conditioning. Swarms of people would flock to the movies in order to get in the air conditioning to cool off. Because of the abundance of people going to the movies in the summer, the term “summer blockbuster” came into place.

 

3. Up until 1960s, the Northeast was an economic powerhouse. However, after the invention of the air conditioner, a vast majority of people flocked to Arizona, Florida and Texas. Over half of our economic growth since has taken place in the South.

 

4. In 1906, the term air conditioning came from a North Carolina textile manufacturer. He came up with the phrase because the technology increased the quality and condition of the cloth in his factory.

 

5. Studies have shown that humans who grow accustomed to living in a cool, air conditioned home naturally lose their tolerance for the heat.

 

6. Without air conditioning we wouldn’t have certain medications. Some medications can only be studied and produced in a cool environment.

 

7. Packard was the first car manufacturer to use air conditioning in their vehicles.

 

8. A lack of air conditioning is what created summer breaks for kids in school. Before air conditioning existed, the heat was too unbearable for kids to be in school. Even after the wide use of AC, the idea stuck and we still enjoy summer breaks.

 

9. In 1903, The New York Stock Exchange was one of the first buildings in NYC to use air conditioning.

 

10. Before air conditioners, architects designed houses to keep occupants cool. They built homes with high ceilings, porches, breezeways and landscaping to create shadows and keep families comfortable.

 

11. The reason office buildings seem so cold to women and maybe not to men is explained thanks to a study from the 1960s. Office and commercial buildings are based off a formula from the 1960s that uses the metabolic rate of a 40-year-old man who weighs roughly 154 pounds. Researchers have said that women’s metabolic rate is roughly 20 to 32 percent lower.

 

12. Room temperature affects a student’s ability to learn. A study at a high school in Oregon stated that 72 degrees was the ideal temperature for students. At 61 degrees, a student averaged a test score of 76 percent. At 81 degrees, students averaged a test score of 72 percent and at 72 degrees they averaged a score of 90 percent.

 

13. Some of the coldest inhabited places in the world are in Siberia, with average temperatures reaching negative 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The coldest city in the world is Yaktusk, Siberia, home to a population of 270,000. The temperature often drops below negative 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

Stay Cool During the Summer Months By Calling WEATHER ENGINEERS

In Florida, we know the importance of staying cool in the summer months. If you or someone you know is in need of AC maintenance or an upgrade, call us today.