Tips for apartment efficiency

[leanAztek]

I just saw this video on how to make a A/C with a fan, 5 gallon bucket, and a frozen gallon of water. Very similar to your suggestion of the "swamp cooler".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxSLbpAwibg

[Sven7]

Originally Posted by dongs

We're supposed to have a pretty hot week up here in the Portland area; I may take down the ac unit and try a poor man's swamp cooler using a box fan, towel, and a large pan of water.

Isn't it pretty humid/wet in the PNW? Swamp coolers work best in dry climates; otherwise I would have tried one here in da Midwest, eh. Maybe it'll work, but all I've read suggests they're not so effective in humid summers.

(Putting ice into it will make a difference of course)

[dongs]

Originally Posted by Sven7

Isn't it pretty humid/wet in the PNW? Swamp coolers work best in dry climates; otherwise I would have tried one here in da Midwest, eh. Maybe it'll work, but all I've read suggests they're not so effective in humid summers.

(Putting ice into it will make a difference of course)

In the winter, sure. During the summer it's actually pretty dry and at least in Portland it's not unheard of to go a month or two with no measurable precip. As long as evaporation is taking place then evaporative cooling should still function. Will it be more efficient with low humidity? Yes.
As it stands now the outdoor air temp is 22*C with an RH is 44%

[greenfeeder]

Originally Posted by Eddie25

move the shower head close to your head as possible. you will use less hot water as the water doesn't cool down through the air so much. only discovered this recently when I wasn't feeling well and ended up sitting on the shower floor and noticed the water hitting me be a lot colder.

Weird tip, but I might just adjust my shower a little.

[Xist]

Heh. Those are streamers! I thought "Sure, spraying cold water onto the carpet would help keep it cool, but at what cost?"

I swear that I slept last night, but I do not feel like it!

I needed to purchase an adjustable shower head just to get it almost above my head. I regularly shower with my head right under it, with the temperature all of the way up.

Of course, I also have the water warm up while I first rinse off. I do not think that I enjoy bathing as much as many people...

[MobilOne]

Water heater temp: A long time ago, 1970's or 80's, Ohio State Univ found that a water heater temp below 120 degrees f. fostered the growth of Legionaires disease germs. So keep it at 120 deg or a little higher.

[Xist]

That sounds preposterous!

[teoman]

On the water heater front, our plumbing generally is terrible, and adjusting the water temperature "just right" is always a major pain (ours is heated on demand by natural gas) especially as it detects too low of a flow and cuts off and re engages.

What i found to be optimal was keeping the shower on at full heat, and then adjusting the water temperature on the heater. So now i just get in the shower and switch it to full hot, and the temperature is just right.

[redpoint5]

My wife would burn if I set it just right for me at full hot.

[Xist]

Has anyone insulated the plumbing from the wall to the showerhead?