Seeking power conservation measures while battling summer heat

Lose weight, get fit and use an electric fan. It's plenty good enough. Aircon just screws up your body and never allows it to adjust to heat anyway.

The average power consumption for a 6-mat tatami room (about 9.2 square meters) would be 300 watts,” explains Sonoko Toida, whose job description is “appliance coordinator.” “If you reduce the set temperature by 1 degree the rule of thumb will be that consumption will fall by 10%, so a circulator will enable a reduction by 30 watts.”

I love how in Japan, the people whose job it is to sell you appliances actually understand the science and tech behind their product and can explain it to you.

Agree, with Moonraker.

Got a 40watt fan, hardly adds to my monthly electricity bill which always is less than 3000yen and I cook with IH.

All my lights are LED too.

Moon,

I find it necessary to use dehumidifier setting on the 'ol Aircon when in Japan in the summer. Just can't sleep in the the wife's family home in Kyoto -- which is famous for the heat island affect at night in the summer....

Moonraker & Itsme -

That's all fine and well esp if you're younger, fitter and mobile. Add hard work, sickness and body type to the equation and it further complicates things.

And your house design (south north facing, prevailing wind, insulation, windows etc etc) is just one of a number of other factors.

Being smug about toughening up doesn't always ring true, altho no-one would doubt a good level of health could make summers more bearable. But witness the fact of the 1,000s of hospitalizations and 100s of deaths every year due to heat stroke and complications and you can see the benefits of moderate air conditioning.

Browny1.

I am 49 barely a youngling.

Natsu tsukare comes from having to move between outside temps and cooled areas like trains, offices, shops, etc which also is a cause of many heat strokes.

A Jin-Bei is great clothing for summer.

Natsu tsukare comes from having to move between outside temps and cooled areas like trains, offices, shops, etc which also is a cause of many heat strokes.

I think you mean natsubate (夏バテ).

A Jin-Bei is great clothing for summer.

I agree. They are the best suited clothing for hot muggy Japanese days.

Both terms are equally used.

But before people crank up their air conditioners to full blast, they need to remind themselves that since the nuclear disaster at Fukushima in the wake of the March 11, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, the eastern part of the nation in particular has become dependent on thermal reactors for most of its electric power, and the ensuing higher costs have been passed along to end-users.

This wouldn't be a problem if Japan embraced solar energy. Put solar panels on EVERY school, house, and apartment building in the nation and we won't have this problem. Remember, its official- over 25% of the population is over 65. We need to have affordable AC- the cost of dealing with heatstroke for the elderly will also cost the taxpayers ALOT of money.

I have an autoimmune disease that makes me not able to tolerate high temperatures. Every summer here is torture, especially now that I have a young child. Every other day I get aural migraines and will occasionally throw up from the heat. Last week my air conditioner started to not work as well. Usually if I keep it about 24/25 degrees its perfect, but it started to not cool down our 1 bedroom apartment even at 18 degrees. I called up the building manager and the old man came and although I explained my medical condition, he basically said it was ridiculous to be using the aircon at this time of year anyway and that he would get a new one in ASAP but it would take some time. A few days ago the heat index was 108 degrees where I lived and I nearly felt like I was dying. I had the aircon on full blast and 2 different fans on me and I couldn't leave the house. My husband called up the building manager and said we would just go buy our own aircon if we had to because the heat was intolerable, but apparently that's against policy and we'll just have to suck it up until the paperwork goes through. For some people like myself, it's not as easy as just 'getting used to the heat' or 'drink plenty of fluids', and this includes very young children and the elderly. The 'suck it up' culture here doesn't work for a large portion of the population, so if you fall into a vulnerable category, turn that shit on and leave it on. No need to be shamed into heat exhaustion, for Christ's sake.

Both terms are equally used.

I've never heard anyone using natsu-tsukare, so I asked my wife, and she said '夏疲れのことは夏バテという'. Maybe it's dialectic where you live - while I've heard natsu-bate used lots in each of the prefectures I've lived, I've never heard anyone say natsu-tuskare.

Savethegaijin.

Hope you get sorted out soon. Yours is a special case.

Granted as we get older adjusting gets harder.

I have an autoimmune disease that makes me not able to tolerate high temperatures. Every summer here is torture, especially now that I have a young child. Every other day I get aural migraines and will occasionally throw up from the heat.

If you have a histamine issue you could try a lower protein diet (protein has histidine which converts to histamine). Find foods that have low histamine. The liver takes a hit from poorly converting the histamine and that could be making your body hot. When pregnant the diamine oxidase ability in women is greatly increased and the histamine/allergy issue will temporarily go away = a sign for women with histamine issues.

Recently I saw an article that claimed eating eel on "ushi-no-hi" made the heat seem worse. But I happen to like it, so I'll eat it anyway. At the current prices, once a year is about all I can afford.

