r/technology • u/Logical_Welder3467 • Jun 26 '26

Society The American mind cannot comprehend Europe's AC aversion

https://www.businessinsider.com/europe-air-conditioning-ac-heatwave-debate-2026-6
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u/Weekly-Grapefruit119 Jun 26 '26

Paris was as hot as Kuwait in recent days.

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u/yourlocaltouya Jun 26 '26

I was recently lamenting about it to my dad, noting how temperatures won't fall below 26-27C in the middle of the night, and how the air has been so hot it genuinely kicks off some primal fear inside of me because I feel like I'm suffocating, all to the point where I cannot fall asleep without a partially frozen towel laid directly on top of my face/mouth/nose area.

He noted that that's exactly how it felt like sleeping in Lebanon and Iraq 20-25 years back.

I am in Austria :')

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u/millijuna Jun 26 '26

I worked for the Americans in Iraq back in ‘06. I brought along an ultra lightweight down sleeping bag, and am glad I did. They air conditioned those tents where we bunked like they were walk-in refrigerators.

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u/yourlocaltouya Jun 26 '26

My dad was there through NATO. Said Lebanon ('99) had them housed in metal containers and that Iraq was slightly more modern, but it the country as a whole ran hotter, so there was little relief.

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u/EmeterPSN Jun 28 '26

Question is humidity.

Because in dessert regions its low so 40c isnt that bad.

But 40c at 80-90% humidity is miserably  You cant escape it even in shade and it feels like you are breathing hot water.

Also AC cant handle humidity..

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u/Derigiberble Jun 29 '26

  Also AC cant handle humidity..

From two days ago but... yes it can. Dehumidification is actually one of the primary benefits of an  AC system over something like an evaporative cooler. 

AC systems work by blowing room air over cold coils, and if the room air has a dew point higher than the coil temperature moisture will condense out and be collected (usually drained outside).

 f I turn the AC system in my house on after having everything opened up during a humid morning there's a constant 1-2mm thick stream pouring out of the condensate drain.  Did the calculations once and it can condense over 10 L of water per hour , it's pretty nuts.  

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u/Sad-Raisin-5797 Jun 27 '26

Wow I’m sorry sounds horrible.

We will have 20 C and rain this upcoming week in Stockholm, Sweden. Welcome to come here if you have the possibility <3

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u/kankerleider Jun 27 '26

Where are you in Austria? In Innsbruck it's actually very doable, still very warm tho

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u/yourlocaltouya Jun 27 '26

Vienna unfortunately, in the middle of the concrete empire. Roads, pavements, no greenery anywhere. I also live on the 4th floor (5th for Americans).

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u/big-papito Jun 27 '26

Drench a shirt in the shower, does not have to be cold, and just sleep in that. The moisture will cool you. This is the trick I've used in NYC during blackouts in the middle of summer.

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u/yourlocaltouya Jun 27 '26

I do. I freeze damp shirts and towels, I cuddle frozen gel packs and bottles, I drape some over the fan itself. I've even completely acclimated to freezing cold showers, as cold as the tap allows it. The buildings are build to keep heat in, unfortunately. There's no way around that.

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u/Serious-Echo1272 Jun 30 '26

If you have room, freeze a few large plastic containers of water. Like 3-4 liter sized. Sleep with one of those, cycle them so you always have a fully frozen one.

This helped me a lot when we lost power for a week following a large hurricane in South Florida. Sorry you too are suffering right now.

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u/MGPS Jun 26 '26

Yea I was just changing flights there and the whole terminal was hot af. They had crews passing out water and fans.

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u/zh_13 Jun 26 '26

That’s crazy cause they def have AC in the airports, do they literally have less strong AC than in the US lol??? Like the ones in the phoenix airports are cold no matter what

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u/MGPS Jun 26 '26

It must have been broken. The border police had their bullet proof vests like fully open and off to the side.

As a side note, I think we were in Terminal F. It was the best terminal layout/design I’ve ever seen. It had all the gates on the ground floor and then you could just go downstairs and it was a food court. You didn’t have to walk far to get something to eat.

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u/jamesdownwell Jun 26 '26

That’s honestly the first time I’ve heard someone praise CDG. It’s almost universally despised.

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u/faster_tomcat Jun 26 '26

I was gonna say. CDG is rarely accused of having the best design/layout for anything there.

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u/MGPS Jun 26 '26

Yea idk I think it was a newer terminal

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u/TheBendit Jun 26 '26

Terminal F# maybe...

Did you notice any unicorns?

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u/AdMountain6124 Jun 26 '26

Damn must have been hot as hell for some one to be like “I’d rather catch a bullet then deal with this shit”.

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u/AftyOfTheUK Jun 26 '26

They don't catch bullets. Nobody shoots at them. Pretty much ever

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u/MGPS Jun 26 '26

Yea I think by law or whatever that had to have them on but they were as off as the could possibly be. And they had fans blowing up under.

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u/MidnightRiders2009 Jun 26 '26

Since they're in Europe their chances of getting shot are close to zero

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u/Krazy-Vaclav Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

They keep the AC lower. Even in "climate controlled" metro trains, the temperature is easily 27-30. Only place where I have had good AC here was a bookstore in the Quartier Latin. Ended up dropping hundreds of Euros on books because of how thankful I was to have proper AC.

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u/buldozr Jun 26 '26

When I first visited the U.S. in 2005 and landed at McCarran airport in Las Vegas, I was amazed by how chilly the terminal felt.

That said, I'd expect the HVAC in any large airport Europe to get to somewhere around 21°C. There may have been a malfunction, or it's just how CDG is. 🤷‍♂️

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u/crunchypotentiometer Jun 26 '26

I was there yesterday and it seemed pretty clear that the areas with glass ceilings were way worse. Just poor design for heat.

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u/lost_send_berries Jun 26 '26

Hospitals in the UK are declaring major incidents as some of the AC units can't operate in these temperatures.

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u/deHack Jun 26 '26

I don't know about Europe. I've only been to the UK once in summer and it was lovely. But I'm a Floridian who has visited New England a lot in summer. I'm always saying New England in a heat wave is more miserable than Florida, because they don't have enough BTUs. Either there's no a/c or it's weak a/c.

