There are many considerations when building a home in the desert that might not be obvious to non-desert dwellers. One of them has to do with what type of cooling system to install. I received the following email:
I am planning to move to the Phoenix area. Can you answer these questions for me? Some houses have evaporative cooling. What is it? Will it cool a house and a central air system? When it comes to really high ceilings… are high ceilings better than low ceilings when it comes to cooling a home?
An evaporative cooler, also known as a swamp cooler, draws in air from outside and uses water flowing through soaked pads in the cooler to lower the air temperature and get air flowing through your home. It can be used as the sole source of cooling for a home, but it is not effective during our humid monsoon months when the humidity increases. Of course, two of those are our hottest months. One downside to a swamp cooler is that it uses more water (that cost depends on where your home is located) and requires regular maintenance.
Of course, air conditioners need to be maintained regularly, but when your air conditioner is working properly, there are no pads to replace, and when they are not, there is no risk of water leaking into your home, both with evaporation. cooling. I speak from experience about water leaks from a refrigerator!
If you are starting from scratch to build a house, you can:
- build with evaporative cooling only. This is only advisable if (a) you don’t live in the house in the summer and (b) don’t expect to sell the house.
- build the house only with air conditioning. This is what most people do. I imagine the basic reasons are that there is less large equipment to maintain and repair, and if you cannot use a swamp cooler during the worst part of the summer, the savings are not that great.
- Build the house with both. For the best efficiency, this would be your option as you can plan the location of the units and the operation of the duct correctly from the beginning. However, that does not mean that it will save you a lot of money. You’ll have to do some math – how many years will it take to offset the cost of the extra unit and the increased water bill? Will you live that long in the house?
Swamp coolers were much more popular here before central air conditioning was more efficient. Whichever path you decide on, be sure to keep that in mind. Also, keep in mind that both power companies here have plans that allow you to manage peak and off-peak electricity usage to save money on your electric bill, and using a programmable thermostat will definitely help, too.
If you intend to purchase an older home, make sure you know what type of cooling system it is, how old it is, and how well it has been maintained.
The Consumer Energy Center provides a detailed description of evaporative cooling. This article on evaporative cooling from the University of Arizona at Tucson explains local uses and issues to consider.
Regarding the question of high or vaulted ceilings, clearly when you have vaulted ceilings you are heating and cooling more of your living space than necessary. Vaulted ceilings are common here, they are probably cheaper to build, and many buyers find them beneficial as the home has a larger, more open feel and often more interior light (which could mean more heat in the summer) ). The good news about vaulted ceilings is that they allow you to comfortably install ceiling fans without the worry of tall people getting beheaded!
Ceiling fans also come with light kits so they can do double duty in one room (the room has to be wired for this). You will have to determine for yourself if the degree to which the ceilings are vaulted is worth an additional cooling / heating expense.
You may also be interested in….
- Lower your summer electric bill
- Moving to Phoenix
- What temperature does your house keep in summer?
