Is Air Conditioning a Luxury or a Necessity?

This is a question that’s been asked time and time again, and there doesn’t seem to be a consensus. Many would say that it depends on where you live. A person living in Arizona with temperatures soaring above 110 degrees may find their health in danger without air conditioning, while someone who lives in San Diego where the temperatures don’t normally get higher than 80 may not need it.

It’s an interesting question that recently came up at an Austin City council meeting, as discussed in an article titled Isair conditioning a luxury or necessity? Some people in the Texas city feel that air conditioning is as important as shelter, food and water. They point out that temperatures in the summer can regularly get over 100 degrees. It’s a commonly accepted fact that if AC wasn’t an option, most people wouldn’t live in the city.

However, some experts on energy efficiency recently began questioning if it’s truly a basic human right. The result was a heated exchange at a city council meeting where they were discussing energy efficiency programs in the city.

The City Council asked for a report on whether or not their energy efficiency programs are helpful for residents with lower incomes. Some members of the people assigned to the task force disagreed with some of the conclusions that arose from the report. For example, the report showed that window units and central AC systems were given away as part of their city’s free weatherization program. Some folks didn’t believe this was a good use of the money.

They said it may have been helpful in stimulating the economy, but that it did nothing to try and reduce energy consumption. The task force on the other hand feels that free air conditioning program should be expanded. It’s already an expensive program, with as much as $6,000 being spent per home on something that most of the world believes is a luxury item.

Some members of the city council didn’t appreciate it being described as a luxury. Member Delia Graza said it was a quality of life issue, and further said “In Texas, the heat that we experience here, any person regardless of health or age is in a life-threatening situation when they don’t have air conditioning.”

At AC-World we believe that air conditioning can greatly increase the quality of life, at a minimum. For some residents it’s likely a health issue. No matter what area of the country you live in, we can help you install an efficient, quiet ductless air conditioning system .