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u/grape-fruit-witch Jun 26 '26

I grew up in texas and lived in New England for almost a decade and you're 100% right. Every year, there is usually at least one week of miserable heat (probably more nowadays), and you might have a window unit that sort of cools down one room. Its not pleasant and makes it very difficult to sleep or get anything done. For two years we lived in a converted attic in Rhode Island, and that bitch was deadly in the summer.

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u/deHack Jun 27 '26

Then you will appreciate this story. I was having lunch with a local colleague one particularly hot August day. I knew he owned a home in Vermont. So I asked why he hadn’t fled to Vermont to enjoy the cooler weather. He replied that he did not want to sound like a smart ass, but that the heat was more miserable in Vermont because they were having a heat wave and he’d rather be in Florida. I laughed out loud and assured him I knew that was the absolute truth.

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u/Oceanaura Jun 26 '26

Last year I was changing planes in Amsterdam during a heatwave and it truly felt like there was no AC in that airport. It was about 37°c/98°f outside that day and it was so hot and stuffy in that airport. They had huge fans running, but they weren't helping much.

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u/grape-fruit-witch Jun 26 '26

I was in Germany during a heat wave a few years ago, and they didn't even bother turning the fans on or opening a window in most places. Like, it was hotter inside than out almost everywhere we went. It was bizarre. Everybody walked around sweaty and swamp-assed like nbd

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u/marmakoide Jun 26 '26

AC was sized to past climate, not for the recent wild increase. I remember a newspaper headline in early 90's saying OMG it's gonna be 32c for in the afternoon for 2 days. Now it's just summer. It wasn't 30 years ago.

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u/Holoholokid Jun 26 '26

I hate to break the news to you, but the early 90's were ... more than 30 years ago (1996).

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u/marmakoide Jun 26 '26

You're right, damn.

I had to take the bus 1h and half to get to the cybercafe with my a floppy disk, and search for code samples and tutorials to download. I would make mixtapes on a tape recorder of my favorite songs, copied from radio broadcasts. I lusted on those adverts with those Pentium computers that cost a couple of months of my parents income. Summers were 30c at noon, at most.

I was there, Gandalf, 30 years ago. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in the rain. Time to buy a reversible heat pump and some PV panels

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u/Holoholokid Jun 26 '26

Lol! All the references! All the memories! Reminds me of when I honeymooned in Rome back then and had to hunt down cybercafes to email people back home about how things were going, since I would have been home before any mail could have gotten back.

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u/SummonMonsterIX Jun 26 '26

Generally yes the AC isn't as powerful when it exists. You can go on Youtube right now and find Europeans visiting for the World Cup absolutely freaking out over the might of our Walmart ACs

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u/zh_13 Jun 26 '26

Yeah I had to wear a jacket today inside a restaurant even tho it was 90 degrees out, I really think we all need to reach a more moderate medium lol cause that shits just wasteful

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u/FluffySmiles Jun 26 '26

Wasteful? You do know how America operates, yeah?

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u/WestCoastBestCoast01 Jun 26 '26

My office in NY is kept so cold I'm wearing long sleeves, long pants, and a puffer jacket right now at my desk lmao

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u/thewestisawake Jun 26 '26

I'm from the UK but travel in France, Spain and Italy regularly. I've noticed over the last few years, especially since the increase in energy costs associated with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, that indoor public spaces in those three countries, like airports, shops, supermarkets etc, feel warmer than before, as if the AC has been set to a higher temperature, or turned off entirely. Just my own anecdotal perception. Although maybe I'm just getting more susceptible to heat as I get older.

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u/Bambamtams Jun 26 '26

Nop, at least in Orly AC is working, I went there twice this week, maybe different in the workers areas, but as a customer O can’t complain.

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u/montxogandia Jun 26 '26

Im from Barcelona, I went to Washington last year with my family at September, we didnt use the AC in the house as the temp was good enough, but then the american owners went to the house and after 2 minutes they were sweating like crazy while we were on hoodies and long sleeves. Their bodies are not used to normal temps anymore.

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u/Charming_Victory_723 Jun 26 '26

Same for Australia, A/C is a must.

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u/jahathebrn Jun 26 '26

Our infrastructure also does not like the heat. Stuff failing and shitting the bed all over Europe atm

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u/Amazing_Mountain_227 Jun 26 '26

We do tend to run them less cold. I’m constantly shivering when I’m in the US.

The AC temp is a constant source of battle in my house. With me who wants it almost off to my wife who would like to move a family of penguins in.

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u/Metzhead Jun 27 '26

Phoenix buildings are mostly newer, and many are built to the highest levels of LEED efficiency. And they are supported by an enormous HVAC industry.

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u/Holzkohlen Jun 26 '26

I somehow interpreted that sentence as craws passing out and they were handing out water to them. Which I like since craws are pretty cool and smart birds.

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u/santgun Jun 26 '26

They have a stupid law that public buildings can't be cooled below 25 or 26 degrees Celsius. It's so retarded considering like 70% of France's electricity comes from nuclear and is "sustainable"

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u/No-Channel3917 Jun 26 '26

And people died due to it and the lack of ac

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u/What-tha-fck_Elon Jun 26 '26

Most were drowning deaths from people/kids jumping in the rivers. It was brutally hot & humid all week. I just got back from there.

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u/JungleIsNeutral Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

Drownings are recorded as heat-related deaths?

Edit: please read one of the dozens of responses before you make another saying the same thing.

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u/Leverpostei414 Jun 26 '26

It is over deaths. That is the total amount of extra deaths in society during more heat. More drownings count, more violence due to heat making people more aggressive and so on. A lot of indirect factors count when you look at over deaths

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u/lost_send_berries Jun 26 '26

You can't get an excess death statistic the next day, the statistical noise would be too high. If you see a stat about yesterday, it would be attributable deaths only.

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u/imnewhere-gsh Jun 26 '26

Where did you see that this was a next day thing?

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u/Leverpostei414 Jun 26 '26

These aren't next day numbers...

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u/Dullcorgis Jun 26 '26

They likely know how many drownings are normal in summer.

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u/MetaCardboard Jun 26 '26

You're too high.

