Air Conditioning..to have or not to have?

[washerboy]

For what it worth

A good friend inherited her grand partents home here in Little Rock; her grand parents bought the home in the late 1920's...after grand ma died my friend took over the property. There was no AC and heat is small free standing gas heaters. when I ask if she was going to install AC she said no..her grand parents lived in the home for years with only a few ceiling fans...belive it or not..I went over to the house during one of our summer heat waves...it was at least 100 outside but inside the home was comfortable.

 

[lederstiefel1]

Hi Greg!

You're not still free??? Would marry you straight away! Where could I make such a good catch again? (Just kidding)

Well that's what I love - living in two times - and enjoy both! I will do with my next house, too!

Mark, we had the same when I lived in Wiesbaden (near Frankfurt/Main) in an old house from 1896. We had walls 48cm thick made from old ventilated bricks and just a fan in the bedroom for the summer-time, even though the room was directed fully to the south! But that worked quite well!

Ralf

 

[oldhouseman]

Hi Ralf!

You are lucky to live in a place that has so many beautiful old homes, cathedrals and public buildings. Houses like mine are very rare here indeed. I am very lucky that it was never changed. There are many old houses around mine also but most have been updated. There are many available in the town that are not expensive to buy but there is little industry around so making a living would be a question. I work in government and travel 2 hours one way to my office in Atlanta. I am looking for something closer to home. Thanks for the compliment. I have a partner and two boxers and of course I am always open to new making new friends.

 

[peterh770]

I have a 1956 ranch in Marietta, GA. I will NOT be restoring back to 1956 standards! I installed central AC 5 years ago and replaced the original 1956 furnace!

 

[oldhouseman]

Hi Peter,

How big is the ranch? If I had a mid fifties house I think I would at least furnish it with items of the period. Haywood-Wakefield furniture and pretty much everything needed for a period installation is still available in the markets around Atlanta. It sounds like you have a great collection of machines. I know a lady who is 91 and lives in a ranch house she and her husband had built in 1954. It still has the original furnace. The kitchen got an update in 1970 and is still in use. I know when she passes away her children will send the appliances out via a yard sale. To bad so much gets scattred that way but then guys like us are always on hand to save it.

 

[petek]

I noticed in your original post you said the kitchen house was moved and adjoined to the main house way back when. Kitchens in the grander homes back then were often not adjoined to the main house for the two important reasons, firstly the fire hazard and also as a way of keeping the house cool in summer more so in the south but it was also commonly done in the north, even here in Canada, if not the kitchen was in the basement.
A misconception about people suffering horribly in the heat back then because of all the clothes they wore.. think Gone With the Wind. While they did dress like that for "occasions" etc and definitely whenever there was a photograph or portrait to be taken they did wear lighter clothing in the heat than is portrayed by Hollywood movies and photographs would have us believe.

 

[oldhouseman]

reply to petek

Yes, the kitchen house was moved up and attached in 1910. It had a large hearth but that was removed and filled in. One side of the roof is gable ended and the other a hip roof. I tended to have cold meals this past summer because turning the eletric stove on really heated up the place.

In a dairy kept by my great-great grandmother she complained about the weight of four petticoats over pantaloons. That is six layers of clothing in winter. Summer found her with one petticoat. Still three layers of clothes. Of course she was well tended by servants until the war came along in 1861. After the war her dress was much simplified and she had to work. She was born in 1838 and up to her death in 1923 she still wore two additional layers of clothes under her dress. I'm certain that in the summer heat common sense prevailed regarding the number of layers of clothing. I grew up on a working farm here in the south and well know to dress for the season. The summer heat can be brutal. Any outside work is done between 5am and 10am. Finding and staying in a cool place is the order of the day when it get over 90 degrees. This coming summer will find me in the library at home on hot days as it is one of the really comfortable rooms -with a glass of iced tea or perhaps a glass of sherry or port in the evening!

 

[toggleswitch]

What? No mint Juleps?

[Ok this is freaky-- the Greek mythology thing is a coincidence. This is the first site I saw for a recipe! ]

http://home.att.net/~ejlinton/dom_mint-julep.html

 

[oldhouseman]

Mint Juleps

Of course should guests be present. I don't care for them myself. All that sugar weakens the taste of the liquor. I have an uncle that makes moonshine. We get a kick outa folks that have mixed drinks. Watered down liquor ain't a good thing.

In Atlanta they ask you what business you're in. In Macon they ask your mother's maiden name. In Savannah (and Sparta) they ask what are your drinking.

We still have Confederate Memorial Day here in Georgia on April 26th. A few friends come over, we have a toast to General Lee and President Davis and of course there are Mint Juleps passed around while we discuss the "warah"

 

[panthera]

I wouldn't

You have the very great luck of living in a house which was built to be a home. Forever.
Surely, you should update safety related things - as you have. And, yes, living with fireplaces, I think a CO2 detector and really good fire extinguishers are a must.
But why change a winning team? The house works well, as it was designed to. Your neighbors are the ones who need to rethink things, not you.
Energy costs are not going to go down any time soon, either...
Old appliances are not always better. I have cooked on wood stoves and will take induction or gas any day.

