Beat-the-Heat…!

There is no denial of the fact that the temperature in the summer season is rising to unbearable levels day-by-day. This is one of the implications of the Global Warming phenomenon which is inevitable given to the rise in wants of humans for comfort and available resources to fulfil those.

Air conditioning cools air within a closed space by releasing the hot air in the outer atmosphere catalysing global warming which will keep rising the temperature; a vicious circle that cannot be broken without a conscious effort of compensating the harm any AC causes to the environment.

One way to do this is planting more and more trees, at least 50 trees for a one-ton AC. But that cannot be a practical solution as, who would govern it and how? Also, people who can shell out money for their comfort would readily pay additional cost to get away with any such ‘*condition’!

Seems to be a catch-22 situation, isn’t it? But creativity is a quality specific to humans that have helped them not only survive all the calamities but build the world that we see around and live in. So, if one cannot refuse or reduce, it must reuse, recycle, and repurpose the available resources.

Air-coolers are much cheaper than ACs and are less harmful to the environment. And given the period of max, say 4 afternoon hours for 2 months of scorching heat, getting a cooler on rent can make a huge difference and a system offering such a solution can be easily devised and deployed.

Any such arrangement of making coolers available on rent is going to have its challenges and implications. Firstly, it will require change in the mindset and, an ecosystem supporting it. But it could be manageable, inexpensive, and certainly less destructive being sustainable to an extent.

This is just an idea that needs deliberation to prolong the catastrophe that is imminent otherwise. But for those who are environment/cost-conscious but still want to claim their comfort and are ready to experiment, here’s an idea that can work for you if you have a table-fan and an icemaker.

Disclaimer: This is a DIY experiment [Jugaad] that needs care and caution, try it at your own risk!

By the way, do you know that ‘Jugaad’ has found a place on Wikipedia and also in the dictionary…?

All the best to Beat-the-heat!

Trivia: In old times, structures were built with natural elements like stone and wood. Use of cement, glass was zero/minimal which helped the natural air-conditioning. The proof of concept is any ancient Indian temple that is the shelter providing comfort naturally in all weather conditions.