Expensive electricity bill?

[Lisafuller]

Yes ceiling fans are a good alternative, with a non- west facing house. And they're inexpensive to install.

I actually thought most, if not all homes came with ceiling fans. I'm not quite sure which direction my unit faces, but we live in a heavily forested part of Bukit Timah, so there is plenty of shade from all the trees. I would think, then, that I have it a lot better than some but it's still hot as hell.

[Lisafuller]

I haven't used aircon in years. I installed ceiling fans in bedrooms and living room, and my power bill went down by at least half. It feels muggy at first but you quickly get used to it. Only downside is more dust from open windows.

I've never had aircon and I've been here 40+ years. I've always used ceiling fans and flow through ventilation. My kids grew up that way and all seems to be much healthier for it. I've never (literally) had the flu, the kids picked it up during schooling but got over it in day or two most. The first 16 years I lived in old Black & Whites on Seletar Air base with 14' ceilings and big old ceiling fans with open louvers above the windows. always cool. Even my hdb Flat stay reasonably cool as I have a void deck under us and a park on one side and a open parking lot on the other. As mentioned dust is the only issue but a minor one.

The black and whites with high ceilings have such great ventilation, I can totally see why you could live there without any air-conditioning. Unfortunately, houses with that level of ventilation are a rarity, and if you live in a condo, you can forget about it. Very stuffy.

[Lisafuller]

I’ve had Russian, British, American & Northern Chinese researchers who wear parkas in the lab while the locals get by in shorts/dresses and a light jacket.

I also learned that people from these places are used to indoor heating in the winter and they don’t have to suffer the brunt of the cold so they aren’t use to AC.

Even my American hubby doesn’t sleep in AC except for the first week he was here. He finds it too cold. Now he sleeps with the fan.

You want to save on electrical bills, use 3-tick appliances which are energy efficient. Other than switching off the appliance after use, you can go an extra step and remove the plug from the socket to cut down on phantom/vampire electricity. You can Google what that is.

A lot of homes in countries with heavy winters are built to retain heat, so many don't even come with air-conditioning. In the summer, it can get crazy hot, like in the UK when they had the heat wave the last couple of years.

[Lisafuller]

I was getting $300-$400 electricity bills until I stopped using my AC in 2020 (1000 sqft, old hdb with not great insulation, prob tons of air seeps out). Now I just open my windows and constantly have a fan on me, I agree it feels much more healthy and natural. Now I silently judge people who want to sit inside a super cold restaurant instead of enjoying the outdoor seating.

What always confused me is how my friends said their power bill was under $100 and they ran their AC a lot. I didn't really believe their ACs could be that efficient.

If you're running your AC regularly, no way your bill is under $100.