I survived my first 10 years in Japan without air conditioning. But by the mid-1970s summer nights became unbearable without it.

@savethegaijin: Write a letter that says:

"I understand it will take time to get the air conditioner. As you are fully aware of my medical condition to heat, should I fall ill or have to go to hospital due to not having a functional air conditioner your understanding is appreciated that all medical costs will be pass to you for full payment until such time as I recover".

Guarantee you will have an aircon the next day as most people in Japan understand the costs of medical.

Not sure about the next day as even Yodobashi, etc has a 3-4 day waiting period before installation.

But should be sorted within a week.

Its rather fool hardy to suggest not to use aircon in places where it routinely hits 30C & beyond.

This circulator product seems rather daft when making use of a fan one already likely own along with the aircon can easily improve airflow throughout a room.

As for aircon's I suggest you check them in April or May with a few test runs, if old or suspect, have them looked at or replaced, DONT wait till July/Aug to find out if possible as that's peak when the poor saps who install these & you could be without for a week or two, been there, the wife dog & three cats got stuck in the bedroom for extended time while waiting for the living room aircon to be replaced during a heatwave a decade or so ago, NOT fun!!! Luckily we had the 2nd unit, if you only have one unit in your place.....................

"fan" + "marketing" = "circulator". Buy more devices...

Itsme -thanks for your response.

I never suggested you were a youngling as you put it. I said younger ( + fitter & mobile) and at 49 I'd put you in the younger than many category.

But my point was aimed at those who say things like "I never need/use aircons" or " I drink mugi-cha, wear light clothing and I'm ok" etc etc. Well good on those people. But the world comes in all shapes and sizes and for many many people aircon is essential in what can be quite brutal summers in Japan. Read my first post more thoroughly please.

Many (not all) of the deaths attributed to heat stroke could have been prevented by sensible use of airconditioning.

Short term measures: Make a law requiring all homes to have either a silver or white roof OR install a thin cover over the roof that leaves an air gap. Long term measure: Require that all new houses and small buildings be built at least half underground, and yes, there are ways to do that even here in earthquake central.

Browny1.

Not need to apologize, this medium is just not sufficient.

Put solar panels on EVERY school, house, and apartment building in the nation and we won't have this problem.

Totally agree. Have always advocated this and my house does have solar pv panels plus a solar water heating system. In addition electric fans are used in dehumidifying with an air conditioner.

Aly,

This wouldn't be a problem if Japan embraced solar energy. Put solar panels on EVERY school, house, and apartment building in the nation and we won't have this problem.

It won't help on hot, muggy nights, and it won't help in the morning much either. It would also be less than perfect on the cloudy, muggy days too.

Agree, I get the morning sun. Bright and hot till about 09:00 am but cooler in the afternoons as the sun is on the other side of the building.

Which I do prefer as I do my exercises/MA before 07:00am.

1 new 110v 15amp AC on max 30 degrees and a swing fan keeps everything ok here. Our bill is never so high either just dont go banging the temperature down too low and wear less.

It won't help on hot, muggy nights, and it won't help in the morning much either. It would also be less than perfect on the cloudy, muggy days too.

You do realize power can be stored, right? And that for those times when there is less power, other sources can be used?

Sorry, the sun's ????

My friends Ap is surrounding by buildings whose aircons give me if heat 24/7.

At least in people's homes they have choices about whether to cool their rooms and, if so, how to do it.

In the workplace we have no such choice. Here in my office, just back from lunch, it's 29.3 degrees indoors. Computers everywhere; no fans running. I'd take a big pay cut to have things at a civilized 21 degrees like we once had.

Also, I think the main article has an error:

“If you reduce the set temperature by 1 degree the rule of thumb will be that consumption will fall by 10%, so a circulator will enable a reduction by 30 watts.”*

The consumption should fall if you increase the set temperature, because the air conditioner will not have to cool the air as much.

And if we could get indoor air temperatures from 28 down to 23 for a mere 150 watts per cooler, then it is shameful that companies won't shell out the money so that their employees can work in a reasonable environment. They have surely saved at least 150 watts per room when they switched from tube-screen computers to flat-screens and from incandescent lighting to LEDs. Divert that money to cooling the air. I've got sweat rolling down my chest here and I'm sitting at a desk doing zero physical activity.

Aircons are heat exchangers the more the cool inside the more heat is expelled outside.

Similar to your fridge.

One way to keep costs down is to simply set your air con only 1 or 2 degrees lower than the outside temperature...

It won't help on hot, muggy nights, and it won't help in the morning much either. It would also be less than perfect on the cloudy, muggy days too.

Hi star. Well, that's true but on those days we have no choice but to use old fashioned electricity. But on the days where the sun is shining we can blare the AC using solar without a care in the world. Just because its not 100% doesn't mean we shouldn't use it at all.. Better than nothing, right?

