is air con bad for you ??

pm.

hi lads, i got my new car 6 weeks ago ( cmax ) and it comes with air con, but i find my throat to be dry of even a bit sore lately, someone told me its from the a/c ?? what do ye think ?

Seth Brundle

I love it. Wife hates it (so it tends to be on a lot )
Its not good for your fuel consumption and you are killing the planet though.

crosstownk

The sore throat thing can be down to the air being drier than what you're used to - especially if your not exposed to an air conditioned environment all that often. Your throat will most likely get used to it. But, tbh, chances are you have a plain old sore throat.

Lately, at work, the A/C has been on in the office and people are complaining about sore/dry throats. It happens every time the A/C is turned on after being off for the winter.

Henry Ford III

I love a/c in the car but don't use it all the time. Don't need to.

slipss

Probably is the air con, i've heard of a good few people getting sore throats when they go on holidays and have the air con running in thier apartment, also heard from one other person the same thing happening with thier car air con, he said after a few weeks he just got used to it and it stoped giving him a soar throat.

colly10

Don't know whether or not it's bad for ye but I have heard people complaining about it. One guy I worked with actually complained that the aircon in work made him go bald. Either way I wouldn't worry about it.

crosstownk

colly10 wrote:

One guy I worked with actually complained that the aircon in work made him go bald.

Ah Jaysus - that's a first. How did he attribute the baldness to A/C?

Wishbone Ash

colly10 wrote:

the aircon in work made him go bald

Perhaps he's confusing it with hair conditioning!

crosstownk

Wishbone Ash wrote:

Perhaps he's confusing it with hair conditioning!

LOL

bazz26

crosstownk wrote:

Ah Jaysus - that's a first. How did he attribute the baldness to A/C?

The breeze from the air conditioning must have upset his combover.

dave2pvd

Try changing to 'fresh air' instead of 'recirculate'.

a/c does dry out the air. It can bother your throat and nose (sinuses). And you will get used to it after a while.

But come on, WTF do you need a/c for in Ireland??? Is this some kind of status item?? Or is 19deg now considered REALLY hot?

pm.

dave2pvd wrote:

Try changing to 'fresh air' instead of 'recirculate'.

a/c does dry out the air. It can bother your throat and nose (sinuses). And you will get used to it after a while.

But come on, WTF do you need a/c for in Ireland??? Is this some kind of status item?? Or is 19deg now considered REALLY hot?

i work as a sales rep and do a lot of mileage, so when i hit cities or large towns and get bogged down in traffic its great to hit the a/c button the car gets warm very quick when your not moving. i taught it was the a/c doing it did ye notice how quick the windscreen fog clears up when the a/c is on ? in just a few seconds its clear.

dave2pvd

dave2pvd wrote:

Try changing to 'fresh air' instead of 'recirculate'.

a/c does dry out the air. It can bother your throat and nose (sinuses). And you will get used to it after a while.

But come on, WTF do you need a/c for in Ireland??? Is this some kind of status item?? Or is 19deg now considered REALLY hot?

Some cars, usually the ones with bigger engines experience heat soak from the engine. In these the car will get pretty toasty without A/C!

Its worth mentionng that if you have A/C its good practice to run it for a few minutes every week.

gyppo

dave2pvd wrote:

But come on, WTF do you need a/c for in Ireland???

Even get into a steamed up car on a pissin' wet day, where the inside of the windscreen is soaking wet?

Altreab

dave2pvd wrote:

Try changing to 'fresh air' instead of 'recirculate'.

a/c does dry out the air. It can bother your throat and nose (sinuses). And you will get used to it after a while.

But come on, WTF do you need a/c for in Ireland??? Is this some kind of status item?? Or is 19deg now considered REALLY hot?

Air conditioning is not for just heating the car. Its for maintaining a constant comfortable tempeture for the driver in particular. This helps drivers ...in particular drivers doing large milage stay comfortable and maintain concentration while driving. Anyone who has driven any distance on a warm day will know the benifits of having air conditioning in their cars.

dave2pvd

I agree with the de-misting benefits of a/c. Hands-free demisting, almost.

