Every summer the heat catches us unprepared, and we happen to say: “Why didn’t I think about it before?”. For this reason, we offer you a small guide on some of the solutions that allow you to cool your home in the summer, so you will have no more excuses … for next year!
Fan
It’s the simplest option to put into practice, and the one with a smaller budget. And it is also the solution that can be used at the last minute.
The fans are available in different types: free-standing, ceiling, with integrated water atomizer or without blades. They have the advantage of being practical and consuming little electricity. The problem is that they do not really cool the air, but only create a pleasant current, the effect of which ends when they are turned off.
Evaporative cooling
Evaporative cooling uses a natural cooling principle to cool the air drawn in from the environment. If passed through a constantly wet filter, in fact, the air cools, giving up heat to the water.
Evaporative coolers have low installation costs and reduced consumption, but have the disadvantage of increasing the humidity of the installation environment, with the risk of making us perceive thermal changes even more.
However, they prove to be particularly suitable for outdoors, on terraces or verandas, or in large rooms, where there is a continuous exchange of air.
Portable air conditioner
The “simplest” real form of cooling is that of portable air conditioners. They are inexpensive, can be installed without major labor interventions and the less bulky models can be easily moved from one room to another. Unlike the fan and the evaporator, the most performing models also allow you to set the desired temperature, switching off and on only when necessary.
Compared to fixed air conditioners, however,
they are noisier and bulkier. In addition, the presence of the flexible tube from which the hot air is expelled requires leaving the window slightly open (unless you want to make the appropriate hole in the glass) with a consequent significant heat loss.
Fixed air conditioner
This type of system is, without a doubt, the first solution when you think about effectively cooling your home.
The models on the market are now almost all equipped with a heat pump, capable of cooling in summer or heating in winter, useful in mid-seasons, when you do not want to activate the heating system at full capacity. Like some portable models, it’s possible to set the desired temperature and almost all are equipped with inverter technology motors, able to modulate the power according to needs, reducing energy consumption.
Labor interventions are not particularly invasive, and the price varies depending on the model and the works required for installation. They require periodic overhaul for the verification of refrigerant gases.
Heat pump with underfloor cooling
Underfloor cooling is an excellent alternative to air conditioners, capable of ensuring the right comfort (albeit more slowly), saving energy. The same electric air-water (or water-water) heat pump is used also in winter for heating, with the advantage of using a single system to air-condition the house all year round. The distribution of cold occurs by radiation: chilled water at 15-18°C is made to flow inside the coils placed under the floor, which lowers the room temperature to the desired level.
Obviously, the interventions are remarkable! This system is a suitable solution in the case of new buildings or major renovations, in which it is planned to redevelop the entire heating system and… to redo the flooring!
Solar cooling
Not everyone is aware that with the heat of the sun you can also cool your home. Solar cooling, in fact, is able to exploit a solar thermal system (used to produce domestic hot water), also to produce chilled water to flow into the radiant terminals. If you already own solar panels, however, it is necessary to install an absorption refrigeration machine capable of exploiting the thermal energy generated. Solar cooling is a technology with numerous advantages, but it is still little used in the home, especially due to the high costs, compared to a fixed air conditioning system.
This article is for information only. Fandis does not deal with domestic refrigeration, so if you are on our blog to find out more about our products, keep browsing, visit our website fandis.com or leave a comment on this article. One of our technicians will answer you as soon as possible.
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