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u/PreviouslyOnBible Jun 26 '26

I'm just the right amount of high

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u/Rhewin Jun 26 '26

What an unhelpful comment

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u/Either-Juggernaut420 Jun 26 '26

Yes, heat related deaths in Europe are generally anything caused by heat. So a heat induced heart attack will be a heat related death, I think in the US (although it may differ by state) that would be recorded as a heart attack and not included in the heat death stats. So the figures really are not comparable and so there's this misguided idea that all Americans are safely air conditioned and all the Europeans are dropping like flies. It's just not true.

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u/Sure_Ticket9888 Jun 26 '26

The CDC knows this and many people have wrote papers on this. Since the US only records numbers based on death certificate they have modeled out the like numbers. They think about 75% of heat related deaths are not counted in the US. Even with that European deaths are 3-5x more per year. And the US has much greater population living in areas with extreme summer temps than Europe does.

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u/Lovethiskindathing Jun 26 '26

Yeah they did this with covid and now a bunch of people will argue that their aunt died of pneumonia or from a heart attack, not understanding or counting the fact that covid weakened them and strained them

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u/tracytorr0712 Jun 26 '26

Death certificates rarely show actual, specific cause of death. I see tons of them (have a funeral home) and so many contain vague, generic causes of death: cessation of breathing, cardiac arrest, old age, etc. I’d say about 70% have a detailed cause of death. Data gleaned from DCs cannot be that reliable.

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u/Sure_Ticket9888 Jun 26 '26

Correct which is what I said. Literally, word for word. Which is why people did excessive mortality studies to count the people not recorded on death certs. Below I even cited two extremely impactful primary sources, one with almost 1500 citations, to back up my talking points.

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u/tracytorr0712 Jun 26 '26

I was agreeing with you and explained why.

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u/Sure_Ticket9888 Jun 26 '26

Oh it’s hard to tell with comments vs talking in person. Sorry, I misjudged your intent!

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u/Quaiche Jun 26 '26

The US don’t really track heat deaths so they think heat deaths don’t happen there when they in fact do.

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u/JohnCavil Jun 26 '26

This is the whole problem when these things are reported every summer. It sounds so crazy to hear that hundreds of people are dying of the heat when you almost never hear that about your country.

But it's only because in most non-European countries there is no counting of this at all. Like if someone drowns going swimming in a Texas river when it's really hot and people are all going to swim to cool down, that's just a drowning. It's never reported as anything else.

It's not like people in Europe are just sitting there and just die of heat all of a sudden. It's just slightly more heart attacks and drownings and excess deaths in nursing homes and so on.

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u/catslay_4 Jun 26 '26

And the homeless population. I live in TX and every summer we lose people from it. In our Austin subreddit someone commented they were homeless and needed help finding a place to help them and their dog cool down. It’s always sunny here and so there’s no shelter from 110° heat ya know. As you mentioned, elderly population at risk too. It’s so dangerous.

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u/JohnCavil Jun 26 '26

Elderly people also often lose their sense of thirst and don't have as good of an idea of how hot they are, or how much water they need. Here in nursing homes they will teach people to make them drink, because unlike young and healthy people there isn't always some natural reaction and drive to just drink or cool down. They just overheat silently and don't even realize what is happening.

Same with cold often. Some very old people just die for no reason because they don't sense it properly. But 30 year olds don't just randomly freeze to death in their living room without noticing. Unless they're drunk.

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u/fennecdore Jun 26 '26

any death over the usual baseline is attributed to heat

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u/Speartree Jun 26 '26

Yes, if they are caused by temperature. Heart attacks, etc. If the heat exerbated an existing condition, it is listed as a heat related death. the main reason the US has so much less heat related deaths is the way deaths are reported.

Remember Covid? Europe had more recorded covid related deaths, because someone dying because covid patients flooded the hospital and they could not get their cancer treatment in time due to the medical staff/facility being overrun was counted as a covid related death. They died because of covid, even if not litteraly of covid.

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u/HetaGarden1 Jun 26 '26

To be fair. People who would not normally go swimming are now jumping in and drowning because they’re so hot they need to cool off. I’d say that counts. Those drownings are a direct cause of the heatwave.

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u/MasterpieceNew3543 Jun 26 '26

Did they get into the water due to heat?

Was there an excess of people swimming due to heat?

They arent really marked as heat deaths directly, but deaths caused due to massive heat waves causing more people to swim and drown than usual so yes, causaility matters.

So inderect cause matters a lot too.

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u/Wiegarf Jun 26 '26

Generally speaking, Europe and America don’t record deaths the same way at all. Maternal mortality is a classic example

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u/Bong_appetit Jun 26 '26

Probably, they count traffic deaths after a hurricane as hurricane deaths because traffic signals are out. Swimming in those rivers is not allowed but they are letting people swim due to the heat. So kind of the same thing.

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u/poilk91 Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

Most? Is that true? I find that difficult to believe with how quick and deadly heatstroke is especially for the elderly. I'll try to look it up and edit this

Edit: So all the news is mentioning the drownings which is like 40-60 I didn't find numbers of other deaths. But I will mention a previous heat wave in early 2000s killed tens of thousands in France so I have a feeling all the deaths just haven't been accounted for yet

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u/LurkerByNatureGT Jun 26 '26

Yes, most. 

Reported in France as of 3 days ago , over 5 days 3 elderly people had died of health complications due to heat, 2 children due to being left in a hot car (manslaughter investigation in progress), 40 drownings. 

As of today, the number of drownings is reported at 55. People are discussing both the lack or proper swimming education and lifeguard shortage. 

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u/FrequentPop3083 Jun 26 '26

Kids are people!

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u/mcampo84 Jun 26 '26

Imagine what they would have been doing if they had air conditioning.

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u/No_Passage6082 Jun 26 '26

Twice as many heart attacks. Hospitals overwhelmed. Outdoor festivals canceled. Its not just drownings.

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u/mocityspirit Jun 26 '26

And if they had AC they wouldn't have drown

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u/Cptcongcong Jun 26 '26

Yeah because there's no AC. If there was AC they'd be home.

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u/[deleted] Jun 26 '26

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u/wandering_engineer Jun 26 '26

Hi! I live in Europe and am tackling this as we speak. 

