Re: South Western US and Air Conditioning.

Posted by Joseph Earl On 2012/6/9 10:31:10

I had experienced the evaporative unit years ago when I travelled to Colorado, and can say that they seemed to work very well.

Here in Florida, refrigerant based AC is a must, and is used year round. I think I turned mine off for two weeks one cold winter.

I also know about Italian systems first hand. They use a refrigerant also, but don't rely on the big air handlers and extensive ducting. Instead, the have one outside condensing unit, much like here in Florida, and separate room evaporator units that are connected to the condenser with copper tubes carrying the refrigerant, freon, in most cases. They are compact, and are usually placed high on a wall. The fans are minimal, and more efficient in that the rooms requiring little or no cooling will be using much less energy. These units are commonly manufactured by Japanese or Asian companies such as Mitsubishi and others.

Single room units are also used there, kind of the equivalent to our window units, only they are small, free standing, and portable, with wheels to facilitate placement anywhere in the home. You just have to have a window available to run a flexible duct to evacuate the hot air, and are required to drain the condensate occasionally. The Italians call them "Penguinos."

These system are finding their way to the US, however, along with the European style single room units.