 

[oldhouseman]

Good advise

I appreciate all the great advise I have seen here. I was walking through my house last weekend checking windows and doors to see what needs attention and thinking about how to do what the house really needs to insulate and keep the period look and feel. Because I work for the State Archives as an Archivist and historian I also feel a sense of obligation to do what is right for future generations who may come after me. My training coupled with advise from people on this sight is what I was seeking. I know anybody interested in this sight would have good suggestions and advise. My home is furnished with items to the period of the house. I had the paint put to spectroscopic tests to determine the original colors and have restored them. I have inventories of the house (a side benefit of working at an archives) so I know what furnishings were there in various time periods plus I am in contact with family members who used to own the house.

I am looking to the coming year. We in America are living in as the Chinese say "in interesting times". I hope the new year brings us all a good year and happiness in our homes.

I am going to keep my house as close to 1797 as possible. All modern safety features considered.

If anybody is interested google "Enon Hall" and go to their website and you will get a bit of an idea of what I am talking about with a house restoration. I have kept mine very much more original than Enon Hall but you will get the picture.

I still have remnants of 1830 wallpaper in my library (that was hidden behind 1950's sheetrock). I found a penny in an attic recess minted in the 1850's. Who knows what will turn up when I employ a metal detector about the grounds.

 

[drmitch]

I know where ya comming from. It was a very hot summer here in Tn. too and Both our central units quit at the start of Aug. New units were not in our budget and we were lucky I had a friend who loaned us a window unit. You also might try Old House Web which has a lot of people with the same problems and intrests.

http://www.oldhouseweb.com/newBB/index.php

 

[partscounterman]

I have a love/hate relationship with A/C

I live very close to sea level in central Maui. Because the sun beats down on our place hard in the summer, we do need some air conditioning and I am grateful we have it, but I really prefer not to have it on all the time. By putting heavy curtains inside and some lattice work outside of our south facing bedroom window, we have cut our use of the air conditioner(s) in half. I'm sure this pleases our landlord, who is so kind as to include the electricity with the rent.

Air conditioning feels good for a while when you first turn it on, but I always get chilled and my noses runs if I'm in it for too long.

The only reason I can think of in favor of adding the A/C to oldhousemans place is to entice a new buyer.

 

[toggleswitch]

Humidity with heat makes me cranky, well ok crankier!

For me a must-have!

House stays quieter.
House stays cleaner.
House is more secure & burglar proof; no need to open and close windows upon entering/leaving.
No damage from mold/humidity.
No need for unsightly throws all over couches. Sorry, but accumulated body oils sucked into the couch from exposed sweating extremities is not my idea of fun.

77*F (25*C) A/C setting when occupied and all weekend.
85*F (29*C) A/C setting when unoccupied.

It's the humidity that I object to. Arizona was over 100*F (38*C) upon one of my visits, and it was perfectly comfortable
due to a low relative humidity.

 

[Maytagmom]

My vote

No, I would not install Central AC in the house.
Maybe all you need is a dehumidifier.

Got any ghosts?

MM/C~

 

[toggleswitch]

Ghosts no, skeletons in my closet may be another issue.

A whole-house dehumdifier is bascially an A/C that dumps the heat back into the house.

For a similar energy cost an A/C will dehumdify AND cool!!

Besides, with a dehumdifier the windows have to be closed as well!

 

[Maytagmom]

Arizona It's a dry heat & I don't even sweat

I'm talking about a stand alone (room) unit Mr. Togglefishy.

I considered buying one when the AC went out in the POS I rent. Bought just 1 window unit. And today....I have to run the AC. Sure does feel Christmassy with 80 degree weather, FEH!

Here in Texas during the summer, you would probably get a gallon of water out of household air every 8 hours.

One day....I won't have to worry about this Texas heat no more. God that day can't come soon enough for me.

 

[oldhouseman]

a few pictures

Here are some shots of the house. Built in 1797, two rooms were added to the front in 1848 along with the porch and the wooden trellis work. The kitchen was moved up and attached in 1910 and a porch enclosed on one side to add a bath. This shot is the kitchen garden this past summer when I started the layout. We are in severe drought so I am not planting anything until the drought has passed.

 

[oldhouseman]

front of the house

this shows the front of the house. It was "updated" in 1848 to replect the Italianate taste of the period. I'm glad they did not touch the inside. I have all the shutters in storage right now for repair.

 

[oldhouseman]

back of the house

Here is the back. You can see how the kitchen was moved up and attached. This shows the pure Federal style of the house as it built in 1797.