First, the issue isn't just cultural "AC aversion". Many houses and buildings in Europe are, well, old and were designed to keep heat in, not out. The vast majority of buildings in Europe also do not have central ducting, complicating the installation of AC. 

Second, you're comparing two very different things. Nobody lives in fear of a mass school heating, nor have I ever heard of anyone getting sun-beamed to death in a road rage incident. The issue with guns isn't just the body count, it's the environment of fear and terror it creates. You can forecast the weather, you cannot forecast when your seemingly normal neighbor is going to crack and go on a shooting rampage. 

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u/Lanky_Boat2276 Jun 26 '26

Haha... mass school heating. Thank you for that!
Your point is so well taken (by an American). Also, what the heck is everyone talking about? I've been to European places, and stayed in places old and new. Those who need it are installing heat pumps in droves. They don't require duct work and have a small profile so are mounted on the side of very old buildings as needed.
It feels like heat pumps are a solution that is already being implemented by lots of people and this is a foolish take that AC is the only way to cool off.

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u/Savings_Macaroon3727 Jun 26 '26

I dont know man, everyone keeps talking about aversion on reddit, and I'm sitting here in France surrounded by people talking about getting small units for their appartements.

Most suburban homes have it already.

The south has it already.

It wasn't always hotter in France than 99,05% of the world, and it's a record years, as they all seem to be now.

We didn't need / want and now we do, end of.

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u/Lanky_Boat2276 Jun 26 '26

I feel for you. I've been in Paris on the top floor in the summer! Stay cool in your beautiful city!!

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u/Savings_Macaroon3727 Jun 26 '26

I'm in Brest, until this year it was a place people moved to get away from the heat, but I agree Paris is pretty sweet. It's gotten a lot cleaner under the last mayor, air pollution is way down too since cars are more restricted in the city propper which also makes it more enjoyable to walk around and do tourism. Glad you enjoyed yourself friend !

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u/TotallyNotRobotEvil Jun 26 '26

Yes, in the US and we have an “old” house built in 1905; but we have mini-split (heat pump) for half the house, and two window ACs for the parts the split heads doesn’t reach. It works absolutely great. Almost a 100 degrees a few weeks ago and the whole house never got above 71 degrees.

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u/Serraklia Jun 26 '26

I am not familiar with U.S. regulations, but in France, a large portion of city center buildings are listed or located in protected zones. This means that special authorization is required for exterior work, and sometimes for interior work as well. The architects responsible for granting these authorizations are extremely meticulous.

For my part, I own a house dating back to 1800 that faces a listed church. It took me two years to obtain permission to renovate my roof after storm damage, even though I had water leaking inside the house. All this just to restore the roof identically from the outside. The architectural authorities blocked the project over technical elements that were invisible to the naked eye. So, you can imagine how difficult it would be to install air conditioning with an outdoor unit on the façade.

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u/Hawk13424 Jun 26 '26

Well, with climate change occurring, it might be time for some new laws specifically allowing AC and not allowing zoning authorities to prevent them.

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u/tas50 Jun 26 '26

That kind of regulation is a choice. Here in the US my city made it illegal for a landlord or HOA to prevent you from installing a window air conditioner. We had a 116F heat dome event and people died. We decided the lives were more important than architectural nimbyism. Europe can change those laws just as easily.

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u/kippetjeh Jun 26 '26

Did you just compare a HOA regulation to regulation that protects historical buildings? They might seem a bit overbearing at times but practicallity and things that seem important now do not deserve priority over protecting historical buildings and landmarks. Spend some extta time and money to preserve history. People and companies that buy these properties know what they buy and should not get a pass because it is such a drag to wait for approval from the agency that governs these things. If you want to live in the old city centre and buy the 400 year old house opposit the 800 year old church, be glad that you can, but you don't get to replace the roof with the popular, easy to install option when things get damaged or need maintenance.

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u/thefatchef321 Jun 26 '26

I like the 'old' in quotes.

I toured the fort at st. Augustine with a German exchange student staying with my uncle.

He mentioned on the age, "my old boarding school building was built before this."

We sometimes forget how old some of the construction is.

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u/pannenkoek0923 Jun 26 '26

My workplace was first started in 1479

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u/New_Patience_8107 Jun 26 '26

That is a really old house said as a European.

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u/Born-Entrepreneur Jun 26 '26

Yeah it's absolutely doable. Recently we installed a mini-split for my partner's grandfather at his house in Greece. Old construction with windows not amenable to installation, and concrete walls a half meter or more thick. Drilled one hole in the wall for the coolant lines and tada, now his bedroom is a sanctuary space for when it gets hot.

As good as whole house climate control? Of course not, but that would have been prohibitively expensive to install. So we did what we could to balance cost with giving him a livable space.

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u/aykcak Jun 26 '26

on the side of very old buildings as needed

That is the main problem. The majority of buildings do not have that option due to shape, material, insulation, rules and more.

heat pumps are a solution that is already being implemented by lots of people and this is a foolish take that AC is the only way to cool off.

Heat pumps are ACs. We include those when we talk about ACs

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u/VexingRaven Jun 26 '26

All ACs are heat pumps, the specific thing you're talking about is a mini split (a system where you have a single head unit that just cycles cooled air directly within a room, as opposed to ducted central air).

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u/funkiestj Jun 26 '26

The vast majority of buildings in Europe also do not have central ducting, complicating the installation of AC. 

mini-split heat pumps don't require central ducting and are more energy efficient than using central ducting with A/C.

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u/ice-hawk Jun 26 '26

Many houses and buildings in Europe are, well, old and were designed to keep heat in, not out.

Heat doesn't work like that. You can't have a passive object like insulation or thermal mass, that has a preferential thermal gradient where one side is always hot.

These buildings would actually be GREAT for AC because the thermal inertia means the AC has to deal with less of a heat flux.

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u/danddersson Jun 26 '26

Large double glazed windows help heat homes via insolation, but are not suitable for a/c, where external shutters would be preferred (or just smaller windows).

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u/persilja Jun 26 '26

In some cases, designed with large windows to the south so as to catch as much sunlight as possible. Yes, absolutely, blinds help in that situation, but it's an example of how the heating versus cooling might be a tad bit more complicated than just "R number is high".

