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It's been hot lately and last night, it got down to 80 outside and I had the AC on and I felt fine. I switched off the AC and after only 15 minutes it started to get hot again. This happens a lot.
If it's not so hot outside, and I run the ac for a while, and then turn it off, why does it heat back up so fast??
Also, is it true that fans do not cool the air - they make the air SEEM cooler.
I live in an apt as well and while I turn on my portable AC, the rest of the house (Landlord's side) which is on top and next to my unit doesn't use AC. So as soon as I turn off my AC, the temp rises quickly as well. I think heat from the rest of the house radiates back into my unit. And for you, heat rises, so your unit is just sucking up all the heat from below.
Heat from the daytime is stored in the walls/ceiling of the building. So even when the outdoor air temperature drops, those things will remit their stored heat back into the living spaces.
Fans make us/rooms feel cooler because they increas our bodies' ability to evaporative cool by blowing away the thin envelope of higher temp, higher humidity air that surrounds us when there's no air flow. So though they don't cool the room, they can cool people.
Location: Central Atlantic Region, though consults worldwide
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Originally Posted by robertpasa
I live in LA in a top-level apt, not much sun.
It's been hot lately and last night, it got down to 80 outside and I had the AC on and I felt fine. I switched off the AC and after only 15 minutes it started to get hot again. This happens a lot.
If it's not so hot outside, and I run the ac for a while, and then turn it off, why does it heat back up so fast??
Also, is it true that fans do not cool the air - they make the air SEEM cooler.
True hot air rises. And JohnHenrySDM is right A a solar heated roof/wall will radiate in all directions, even down into the space below the ceiling. This radiant energy strikes all surfaces, floor and furniture alike warming those items.
When you get a chance take a surface temperature thermometer and measure the ceiling temperature around 10am, noon, and 2. Feel free to take reading with AC on or off however if starting with AC off then keep it off until the last reading is taken. The ceiling temperature may be the equivalent to having radiant ceiling heat while AC is running.
Cooling fans move air to promotes accelerating moisture removal from the skin.
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