Is it really that HOT in America and the Caribbean?

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by skipmac

Same in north Florida for the last month. Temps every day 34-36 C with 99.9% humidity. Maybe on the water it would be tolerable but on land or in a marina that's more than I can live with comfortably.

I might add another reason to have an air conditioner. Ever anchor in a really buggy harbor. Middle of the night the wind dies and the mosquitos (aka mozzies or skeeters depending on where you live) and their cousins the noseeums come out and start devouring you. So the temp is 35, the humidity is 99% and you have the choice of closing up the hatches and melting or leaving them open and being eaten alive.

Yes I know screens, but they won't keep out the noseeums plus they do cut back the air flow a lot. Nights like that makes air conditioning worth every dime.

Last weekend in Panama City, it hit 39C which is an anomaly, that's higher than normal, but the "flying teeth" as I like to call them come out about midnight, these things can get through screens and you really can't see them they are so small, but they must be all tooth for their bite to sting so bad. So as soon as the oppressive heat of the day begins to fade and you think you may finally be able to sleep, the flying teeth come out.
Oh and I do my best to anchor at least 100yds away from anyone which usually means I'm not in a recognized anchorage, and if anyone looks like they are going to anchor near me, I pop over in the dinghy and let them know I'm going to run the Honda at night, often I get the response that they plan on running theirs too, usually they have built in generator though.
Seems a lot of people with generators try to stay away from the majority of boats.

[zeehag]

wow pooor kitty..... when i had a car i had to leave windows cracked for tolerance.. good thing i drove a beeter,, when i had sporty car i was a nervous of leaving window cracked, but no one tried to steal anything..cars get soo damned hot inside. everything dies and booties get burned on seats--i had to use a towel on my recaro seats in my anniversary edition 300zxturbo... burned my butt off so many times...
poor kitty......
is it hot enough for ye yet????
no one laughs at the window unit in my formosa down here. is necessary fro survival and no sudando como cerdo en horno....
as for the flying teeth--hate em... put hand made screens of skeeter netting on everything that opens into boat, and i am able to sleep just fine n dandy as long as i dont have to sleep on a swimming pool of sweat.

[ontherocks83]

I think its purely in people's sub-conscious as to why they need it. We all keep getting told about this global warming thing so there for everyone perceives it is hotter out.

Seriously though where I am there is maybe 3 or 4 days a year where all the conditions line up just right to where you really want A/C. Other then that the heat is usually very bearable

[biker6977]

I’ve lived in Ohio, California, Virginia, New Mexico, GA and now AL- I have to say that Hotlanta has nothing on LA (Lower Alabama) three showers a day on the weekends. 90+ humidity everyday and it's been in the high 90s and low 100's for a while now. We are less than a mile from the water and the breeze doesn't cut it. The water temp is 90+ so that won't cool ya down either. This is a discussion hubby and I have had quite a bit. How do we stay comfortable and not need 10 solar panels. The heat isn't the worst- it's the bugs that I can't stand. Are there bugs in the Bahamas? Mosquitoes are the state bird, noseeums totally suck- will we have to deal with these on a boat? Can you anchor out for enough that they don’t come attack you? I believe that if you spend less time in the AC you will acclimate but you can’t acclimate to being eaten alive (by bugs).
AC- another one of the great debates.

[denverd0n]

First off, if somebody wants to have AC, who am I to tell them that they shouldn't? I'll agree that a generator running all night in an otherwise quiet anchorage is a nuisance, but I've lived with worse. And if you think you win "tough guy" points for going without an AC then you surely win even more for learning to ignore the generator and sleep through it.

That said, there's a lot more to the weather than just the temperature. Here in Tampa it almost never gets above 100F (38C), but this time of year the humidity almost never gets below 70%. When it is 95F and 95% humidity, that is uncomfortable! I used to live in Colorado, and it would occasionally get above 100F in the summer, but it was never as uncomfortable as 95F here, because the humidity was much less. And that was a day or two here or there, not day after day, week after week, all summer long.

Then there's the question of breezes. If you're at an anchorage there is almost always a bit of a breeze. Even in a marina, if you're near open water, you'll probably have a little breeze. But take a dock at a marina on Davis Island, way on up inside Tampa Bay, and you'll have days at a time when there is almost no breeze at all, day or night. Combine that with 95F/95% and I'm not believing anyone who claims to be comfortable belowdecks in those conditions.

Oh, and hop in the water to cool off? Again, a lot of variables. The water temperature in the Gulf of Mexico right now is about 87F (31C). Inside the bay, where you are more likely to be anchored, the news reported the other day that the water temp was 90F. Not a lot of relief there.

And lastly, as others have mentioned, there are the bugs. Florida has lots of them. LOTS OF THEM!

So, yeah, I don't think AC is an extravagant luxury on a boat here in Florida. Most especially if you are living aboard in a marina. Then it is practically a necessity. But, of course, everyone is entitled to their opinion and to live the way they want. If you don't want AC, don't get it. If your neighbor does, it's his money and his choice.

Live and let live.

Edit: Oh, one other thing. Is it hot in "America"? That's like asking, is it hot in Australia? Kind of depends on where you are, doesn't it? Weather conditions in Key West, Florida tend to be just a TEENY bit different than they are in Barrow, Alaska.