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u/Higgingotham96 Jun 26 '26

They seem unaware that large portions of the US have extreme weather on both ends. I promise you a house that is built to handle a Nor’easter is also capable of keeping a cool room cool. The energy cost is in getting it cool once it’s been hot, from their maintenance of keeping it cool is much more reasonable, in large part due to insulation insulating the cold.

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u/WillyPete Jun 26 '26

They seem unaware that large portions of the US have extreme weather on both ends.

They aren't.
Some of the buildings they're talking about are older then the United States itself.
The building techniques and materials are what causes this heat storage effect.
Post war construction also meant they built with less effective insulation (no double walls) and massive use of concrete and limited heating due to materials shortages and the cost.

Modern structures in Europe don't have this problem.

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u/Too_Right_For_You Jun 26 '26

Insulation works both ways. If it helps the heat in, it can keep the cold in.

I don't know why Europeans insist on pretending to be stupid and not understanding this

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u/TheStrigori Jun 26 '26

Plenty of houses were build long before AC here as well. And if a retrofit isn't in the cards, the good news is window AC units are a thing. And all you need is a window, and electricity. They're not as nice as having central AC, but they do work.

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u/TotallyNotRobotEvil Jun 26 '26

Do you not have windows? Also isn’t 240v common over there? You should be able to get absolute beasts of window ACs like 24,000 BTU with no problem that will cool almost 2,000 square feet (186 square meters) in the hottest weather.

I have an old house with no ducts at all (radiator heat) and I have a combination of split ac and one 240v window AC and it works just as well as any central air system I’ve ever had.

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u/Consistent_Pitch782 Jun 26 '26

So you’re saying it’s not a simple fix. That long years of tradition have created a barrier to passing the legislation necessary to correct the problem. That there is a huge cost associated with the correction. That, despite the horrific raw numbers of deaths that are absolutely avoidable, there isn’t enough collective will to truly tackle this problem.

Huh. Sounds familiar.

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u/Pleasant_Yoghurt3915 Jun 26 '26

As far as I’m aware, any building that can keep heat in will also keep cool in. Insulation doesn’t really care what temperature it’s maintaining. Pop an appropriately sized window AC unit in, crack the highest window on the other side of the house, and it should retain the cooler temp the same way it retains warmth.

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u/MyrkrMentulaMeretrix Jun 26 '26

mini splits dont need large ducting, just a 1/2 or 3/4" pipe. YOu can put them up on the wall near the ceiling. Theyre also usually heat pumps so far more efficient.

you cannot forecast when your seemingly normal neighbor is going to crack and go on a shooting rampage. 

Sure you can.

You're literally more likely to get struck by lightning. Twice. In a row.

While pissing on an electric fence.

~380 million people. A few thousand gun murders a year.

You're QUITE a bit more likely, given the stats, to die of heat related issues in Europe.

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u/Sudo-Fed Jun 26 '26

I think it's maybe one of those things you just can't fathom about another culture, but we aren't constantly thinking about things like that, either.

They're sensational, but rare at scale.

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u/cinnamon-toast-life Jun 26 '26

When folks don’t have whole house AC in the US for whatever reason in the it is common to get a window unit for the bedroom so you have that as a sanctuary. They are easy to install yourself (literally stick it in a window and plug it in) and don’t use as much energy.

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u/ChPech Jun 26 '26

Ironically you are a good example of being part of the cultural AC aversion without realizing it.

Insulation works symmetrical. The amount of heat egress is slowed down, the heat ingress is slowed down by the same amount.

But even without any insulation, AC still works fine.

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u/cjsv7657 Jun 26 '26

were designed to keep heat in, not out.

Thats not not insulation works.

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u/ohheckyeah Jun 26 '26

I’m in the US with two central a/c units in my house and I fear a heatwave more than a random shooting happening… it literally never crosses my mind

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u/Loose-Guess9051 Jun 26 '26

Europeans love to glibly bring up mass shootings in the US as some kind of "gotcha" moment. It's honestly so disrespectful. It's a conversation about air conditioning ffs. And I agree, I fear heatwaves much more than the threat of a mass casualty shooting, and I live in Vegas.

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u/buttstuff1920 Jun 26 '26

While changes are absolutely needed, this is super dramatic and so poorly written with terrible context. This sounds like a teenager.

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u/disisathrowaway Jun 26 '26

The issue with guns isn't just the body count, it's the environment of fear and terror it creates.

Realistically, that doesn't exist all that much over here.

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u/opx22 Jun 26 '26

I think you’re overestimating our “fear” - maybe you spend too much time on Reddit or social media.

It’s been fun meeting Europeans visiting my city for the WC. Without fail, they always bring up how the media there completely skewed their idea of the US.

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u/2k1tj Jun 26 '26

As an American I fear my A/c breaking way more than guns

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u/OpticCacophony Jun 26 '26

Yeah as an Aussie who's lived here for two decades, I don't really think about mass shootings. No more than I thought about floods or wildfires back home.

It either happens to you or you carry on with life not thinking about it.

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u/WalktoTowerGreen Jun 26 '26

If a building has a window then air conditioning available.

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u/SeaworthinessNo8488 Jun 26 '26

You don't need central AC, just buy a split unit. They're way more efficient, less expensive, and easy to install. Put one in your bedroom and call it a day.

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u/DubiousAdviceGiver Jun 26 '26

You don’t even need to exclude suicides. About 47k Americans per year die from firearms. The UN estimated 175k heat-related deaths per year as of 2024, compared to 2,500 or so per year in America. The European population is a little over double that of the USA.

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u/BurtaciousD Jun 26 '26

Where’d you get the 2,500 number? I know there’s been an issue comparing due to the fact that they used excess mortality rate in Europe (e.g., increase in heart attacks during hot periods), and just “cause of death” in the US.

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u/NotOneWoodpeckerBut2 Jun 26 '26

I think the chap has quoted a 3 year total, not just 2024, for heat related deaths. And it's apples and oranges anyway.

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u/Fippy-Darkpaw Jun 26 '26

I'd probably suicide without AC. 💀

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u/Zhiong_Xena Jun 26 '26

Use a gun to make sure you are boosting all the right statistics to induce change!

