Every summer, the rising temperature becomes a hot topic for discussion. Architects and builders, especially those who claim to design eco-friendly houses, get frequent complaints about how unbearable the indoor temperature has been. From an ecological perspective, the rising temperature and increasing affordability are prompting thousands of families to buy air conditioners (ACs).
A study published in the National Academy of Sciences has placed air conditioners among the products poised for exponential growth in the coming years — a product already infamous for releasing Hydro fluorocarbons (HFC) which indirectly accelerates climate change.
Besides, they transfer the indoor heat to the outdoors, leading to heat islands, especially in buildings with a large number of ACs.
It is a fact that no house can be built to suit all seasons. If a house in coastal Kerala has to be designed to allow cross ventilation even during the rains, the same model may not be needed in Hyderabad or if built so, it will end up filling the house with hot air during summer. While a non-stop flash shower with wind would make Bangalore buildings suffer, a sudden spell of dry weather in an otherwise hot and humid Chennai would create discomfort for the locals.
Unfortunately, regular use of ACs affects our body’s capacity to get adjusted to outdoor temperatures. Our ancestors lived through different seasons with appropriate food and clothing, and let their bodies get adjusted. Today, in the name of comfort, we are letting technology condition our lives.
So, the challenge is twofold — first, to design the building most suited for all seasons, if not best suited for one season, and second, in the case of occasional extreme weather conditions in one season, let our bodies get adjusted to the changing nature of heat and humidity.
Towards the first challenge, insulation and ventilation are among the major criteria, being the technical aspects of passive cooling, which can be further explored. However, for the second challenge of getting adjusted, it is only our willpower that can make the difference.
(The writer is an architect working for eco-friendly designs and can be contacted at varanashi@gmail.com)