[bobsadler]

I bought my boat in North Carolina and it had a/c in the saloon and both cabins. I was somewhat incredulous but since it didn't make any difference to the price I just thought "ok, what the hell". That was, of course, until I spent a month of summer on the NC coast. With every hatch open you couldn't go down below without being sweat soaked in seconds. It was absolutely unbearable without the a/c.

Never had the same problem in the UK

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by biker6977

I’ve lived in Ohio, California, Virginia, New Mexico, GA and now AL- I have to say that Hotlanta has nothing on LA (Lower Alabama) three showers a day on the weekends. 90+ humidity everyday and it's been in the high 90s and low 100's for a while now. We are less than a mile from the water and the breeze doesn't cut it. The water temp is 90+ so that won't cool ya down either. This is a discussion hubby and I have had quite a bit. How do we stay comfortable and not need 10 solar panels. The heat isn't the worst- it's the bugs that I can't stand. Are there bugs in the Bahamas? Mosquitoes are the state bird, noseeums totally suck- will we have to deal with these on a boat? Can you anchor out for enough that they don’t come attack you? I believe that if you spend less time in the AC you will acclimate but you can’t acclimate to being eaten alive (by bugs).
AC- another one of the great debates.

Eventhough it gets batted around occasionally Ac and Solar just don't mix, well maybe if you have a huge cat and can have a Solar farm, but most mere mortals have to have a generator for AC. One Honda 2000 can run a 5000 BTU AC nicely and do it on eco mode which makes it much quieter.
Most people winter in the Bahamas, so no AC required, most usually aren't there in Summer, but if you can get away from land that is where the bugs come from, as long as the breeze is off the Gulf anchored out in Panama City, no bugs, but in the middle of the night the wind shifts and the breeze is from shore, and it brings the bugs.

In my earlier years I've done without AC, now I was younger and much thinner, but you can acclimate to a point, but as Zee pointed out even a small AC since it knocks the humidity down can make a huge difference.

I think people like me that work in AC during the day will pretty much need AC, you can't acclimate if you are out of the heat during work I don't think.

[biker6977]

a64- my hubby used to be the worst about heat- he could stay out for a week in subzero temps but let it get in the 80s and he was done. Since he's been off work and now spending most of his time outside and not in an ACd office he's not near as bad and now it seems I am the one complaining in the evening out on the porch. I wasn't sure if solar would work or not, I was hoping. I really didn't want to get a generator but if we must we must. We've been discussing that perhaps we should head north in the summers and south in the winters. I can't imagine being any further south right now than where we are. Novia Scotia sounds nice right about now

[Neeltje]

Originally Posted by ontherocks83

I think its purely in people's sub-conscious as to why they need it. We all keep getting told about this global warming thing so there for everyone perceives it is hotter out.

Seriously though where I am there is maybe 3 or 4 days a year where all the conditions line up just right to where you really want A/C. Other then that the heat is usually very bearable

... Spoken like a true Newhampsherian!

Jacques

[a64pilot]

Biker once your not working and are cruising I think heading north for the Summer is smart. I don't want to invoke anything bad but being down south this time of year with it being Hurricane season may not be the best idea. I've wonders though if heading much further south may not be a better plan as when we go, we will be on a budget and maybe you can live better on less money there. I'm guessing that up north things cost more than in LA


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[ontherocks83]

Originally Posted by Neeltje

... Spoken like a true Newhampsherian!

Jacques

Sadly I must admit that I am actually a Masshole born and raised. I am only an honorary Newhampsherian being as I have spent most of my summers there for the last 23 years.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by zboss

Not only has it been bloody hot and humid but its been raining at night in spurts. So its constantly close/open/close/open.

I would find air conditioning useful because I travel at least two weeks a month for work and find myself in air conditioned offices, air conditioned cars, and air conditioned hotels. While my wife doesn't exactly feel bad for me, I acclimate just in time to head back out. Plus the A/C would be nice for my work clothes and shoes, to get humidity out. I can only imagine what I smell like to all the other pros that live in cool not-smelly homes!

The smell is an interesting issue. After two years living onboard in the Bahamas I thought the boat really had no smell. Put it down to being there continuously and with the hatches always open and plenty of ventilation. Then had some guests come for a visit who corrected my assumption. Guess I had just gotten used to it and my olfactory system tuned it out.

I might add that I lived in the NE Caribbean for two years and never felt the need for air. I had a full cover over the boat so could leave the hatches open even if it rained, the bugs were never bad and even on windless nights being on the water it wasn't too hot.

[gonesail]

Originally Posted by monte

So what am I missing considering the last thing I would want on board a yacht would be an air conditioner???

not much considering what a pain in the butt marine AC is but if you can plug in then AC helps if you plan on sleeping. if you just like to sweat then we have plenty of heat here in florida.

[xeon_tsd]

Try Texas with a typical summer being 70+ days above 38 C (Actual temp, the heat index is much higher) (This summer was very cool by comparison.) The AC protects the boat when you are not on it.. and keeps it liveable when you are.

[zeehag]

by the way--it isnt the temp of the air that makes the difference, is the temp of the water. try living on board in a body of water having water temps 100 f...rodlmffao.. jump in to cool off... rodlmffao.....is like going outside in desert in midday in summer to cool off in 110 f degree air...