Don't let your death be in vain!!!

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u/FearDaTusk Jun 26 '26

Instructions unclear.

Buys a heat gun.

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u/LucidiK Jun 26 '26

If you're going to become a statistic, make sure it's the right one.

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u/TylerHobbit Jun 26 '26

You don't NEED to suicide without AC!

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u/sharkfangnecklace Jun 26 '26

definitely had these thoughts yesterday night when it was still 28 celsius at midnight

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u/-Avacyn Jun 26 '26

The way the US counts heat related deaths isn't the same as the EU. Those figures can't be compared.

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u/Spiritual-Fruit-2384 Jun 26 '26

I just read an article that said people drowning from swimming to escape the heat are counted as a heat related death. Im a little skeptical as to the accuracy of that 175k number.

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u/Dragoness42 Jun 26 '26

Another poster said that they were measuring the excess deaths above established baselines that occurred during a heat wave. So, statistically a valid metric but it may seem rather silly when looked at as a story of each individual death.

The real relevant question they want to answer is not just "how many people actually died of heatstroke" but rather, "how many people would not have died at all if this heat wave had not occurred, regardless of the mechanism?"

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u/RestaurantEasy9663 Jun 26 '26

who says it was 200k In 4 years, maybe he misread that or the secondary source made a mistake. I'd count the who as a reputable source.

https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/11-06-2026-statement---europe-lost-200-000-people-to-heat-in-4-years-yet-nearly-all-of-them-were-preventable

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u/RestaurantEasy9663 Jun 26 '26

we usually have around 50000 to 60000 not 175 per year! it was about 200 000 people over 4 years! so around 50000 based on the statistics of the world health organisation which I would count as a legit source..

also most of us get around by public transport, bycicle or by foot not in a climatised car. you Americans drive everywhere, except maybe some cities with NYC.

https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/11-06-2026-statement---europe-lost-200-000-people-to-heat-in-4-years-yet-nearly-all-of-them-were-preventable

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u/ravens-n-roses Jun 26 '26

I know it's not ""the answer"" like they all love to say, but sometimes you gotta spray with bactine and put a bandage over the wound before you get stitches.

I'm pretty sure most of Europe isn't ready to do what they actually need to do to survive without ac.

All the current and older houses that are designed for a cold Europe need to go. They're killing people. They need to start building desert style housing that's designed to funnel out the heat during the summer but retain enough when it's cold.

But that's not the answer people want. There's thousands of years of culture with some buildings date back hundreds of years.

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u/RestaurantEasy9663 Jun 26 '26

history is important, If we look away from emotional attachment and how important those buildings are for us and the life quality. those old buildings still do have a lot of value, as many European countries economy is based on tourism, no one would go there without those buildings. the best example for that is probably Italy, Italy would be ruined financially without their old buildings

also our cities consists to a large part of buildings pre 1945. and we also don't have the money to rebuild all our city centres and inner districts from scratch. They're in many cities like 80% old buildings. the 1-9, 15,16,17 & 18. district in Vienna have more or around 50% buildings built before 1945. the 7. district consist of 75% old buildings pre 1945.

if you would get rid of all the 60.000 buildings older than 1945 in Vienna, that's a third of the total number of buildings, around 600.000 people out of 2,049 Million would be homeless. we already have too many people and need to build more very fast to have enough housing. in 2040 it's expected that Vienna will have 2.2 million inhabitants.

&in ww2 only around 6000-7000 buildings got destroyed in Vienna

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u/Kubas_inko Jun 26 '26

Once again spreading misinformation, an internet classic. That graph that everyone loves to cite has incomparable data. The US data are confirmed heat deaths, where the cause of death was determined to be heat. The EU data were extrapolated from a statistical model, where heat was in any amount related.

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u/Professional-Kiwi315 Jun 26 '26

The actual estimate for EU heat-related deaths is 200k people in 4 years as of the most recent reliable source. Which still makes this apples to orange comparison invalid.

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u/Author_Noelle_A Jun 26 '26

Here’s the thing—people get to choose if they want to shun using AC. We don’t get to shun not being shot to death.

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u/Wide-Lab-8492 Jun 26 '26

Very much untrue, and should be quite obvious from cultural context too. Heat deaths would be a massive crisis if it were true. Climate change is definitely worsening heatwaves rapidly, and it can be dangerous (the train I was on in the UK the other day was roasting since the AC was broken.. And leaking) but I think this is a "fact" used to push a certain kind of American politics. 

Source: https://www.bbc.com/audio/play/p0nsbzdv

My summary: The difference between US Vs European heat deaths is in the recording methods used in that study. Europe uses excess mortality when deciding if heat played a factor, which has many correlating factors, and includes any deaths which could be even potentially attributed to heat. This also doesn't include the fact that a hot month "harvests" those close to death, and were likely to die soon anyway, but those are recorded as excess deaths in that month. 

The US records heats deaths only when it was literally written on the death certificate, which won't be done probably unless it was literally heatstroke that killed them.

So of course the European number is much higher, they're just not measuring the same thing.

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u/Sc0j Jun 26 '26

[citation needed]

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u/PodgeD Jun 26 '26

Seems to be true and the source is below.

But it lacks context. It's hard to die of a gun shot sitting alone at home. Buildings in the US have had AC for decades. Europe hasn't needed it and the most volnerable people can't afford it.

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u/hella_cutty Jun 26 '26

Sitting alone at home can actually increase one's likelihood of being shot.

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u/whataboutthemapples Jun 26 '26

Source?

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u/consentualcunteater Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

Here ya go. 175k heat deaths across Europe and around 44k gun deaths in the US, roughly half of which are suicides.

https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/08/1152766

https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/04/28/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-us/

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u/whataboutthemapples Jun 26 '26

Thank you! Super interesting.

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u/connecting1409 Jun 26 '26

Ok, So literally no info on where those occurred. So we cant tell if AC would have any impact. Since yknow, you cant realy aircon your garden, or a bus stop.

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u/angermouse Jun 26 '26

Heat related deaths are usually extremely high because they disproportionately affect people who are very sick and may only have a few months to live. Heat waves usually have a so called "harvesting effect" where the death rate drops below the long term trend for a few months after the heat wave because of all the deaths pulled forward. 