Strangerland,

You do realize power can be stored, right? And that for those times when there is less power, other sources can be used?

Storing power is expensive though.

Aly,

But on the days where the sun is shining we can blare the AC using solar without a care in the world. Just because its not 100% doesn't mean we shouldn't use it at all.. Better than nothing, right?

With the current system of home solar providing power to the grid, we still can't do that - because Solar is displacing other sources of electricity from the grid, not adding to the total.

If we try to use roof-mounted panels, we need some way of smoothing and storing the power, and that adds cost.

ThonThaddeo,

Divert that money to cooling the air. I've got sweat rolling down my chest here and I'm sitting at a desk doing zero physical activity.

Amen! Companies are saving money on electricity, workers are not only facing risks to their health, but doing worse work, and having to run more laundry washes at home - increasing their electricity bills.

With the current system of home solar providing power to the grid, we still can't do that - because Solar is displacing other sources of electricity from the grid, not adding to the total.

Well, apparently its working. I mean people using solar are not without electricty on grey days.

If we try to use roof-mounted panels, we need some way of smoothing and storing the power, and that adds cost.

So does using standard electricity in general. You'd have to pay initially, but in the long run you'd be saving, I think.

Dry mode on most air conditioners actually takes more energy than cooling mode. The aircon first cools the air down, removing humidity... then it has to heat it back up to room temperature so you dont freeze. Just leave the aircon on, and use a cheap fan to move the air around a bit more. The fan can be used on its own on days that arent so hot.

Over 50,000 a year going to hospital for heat stress and they are not going there because of the temp differences between the hot trains, hot class rooms, hot offices, hot stores and the hot out side. Why is everyone concered about the couple of degree differences between the outside and an improperly cooled office being super heated by the sun through the windows and not the more extreme differences from those hot offices and the extremely hot bathrooms, hallways and elevators that receive no ventalation? How many times a day do you actually leave the office building and go out side compared to how many times a day you go in and out of inadequately cooled rooms and those whichbat not ventalated at all?

This is only an option in your own place, but it makes a huge difference. We had windows with thermal glass installed on the inside of our old, leaky, heat trap aluminium windows. Then we had reflective film installed on those aluminium windows. We could as a further step shade the windows with sudare or vinyl screens. Inside the house is a comfortable temperature so far with just a fan to ensure air circulation. I haven't checked actual temperatures, but it's probably about 27 on a hot day. The windows didn't come cheap, but they have transformed a west facing heat trap into something very livable.

Dry mode on most air conditioners actually takes more energy than cooling mode

Not true. The bulk of air conditioners in use are not of the reheat-dehumidification type. The dry cycle on the former just cool the air on a low setting to dehumidify.

I got double pain brand new windows facing East and South. They were free, paid by taxes from the JP Govt. Reason: Noise pollution from the US Military.

Never use air conditioning. Use a fan and sleep in the nude. QUite comfortable when hot. People wear too much to bed here, even in the winter. One thin blanket is fine for me.

"If you reduce the set temperature by 1 degree the rule of thumb will be that consumption will fall by 10%, so a circulator will enable a reduction by 30 watts.” How is this going to save you money? Reduce the temperature from 25 to 24 is going to cost more. Now it you raised the temperature from 25 to 26 this will save you money.

This wouldn't be a problem if Japan embraced solar energy. Put solar panels on EVERY school, house, and apartment building in the nation and we won't have this problem.

How's that going to help if you use your aircon at night to sleep?

Aly,

Well, apparently its working. I mean people using solar are not without electricty on grey days.

That's because they are connected to the grid. The rooftop solar panels feed power into the grid, not into the houses they sit upon.

"If we try to use roof-mounted panels, we need some way of smoothing and storing the power, and that adds cost."

So does using standard electricity in general. You'd have to pay initially, but in the long run you'd be saving, I think.

It would be a complex system for most home-owners to deal with, and has not been pursued in Japan so far.

If your aircon bills are 30,000yen you need to upgrade your aircon... modern aircons are far less power hungry

If your aircon bills are 30,000yen you need to upgrade your aircon... modern aircons are far less power hungry

Depends on how savvy you are with the aircon. If you're leaving doors open / have the temperature set way low / live in an old, poorly insulated house / run more than one aircon continuously, then yes, it's possible to to rack up such a fee.

Solar panels reflect uncaptured light particles and because Japanese city buildings are stacked high and irregularly, it becomes a nuisance. There was a recent case where a Japanese man sued his neighbor over solar panels increasing the temp of his home from reflected light.

The countryside would benefit quite a bit from solar panel technology, though.

It is a very solid, cost effective source of energy and becoming very popular here in the US. My city also uses wind turbines.