To think buildings in the UK need to be adapted to this heat?

[Glaceonn]

I know I’m not alone in this, I wonder how it is in high rise flats? My flat is 40 degrees plus in some rooms. What is the answer though because air conditioning as standard would make environmental issues even worse.

There’s no air conditioning in hospitals, care homes, on the tube, buses as far as I know.

Some people simply can’t cope in this heat, I know I’m speaking from a biased viewpoint but I’m not the only one. I can’t remember the last time I wore a jacket in the day, so it’s not just ‘a few days of heat’ where I am.

It’s making me have panic attacks, there is barely any air. If it was extremely cold but we had no heating, we’d be able to expect our landlord to make the place warmer for us.

I’ve had one hour of sleep and can’t articulate my thoughts very well!

Well it's only about once a year, you can get special coating for Windows which absorbs the sun and or shutters. But post Brits have every window open to the max when it is hot which would obviously negate that benefit.

Air conditioning is a good idea.

You can buy free standing air con units for times like this (which we don't have that often, UK is not known for endless hot weather).

I think new builds will have air con in the future.

We have this black film on the windows which is meant to be sun resistant, it really doesn’t do anything in these kinds of temperatures. We only open windows at night. When you say ‘once a year’ what do you mean? As it’s definitely not one day a year!

@Maggiesfarm

Air conditioning is a good idea.

You can buy free standing air con units for times like this (which we don't have that often, UK is not known for endless hot weather).

I think new builds will have air con in the future.

We have a free standing one for one room, bought second hand. It doesn’t work properly when the temperature goes over about 25. Yes maybe in the future new builds will implement it.

Please no. Air con is over used in offices as it is. The bonus of WFH is that I don't have to sit there chilly all day.

I agree. It's like this in schools. Everyone dropping like flies.
It's true that it's not like this for long as a pp said, but you're right ; buildings here are just not designed for this heat.
Shopping and working abroad where air conditioning is mostly available is so much better.

It's not usually this warm though is it if we had consistently long hot summers I could see a, point in adapting buildings but we don't.

There’s no air conditioning in hospitals, care homes, on the tube, buses as far as I know

Some of the Cricle line trains have aircon.

Currently on holiday in the South West.
The heat is unbearable - the apartment we're in doesn't even have a ceiling fan. The only way of cooling down is a cold shower.
(I'm v grumpy from menopausal hot flushes so it's a double whammy for me 😠😂)

Seriously though, if these hotter temperatures are going to become the norm and more frequent then maybe AC should be a consideration in new homes.

Depends what part of the Uk - south of England could definitely do with air conditioning in homes.
Scotland never really gets hot enough for it to be worth it. Can't comment on other areas as not lived anywhere else long enough to know.

It’s never more than a few days a year at best that it is very hot, but there are some warmer days that you might still find difficult if you’re sensitive to heat. We definitely don’t have enough to alter entire buildings though. This is what free standing air conditioners are for, and fans.

People saying it's never more than a few days..... I have definitely spent whole summers wishing we had air con. I suppose it depends where you live though.

A few summers ago at my kids school some kids were fainting and unable to do any work due to the heat

We have a free standing one for one room, bought second hand. It doesn’t work properly when the temperature goes over about 25

Then it’s no longer working properly. We switched ours on two days ago for the first time this year and have given up as it’s just not doing much.

Air con is a terrifically non-eco solution.

Look at the historic architecture of hot countries, its naturally designed to keep the heat out. Small windows. Thick stone walls.

The biggest problem we have is our addiction to glass. Its purely aesthetic, it's a shit building material, big windows let out heat in winter and soak it in in summer. PiLs have a trendy designed home with huge windows and it's a nightmare, costs a fortune to heat in winter and like a greenhouse in summer.

@WorldsBestBoss

People saying it's never more than a few days..... I have definitely spent whole summers wishing we had air con. I suppose it depends where you live though.

Not really i live in the North West, I know people on here go on about the marvellous weather in the south east, but when it's hot there it's usually hot here too, maybe 2 or 3 degrees lower but not much, Scotland maybe different of course.

@x2boys

It's not usually this warm though is it if we had consistently long hot summers I could see a, point in adapting buildings but we don't.

Summer 2018 was like this for weeks, it was awful. Last year again we had weeks of this oppressive heat. Air conditioning is the only way forward.

Obviously summer is more than just a few days but we don't get weeks and weeks of 29/30 degrees!

@tttigress

Well it's only about once a year, you can get special coating for Windows which absorbs the sun and or shutters. But post Brits have every window open to the max when it is hot which would obviously negate that benefit.

I just want to say. We might have to adapt. These weather changes will be staying and getting worse.

But yes. There is the tendency to open windows and not have blinds on so you can see that lovely weather. I am guilty of that🙈

Air con is expensive.
There are few places worldwide that have aircon and heating - most places I've been have one or the other. I've spent several very cold days in "hot" places because they have AC, and mini heaters for the 1-2 weeks where it's too cold. So, I guess those who want it should have portable fans or stand alone AC units for the exceptionally hot days.

We don't get a summer long enough to warrant money being spent on buildings. There is stuff you can do to keep cool. There's a few threads about.

Summer 2018 was like this for weeks, it was awful. Last year again we had weeks of this oppressive heat. Air conditioning is the only way forward.
My mum was visiting and sending pics of brown grass in England back home to everyone. They still talk about how weird that was.

Depends what part of the Uk - south of England could definitely do with air conditioning in homes

Buy a well built, older, insulated house and it tends to be less of a problem. My sister has a Victorian house. Higher ceilings - the heat rises in the room and its cooler lower down. The windows are generally smaller. The walls are thicker and solid between all the rooms so heat doesn't transfer from the sunny side of the house to the back. Her house is absolutely fine even in this heat.

Air conditioning is a huge huge use of electricity that can be better mitigated by sensible architectural design.

This is when I am pleased we have a north facing shaded garden which our living room faces onto with patio doors so we don't cook on the summer.

Not so good in the winter but worth it.

We're looking in to getting awnings to keep the sun off our windows. Air con isn't a solution - new houses need to be built with low tech solutions to heating and cooling our homes.