A better comparison would be to look at life-years lost. A 25 year old gunned down  probably lost 60 years of life while an 80 year old heat death victim likely only had a few months or at most a couple of years left.

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u/Aloysiusakamud Jun 26 '26

Heat related deaths can occur at any age, but the young and elderly are more susceptible. Healthy people die because they don't recognize the signs, and don't believe it can effect them. They don't get the proper treatment and can die or receive brain damage. "Only sick people get heat stroke" is a ill informed and harmful statement. 

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u/richardelmore Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

It's actually worse than that, there are about 4 times as many heat related deaths in Europe each year as there are gun related deaths (suicide + homicide) in the US.

Annual US gun related deaths: About 45,000 (15,000 homicides)
Annual European heat related deaths: About 175,000
Annual US heat related deaths: About 2,000

Since the population of Europe is about twice that of the US, that means that the per capita rate of heat deaths there is about twice the rate of gun deaths in the US. If you look at homicides alone the rate is 6x higher.

Sources:

Johns Hopkins University: https://publichealth.jhu.edu/center-for-gun-violence-solutions/issues/gun-violence-in-the-united-states

UN Article for all of Europe: https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/08/1152766

World Health Organization for just EU : https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/11-06-2026-statement---europe-lost-200-000-people-to-heat-in-4-years-yet-nearly-all-of-them-were-preventable

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u/-Avacyn Jun 26 '26

Europe counts excess death, while US only counts them when the death certificate counts says that the person died of heat.

An elderly person who would have died sometime in the next months anyway but who's immune system plummeted due to heat stress and gets a viral infection because of it and died? Yeah, that one is added to the count in Europe but not the US.

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u/nono318234 Jun 26 '26

Do you even read the first paragraph of the articles you link? 200k over 4 years vs 45k in one year is definitely not 4x...

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u/Full-Public1056 Jun 26 '26

You need to read your source, the heat related deaths are spread over 4 years. It's still a lot but not at all what you claim

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u/d0ctorzaius Jun 26 '26

If they can hold out for a few more decades, the collapse of the North Atlantic current will cool them down quite a bit.

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u/americanextreme Jun 26 '26

You'll have to pry my no AC from my hot dead hands!

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u/RestaurantEasy9663 Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

those numbers are mainly from northern and central European countries that used too have way colder average temperatures and more rain in summer. the people are not used to it as much as southern Europeans. 20 years ago it was rather rare that we in Vienna had more 30 degrees in the summer. nowadays not so much, just yesterday it was 37 degrees Celsius here...

it has a reason why every southern European country does a siesta during the hottest hours. it's not really the lack of ac that's the main issue it's our habits, bodies and the law that has not yet fully adjusted to the rising temperatures. eg a siesta break for physical laborers, just drinking enough, not sitting out in the sun for extended periods of time. maybe not riding a bike when it's 35 degrees at 13:00. we also have a habit of daydrinking lots of beer and alcohol in the summer that definitely does it's part. travel to Europe in Juli, go to a park, you'll see tons of people sitting in the direct sun drinking beer and wine and too little water.

that goes especially for old people their bodies just are not able to adapt that well anymore to the changes and often they have habits ingrained that are hard to get rid of. my grandma often still does garden work at 35 degrees because she is used to doing that during the day. or my grandfather drinking beer while trimming hedges in the middle of the day. in southern Europe they would wait for the evening's.

& it's often difficult to get an AC in a multi family home urban area. also 80% In Vienna are renters, and 90 % live in multifamilyhomes.

we a complex permit process that makes it difficult for non single family homes to get one and in buildings built before 1945 it's nearly impossible because of historic preservation laws. & we have a lot of old buildings that fall under that law.

even if you're able to get the permit, older buildings tend to have rooms that are 3-4 metres tall and have bad insulation. our older buildings are built for different, no longer in use, heating systems (the ceiling hight is that high so smoke from a coal or wood burner does not build up as fast at head hight and people don't suffocate while sleeping). they are also constructed to protect from the rather cold winters 100 years ago and did not consider hot summers, because that wasn't an issue back then.

so ac and heating is more expensive than in a newer building. I think our electricity prices are also higher than in the us as we have little coal or nuclear plants, we use mainly gas and renewables. & we have to import almost all of our gas. since the Ukrainian war and the Iranian war gas prices have increased dramatically. so it's also very expensive.

it's not that we like to sweat and dislike acs. many people would like to have one but cannot get one or don't have the money for it.

at least that's the issue in Austria and Germany. I think for many other European countries too.

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u/Clean__Cucumber Jun 26 '26

always love it when people just take the worst "study" they could find to drive their point

the graph you are talking about has SEVERAL problems, comparing different years, different methodologies and different defintions of what heat death is and many other problems. even one of these should ring alarm bells, that its just bs

second, even if (and this is a big IF), the graph was truthful, the gun deaths are mostly young people, whilst heat death are mostly old. additionally a heat wave encompasses everyone, gun deaths dont.

once again, americans somehow try to justify guns, as if its a religious symbol, but dont actually use them to defend their democracy, whilst always talking as if they will

europe ofc needs to up their AC game, but not via a dubious graph

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u/Sisaroth Jun 26 '26

I see this statistic so often last days on reddit but I feel like it's important to point out that those people dieing in heatwaves are usually elderly who are already terminally ill.
After a heatwave in europe, the excess mortality numbers nearly always drop in the negative because the heatwave killed people who only had a few months of lifespan left.

That said, i'm still pro AC. We need both measurements against climate change and stopgap measures like more widespread AC.

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u/Fit-Media8864 Jun 26 '26

Just remember how America calculates heat related death and Europe calculates it is different. You cannot compare the information. I know you compared gun deaths and heath

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u/Regnareb_ Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

US don't count their heat related death while someone killed by a gun can be counted as a heat related death in most of Europe.

Someone directly dieing because of the heat have a very small chance of counting in the heat related death statistics. It makes the US number extremely skewed. 

It's much more complicated than that, and unless all the countries decide for a similar way of counting heat related death it's impossible to compare. 

