Keeping Cool

Introduction

The coastal regions of Hawai'i have a mild climate, generally characterized with lows in the 60's°F (15°C - 21°C) with highs in the 80's°F (26°C - 32°C). Even with this pleasant climate, condominium units can get hot from solar heating, other units, and normal activities (cooking, laundry, showering). We want our guests to be comfortable when staying in our condos so we have air conditioning available for your use. We do ask that you review the following information to help minimize the use of A/C.

Managing Temperature in the Unit

Hawai'i is in "the tropics". Among other benefits, that means you can usually count on evening breezes - the easterly trade winds coming off the ocean - to help cool things down after a warm day. Of course, a path is needed for air to flow through the unit. For safety reasons, leaving lanai sliding glass doors open after going to sleep, with only a locked screen, may not be a good idea. Windows with mechanisms that allow them to be partially open (latches and blocking bars) but not so much as to allow outside access may be a better choice.

Ceiling fans also help by moving the air to get a perception of cooling (the wind chill factor, as it were).

Electricity in Hawai'i costs about two to three times what it does on the US mainland. That makes it expensive to run an air conditioner. And since electricity in Hawai'i is (largely) generated from fossil fuels, there is an environmental consideration as well as a financial one to using air conditioning.

A/C Usage and Excess Electricity Consumption Surcharge

Some condos charge a flat rate of as much as $ 25 or $ 30 per day to have air conditioning available. Separately or in combination, some condos have timers and door switches that turn off the A/C after a time period or when a door is opened. We chose to let our guests decide on cooling the condo but we requested guests be careful in their use of the air conditioning. Electricity rates are largely stable or drifting down across most of the USA but Maui Electric continues to increase its rates. Not to put too fine a point on it, but some guests abused our original "no fee" air conditioning policy with electricity consumption at double the rate of guests before or after them. As a result, we changed our air conditioning policy. Guests will still have full control over cooling choices. To contain our escalating electricity expenses and to encourage guests to be more economical in the use of electricity, we may bill guests for high electricity consumption. The terms of the surcharge - along with an explanation and example - may be found here.

Summary

Again, we do want you to be comfortable. So, we suggest:

Use ceiling fans when feasible.
Take advantage of the evening breezes if you can. That also airs out the unit which is pleasant itself.
Use the exhaust fans in the bathrooms when showering to help remove humidity as well as hot air. Most have (or will have) timers so you won't have to remember to turn them off.
Doing laundry while the trade winds are blowing through the unit may be a way to avoid injecting heat into the unit.
Use the air conditioning when you need to - but please avoid leaving it on "all the time" (particularly when you leave for the day).
You can use the box fans when the air conditioning is on to ensure the cool air blows into all the areas where cooling is needed.

We will leave it to you to balance the concerns and make the best choice for your comfort.

< 2019-05-24 >