Air conditioning has provided a general improvement in the quality of human life since its introduction. It has become one of the icons of a good quality of life, quite literally a standard of living. An air conditioner can turn a house into a wonderful, comfortable home.

general ac in modern society

Air conditioning was introduced in the mid 20th century, and soon became a symbol of gracious living. Originally, it was based on a cooling system, similar to refrigerators, but was soon adapted to become a joint heating and cooling system. The explosion of popularity soon made them one of the great "must haves" of the 50s.

It was no coincidence that air conditioning became so popular so rapidly. It provided a drastically improved quality of life. They gave the world historically unheard-of levels of comfort. In the old days, seasonal heat and cold were tougher situations than modern generations could imagine. People's lives were literally at risk from the weather, and temperature extremes in summer and winter up to 30C.

Standards of living and air conditioning

New technology provided a whole range of new possibilities, including dealing with difficult domestic and industrial issues like humidity, air quality, and dealing with dust and other environmental issues.

The mass consumer market soon created a highly competitive design race, as quality became a primary concern for consumers. That evolutionary process has recently led to the new generation of electronic air conditioners, energy efficient, environmentally friendly systems with a full range of features that reflect the demand for standards of living in the 21st century.

Comfort and health go together

The happier you are, the less stressed you are, and therefore the healthier you are. Air conditioning has removed the environmental stresses of the past. Heat and cold were major health issues in the past, serious problems causing people to literally wear themselves out.

In recent times, air quality has been pinpointed as a major health issue, and a primary cause of stress, physical and mental, affecting respiration. The notorious "sick building" syndrome has often been related to air quality issues. Something as simple as a ducted air conditioner has been enough to turn around a difficult health environmental situation.