Heat-soak for larger engines? Larger engines don't necessesarily operate at higher temp than small ones - hence bigger radiators. And it doesn't have that much effect on increasing the temp of the air coming out of your vent. Esp when the ventilation system is on the other side of an insulated bulkhead - ie in the cabin with you, just above your left foot.

Using a/c for heat - you're basically wasting your money. Your fuel economy drops. The drop expressed as a percentage, for a smaller engine can be considerable.

My astonishment to this thead comes from the fact that a/c seems to be almost deemed necessary now. That used not be the case!

Just to confirm: cars in Ireland still have windows that go up and down, right? And many would probably have sun-roofs also?

I can only conclude that the average Summer temperature in Ireland has increased a good 10C or so in the last 10 years. The mosquitoes must be awful.

Plaese don't take this the wrong way. I'm not trying to be too much of a smart-arse. My tone is harmless sarcasm, not any kind of nastiness. Just for perspective: I am in a part of the world where Summer conditions of 35C and 90% humidity is not uncommon. A/c is an absolute must in a car here. And in your home.

Countryripple

yea its defo the a/c. the air is too dry. some people are more sensitve than others. I always suffer on planes. our air in ireland is naturally very moist, like 70% or something crazy.

can you not just open the window

Tony Danza

I agree with dave, don't see the need for having a/c in a car over here, i've never been so warm that pulling down the window couldn't sort out, nor has my windscreen ever been so misted that the fan for the windscreen (does it have a proper name?) couldn't sort out. Drove through nevada during the summer, there's a place where you needed a/c!

prospect

My F-I-L reckons his AirCon dries his eyes, so never uses it.


RE: Aircon is a requirement or not..

I wouldn't be without it. If the temp is 19oC and it is sunny, you can be sure that it'll be damn hot in the car when you hop into it after work to go home. This is where the aircon is most useful.

It is all down to personal preference, why try to judge people on it? You say you live where the summer is 35oC and aircon is a must, similarly someone who is used to 50oC is probably laughing at you.....

crosstownk

If you want air con then go for it - if you don't want it or don't feel it's necessary then either leave it off or buy a car with standard heating and ventilation.

Personally I like air con. Demists the windows quicky, and makes the cabin more comfortable. I'd probably survive without it, tbh, but I don't have to.

dave2pvd

prospect wrote:

why try to judge people on it?

No judgements made. Although maybe one just for you prospect

dave2pvd

As an aside, in HOT places, the 1st thing you do upon entering your car is to open the windows. It's the quickest way to let the trapped heat out. This gives the a/c a head start. Running the a/c on 'fresh air' rather than 'recirc' at the beginning can help too, at least until cabin temps approach ambient.

DukeDredd

prospect wrote:

I wouldn't be without it.

Agree with you 100%. Have always had cars without A/C and got my first one with it last year, wouldn't even consider buying a car now without it. I've driven with it on for long periods and off for similar lengths and have noticed no change in mpg.

Wouldn't dropping the windows to cool the cabin down affect your fuel economy also?

prospect

dave2pvd wrote:

No judgements made. Although maybe one just for you prospect

Ah flip it, did i shoot myself in the foot again...

dave2pvd

At motorway speeds, cracking the window(s) a little doesn't affect mpg much. However, 4 windows wide open will. Which is an argument for having a/c - it will use less fuel than opening all your windows. But would you need to open all those windows.

There are a few studies I have read about the a/c vs windows argument. Basically, below a certain speed, opening windows is the better option. I am sure the speed is car-specific.

BTW: a/c does affect your mpg. You can't run that compressor and fan for nothing.

astrofool

ABS, Airbags, Electric Windows, Sunroofs, all stuff that wasn't standard on cars at one stage, AC has been on big cars for years as a standard, and now it's trickled down to smaller cars. You'll be complaining about DVD/GPS navigation/hybrid engines in a few years time.

dave2pvd

astrofool wrote:

You'll be complaining about DVD/GPS navigation/hybrid engines in a few years time.

Oh, I am sure you're right astrofool. And you'll be there to remind me.

You'll recognise me alright: I'll be the lad that's totally lost, sweating my c0j0nes off and almost out of petrol.