Not So Cool Air Conditioning

Air conditioning cools your home, but warms your planet.

Air conditioning is a modern wonder. It has saved lives in heat waves, made the internet servers possible, and kept us comfortable. However, this technology has a not so cool side. While air conditioners cool on the inside, they heat the outside. By 2050, we will be using five times as many air conditioners across the world. It's a vicious cycle. The Earth warms, so we cool it with air conditioning. The air conditioning heats the Earth more, so we cool more. First, let's examine the history of air conditioning, its environmental impact, and what happens when you throw it away. 

In 1902 the first air conditioner was invented. It didn't cool the air, but it removed humidity from a printing plant. Devised by a 25-year-old engineer from New York named Willis Carrier, this machine sent wind through water-cooled coils to reduce moisture. Now it has evolved, making its way into almost every home in developed countries. The process is very similar to the refrigerator. When a liquid evaporates, it absorbs heat. When a liquid condenses, it releases heat. An air conditioner uses an expansion device to "evaporate" the substance on the inside of the air conditioner. Since this liquid is evaporating, it absorbs the heat from your room through evaporator coils. It then exits through a compressor, "condensing" the fluid. This mechanism transfers excess heat to the outside of your home - and Earth. 

Air conditioning has two central warming impacts when running. First, your air conditioner is directly transferring heat from inside your building to the outside. With hundreds of thousands of air conditioners in a city, it can quickly raise the outdoor temperature by a few degrees. Second, this device is using up tons of electricity. That electricity was most likely generated by fossil fuels, which are polluting many greenhouse gases into our atmosphere. When you have any electronic device, it is most likely powered by carbon. Practically speaking, if enough of your neighbors buy an air conditioner, it will raise the temperature of your home, prompting you to buy one. That's not all. 

When disposing of an air conditioner, it has detrimental impacts on the environment. Instead of the water mentioned in the first air conditioner, an appropriate refrigerant circulates this machine to provide maximum cooling. These chemical compounds have their effects on the environment. Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are stunning 1,400 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. They represent over 1.5% of global warming potential and may raise temperatures by 0.5 degrees Celsius by 2100. While there is an action of HFCs in refrigerators, little to no movement of air conditioner coolant has been made. These chemicals easily leak out in garbage disposal - harming the land, the animals, and the environment. 

Avoid Refrigerants Containing

• HFC

• CFC

• HCFC

Take steps to upgrade your air conditioner to an environmentally friendly one. Merely buying one with a low impact coolant like R32, Hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs), and HFC-HFO blends can drastically reduce global warming potential. Even better, consider a swamp cooler. They save you energy, work faster, and don't dry out your home. Next time you're enjoying your chilled home, remember that it might not be making the world as cool.