JOHN DeSHAZO
‘Quirky room layouts’

In the sizzling summer heat, nothing spells relief like heading to a home with central air conditioning.

Once considered a luxury – particularly in New England, where cool summer evenings often bring relief from the searing afternoon sun – central air conditioning has become much more standard nowadays, according to industry experts.

“The whole concept of comfort cooling has been evolving from a luxury for the rich to more of a necessity,” said Ed Dooley, vice president of communications and education for the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute in Arlington, Va.

And in many parts of the country, including Massachusetts, more and more homeowners are choosing to install air conditioning systems in existing homes.

Over 86 percent of new single-family homes built nationwide in 2001, or 1.08 million homes, had central air conditioning – the latest year for which statistics are available, according to ARI. That number is “remarkable,” according to Dooley, when compared to 30 years ago, when only about 49 percent of newly built homes had central air conditioning.

Regionally, fewer new homes had such air conditioning. Seventy-six percent of new single-family homes – or roughly 86,000 homes – in the Northeast region, which includes New England, New York and Pennsylvania, had a central air conditioning system in 2001. In the South, however, almost 99 percent of newly built homes had air conditioning.

‘Different Creativity’

The use of air conditioning in both new and older homes has climbed, according to a survey of trends in residential air conditioning use conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy. Only 23 percent of all housing units in the United States had central air conditioning in 1978, according to the survey, but by 1997, that number had jumped to 47 percent. During the same period, the share of housing units with window/wall units dropped from 33 percent to 25 percent, and the share of housing units with no air conditioning equipment dropped from 44 percent to 28 percent.

Southern states have the highest percentage of housing units with air conditioning, according to the Department of Energy. The Northeast, in contrast to other regions, had more housing units in 1997 with window/wall units than central air conditioning systems, 41 percent compared to 22 percent. That may have something to do with climate, electricity prices and the number of older housing units, according to the energy survey.

John DeShazo of FBN Construction in Hyde Park said he has definitely seen a rise in the number of homeowners who are installing air conditioning while remodeling their homes.

“I’ve been doing this for 26 years. When I first started there were no air conditioning systems being installed in New England, or at least in Massachusetts,” said DeShazo.

That has changed throughout the years, with the introduction of more efficient, technologically advanced, environmentally friendlier and easier-to-install air conditioning systems.

“We wouldn’t approach a whole house remodel or major remodeling job, without everybody, including the client, looking at installing air conditioning,” said DeShazo. “[Homeowners doing remodeling are] probably looking at it harder than ever before,” said DeShazo.

“The native New Englanders are less convinced of the necessity for air conditioning,” said Sue Meacham, president of the Northeast Chapter of Air Conditioning Contractors of America. But consumers and contractors who are building high-end homes and are tech-savvy view air conditioning as a necessity, she said.

DeShazo sees another reason why consumers are searching for relief with central air conditioning. Summers used to be more moderate, according to DeShazo, with maybe a week or two of unbearable heat.

Now, Bay State residents are suffering through longer sticky heat waves that are more similar to what residents experience in cities like Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.

As air conditioning systems have evolved over the last three decades, they’ve become more attractive to homeowners. Newer systems take up less space and can be installed with little disruption to the architectural structure of a home. That is good news in a state like Massachusetts, where the housing stock is older.

Installing central air conditioning in older homes presents several challenges, including navigating around and protecting millwork and moldings present in the some of the older homes. In addition, contractors have to contend with “quirky room layouts,” that were never configured for central air, explained DeShazo.

The introduction of new systems, however, has helped. “Some of the newer systems are less damaging to the architectural product,” said DeShazo.

Meacham, who is the part owner of Mark E. Meacham Inc. in Charlton, agrees that today’s systems are “less intrusive.”

“It takes a different creativity,” to install systems in older homes, said Meacham, who specializes in retrofitting older homes. “When you get involved with the higher-end contractors, they can build in wooden vents to mask they system … so you wouldn’t even know it’s there,” she said.

There are conventional systems, where ducts are run throughout the home, but there are also high-velocity systems, where small, flexible hoses are run throughout a residence. There are also ductless or so-called “split systems” which allow the installation of wall mounted systems, similar to window units, in one part of a home.

Some homeowners are also utilizing their air conditioning as a filtration system. With high-end sophisticated filters, consumers can improve the air quality in their home by clearing pet hair, dander and even viruses.

“Today you have add-ons … that will kill bacteria and viruses,” said Meacham.

And today, systems are also much more “cost efficient” than they were years ago, according to industry experts.

But one thing that homeowners must keep in mind with today’s air conditioning is regular maintenance, said Meacham. “Maintenance is extremely important,” said Meacham, noting that homeowners should change filters and check that all components are working properly.

Spending money for the upkeep of the systems is critical, according to industry experts, especially for consumers who can’t live without central air conditioning.

“Once you have these comfort-control features, you are always going to want them,” said ARI’s Dooley.