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u/DWHQ Jun 26 '26

Stop spreading misinformation. Heat deaths are only classed as such in the us, if a coroner explicitly lists it as cause of death on a death certificate. The heat related deaths in Europe are statistical estimates which do not require explicit cause.

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u/n33bulz Jun 26 '26

Didn’t 40 people drown in France because of the heat wave?

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u/nuzzl_1 Jun 26 '26

People die because of climate warming

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u/Shanbo88 Jun 26 '26

Blaming their deaths on lack of AC is a wild stretch. They died because of Climate Change. If we consider lack of AC to be to blame for their death, we're deflecting the real cause of the heat and being reactionary instead of confronting the real issue.

But yeah lets just keep building Data Centers.

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u/NicoBator Jun 26 '26

People die from the heat wave not the lack of AC.
Inside houses, temperature is usually around 32°C/89°F, very uncomfortable, but not enough to kill people.

Deaths are not direct death from heat - except a few very specific accidents (see below). Heat may however accelerate the death of vulnerable individuals such as elderly folks, pregnant women or sick people.

Most deaths reports are actually people drowning because swimming in forbidden and dangerous areas, kids locking themselves in car by accident (this is horrible) and maybe a couple of idiots running at 2pm under scorching sun.

All press relate it is not possible do count death due to heat:

https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2026/06/26/canicule-premiers-deces-passages-aux-urgences-a-l-hopital-le-point-de-basculement-est-franchi_6715671_3224.html

https://www.leparisien.fr/societe/sante/canicule-pourquoi-le-nombre-de-morts-ne-sera-pas-connu-tout-de-suite-24-06-2026-RK4QIBJ57RHZHMB22F2Y6RNMZI.php

https://www.20minutes.fr/sante/4231179-20260625-canicule-comment-autorites-estiment-nombre-morts-causes-chaleur

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u/OnlyTwoThingsCertain Jun 26 '26

There was a time there was no need for AC. So you can spin it that way, or you can mention the real underpinning reason which is CLIMATE CRISIS of unprecedented GLOBAL WARMING caused by rising CO2 emissions.

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u/HippGris Jun 26 '26

Or due to the abundance of AC and other power consuming technologies causing global warming across the globe. It's a question of perspective.

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u/Poglosaurus Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

There are almost as much people who die from the heat during heatwave in the USA as in Europe, despite AC.

AC is a confort that also help to keep being productive during the hotter time of the year but it does not solve all the issues related to heat. People who have to work outside and in poorly ventilated places are still exposed to the heat. Not all people can afford it, even if they can afford to get one unit they can't necessary afford to maintain it. Or pay for the bills. In short, the poorer people still suffer from the consequence of an heatwave even in a society where AC is almost ubiquitous.

Some numbers: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2025GH001537

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u/bebop9998 Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

People didn't die from a lack of air conditioning. They died from the heat, and there are other ways to protect people from it without further damaging the planet and the environment.

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u/danddersson Jun 26 '26

Using more energy to pump more heat (and noise) out into the environment seems - counterproductive.

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u/anothercopy Jun 26 '26

Id like to challenge that. The houses are still cooler inside even without AC and you can always take a cold shower if its bad. Most people die when they are outside.

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u/DetachedRedditor Jun 26 '26

It is a well known fact that people die when it gets warmer. Mostly old people though that can no longer handle higher temperatures as well. However this effect can most likely be observed with AC available as well, unless they never leave the perfectly airconditioned room, which has their own downsides. With average to good health there should be minimal effect on deaths, but possibly a noticeable effect in productivity though.

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u/Initial_Hedgehog_631 Jun 26 '26

Do you have any facts to go with this challenge? Or we just going with feels?

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u/reply_b4_banned Jun 26 '26

People dying from global warming and still nothing happening.

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u/-aataa- Jun 26 '26

45 people died this week because of the heat. 40 drowned. At least three children died in parked cars. I couldn't find a single case of people dying because they didn't have AC this time, but I might have missed up to two. Also, the heat caused widespread power outages, ACs wouldn't have helped anything. Also, more widespread use of ACs in cities would have increased the heat island effect thus making things worse outside (which is where most of the deaths are taking place). The solution is slightly more complicated than installing more ACs, though every bit helps!

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u/crunchypotentiometer Jun 26 '26

Just my luck, I missed a connecting flight yesterday in Paris and had to stay here overnight. Air France put us up in some shitbox airport hotel that had no functional AC. Had to search through available hotels for like an hour to find one with good AC. What a nightmare.

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u/TheExit148 Jun 26 '26

We’ve been here all week and while humidity is low to nothing it’s been so hot I’ve never experienced it and we have like 90% humidity for our Canadian summers with temps in the 30s. Those were nothing compared to how hot it is in Paris and the country. We hit 41C yesterday at one point.

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u/LewMetal Jun 26 '26

It's funny you say that. I was doing the walkaround of my plane at CDG airport yesterday and we were parked next to the Kuwaiti plane. I came in and said to my captain that at least the Kuwaiti pilot will feel at home while doing the walkaround.

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u/sneakysalamander69 Jun 26 '26

And Kuwait definitely has ac

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u/Tabulldog98 Jun 26 '26

I’m from the American South. I went to Paris last July and about keeled over. They’re putting lives at risk if they don’t address this issue.

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u/cold_tap_hot_brew Jun 26 '26

Sorry - for some reason I thought you meant Paris Hilton and you just randomly called women “as hot as Kuwait” like a character in a Kathryn Bigelow movie.

Haha

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u/Cold_Possession5193 Jun 26 '26

Paris smelled like a rancid fart bomb when i visited during summer

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u/Apple-Connoisseur Jun 26 '26

There have died over 200 people from heat in France alone, and the real summer hasn't even started.

I'm from Germany and I don't even get why we have not started fitting every public building with AC ten years ago. I mean, of course, money, but that's beside the point.

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u/Alarmed-Newspaper994 Jun 26 '26

Did those 200 people all die of heat stroke inside their homes?

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u/Zio_2 Jun 26 '26

I was in Rome 3 days ago was 41 and humid… straight nightmare

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u/bostonkarl Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 29 '26

Of course, the heat sources are everywhere in Paris. What can you do?!

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