Southwest heat wave

[cathy63]

The only place I would think that would be hotter than Phoenix, AZ, is Death Valley,California. It usually runs a bit hotter than Phoenix, but not much hotter.

According to NOAA, Needles was the hottest spot in the contiguous U.S. yesterday at 123 degrees. Death Valley was hotter on Tuesday (127) and Monday (125) though. The official highs measured at the Phoenix airport haven't broken 120 this week.

 

[NW-Bound]

I got home to Phoenix late last night at 11PM, and it was still about 105F! Hey, it was nothing new to this Phoenician of 40+ years, other than that it was not supposed to happen till July/August. But even 120F in June has happened before many times. Nothing new here, folks.

Where I returned from, Paris was up to 96F. What made it bad was that there was no A/C. Hotels have them, but we stayed in rented apartments for this 6-week trip and not even an upscale apartment in Brussels had one. I found it hard to sleep when the temperature was in the high 80s at night. Call me wimpy, but I like my 78F AC setting, plus a fan running. Talk about fans, Europeans do not believe in them either. None of the places we rented had a fan. And they don't believe in ice-cold drinks either, but that's another subject.

When I started this trip in early May, it was quite cool, but then the entire Western Europe got on fire. Guess I brought the sun with me. Wherever we went, ice cream and gelato shops did a brisk business, selling one-scoopers for from 1.50 to 3 euros. There were entrepreneurial individuals with chilled small water bottles (1/3 liter or 1/3 quart) selling them for 1 euro out in the street.

It was ridiculous. Temperature of places I visited was supposed to be in the 60s to the 70s for May/June. Instead, I suffered 80s to high 90s. I think it really detracted from the foie gras I ate sitting in that un-climatized restaurant. Yet, the real Parisians around me did not seem to mind. Tough people!

See photos of kids playing in fountains in downtown Koln (Cologne) Germany, and in Paris.

PS. Paris will get a reprieve later today according to forecast.

 

[audreyh1]

I got home to Phoenix late last night at 11PM, and it was still about 105F! Hey, it was nothing new to this Phoenician of 40+ years, other than that it was not supposed to happen till July/August. But even 120F in June has happened before many times. Nothing new here, folks.

Where I returned from, Paris was up to 96F. What made it bad was that there was no A/C. Hotels have them, but we stayed in rented apartments for this 6-week trip and not even an upscale apartment in Brussels had one. I found it hard to sleep when the temperature was in the high 80s at night. Call me wimpy, but I like my 78F AC setting, plus a fan running. Talk about fans, Europeans do not believe in them either. None of the places we rented had a fan. And they don't believe in ice-cold drinks either, but that's another subject.

When I started this trip in early May, it was quite cool, but then the entire Western Europe got on fire. Guess I brought the sun with me. Wherever we went, ice cream and gelato shops did a brisk business, selling one-scoopers for from 1.50 to 3 euros. There were entrepreneurial individuals with chilled small water bottles (1/3 liter or 1/3 quart) selling them for 1 euro out in the street.

It was ridiculous. Temperature of places I visited was supposed to be in the 60s to the 70s for May/June. Instead, I suffered 80s to high 90s. I think it really detracted from the foie gras I ate sitting in that un-climatized restaurant. Yet, the real Parisians around me did not seem to mind. Tough people!

See photos of kids playing in fountains in downtown Koln (Cologne) Germany, and in Paris.

PS. Paris will get a reprieve later today according to forecast.

Wow, that's rough! Yeah I remember changing trains in late June 2015 in Paris, having to drag luggage the half mile from Gare de l'Est to Gare du Nord in full sun and sweltering 95 degree heat. Miserable! It was quite a relief to get off the train in Amsterdam and feel the cool breeze coming off the river. The train had been quite hot too.

My Amsterdam SIL has been talking about how hot it has been getting in Amsterdam last week - 85 is really hot for them. I'm hoping we don't suffer too much in August, although with overnight lows in the 50s we'll at least cool off daily. We have an upper floor apartment with no AC of course.

 

[Ian S]

The only place I would think that would be hotter than Phoenix, AZ, is Death Valley,California. It usually runs a bit hotter than Phoenix, but not much hotter.

Apparently it was supposed to be 128F in Death Valley on Tuesday. That's quite a bit warmer than Phoenix was. But then Death valley holds the world's record high temperature at 134F.

 

[NW-Bound]

We had made a few trips to/from CDG into Paris using train and metro, so initially thought about doing the same again. Quickly changed our mind when encountering this weather, plus I looked up the Web to see that the train tickets would cost 10 euros each, plus 1.9 euros for the metro. So, it would be 24 euros for two to haul luggage through this heat for a 1-hour trip, vs. 45 euros for Uber. Uber won big time, and I even felt generous to give an additional 5-euro cash tip.

By the way, the only time we took a taxi from Champs Elysees to CDG was in a 2003 trip, and it was because the train did not run at 4AM. I remember clearly paying 50 euros back then, so the Uber ride was quite less expensive.

And going into Paris from Orly where I dropped the leased car, we had to call a van because there were 4 of us plus luggage. The fare was quite reasonable at 60 euros, to be split among 2 couples. And after fighting the traffic driving the car back to Orly, I was in no mood to ride any metro with our carry-ons.

 

[RockyMtn]

Another effect of the heat down here. Snakes coming inside! Found this one in the garage this morning. Small bull snake...probably 3 feet long. Sticky paper got him!

 

[GravitySucks]

Never broke the 75 degree mark for the first day of summer and everything is green as can be.

 

[W2R]

I got home to Phoenix late last night at 11PM, and it was still about 105F! Hey, it was nothing new to this Phoenician of 40+ years, other than that it was not supposed to happen till July/August. But even 120F in June has happened before many times. Nothing new here, folks.

Wow! I am glad you were OK with 105F. I know you don't have the humidity we have, but still that sounds very hot for 11PM.

Here in New Orleans, I awakened in the middle of the night to lower my thermostat from 72F to 70F. We had a low of 73F due to all that rain lowering the temperatures, but the rain also brought lots of humidity and I'm such a sensitive thing. Even though I like humidity, it was a bit much. Looks like Tropical Storm Cindy has made landfall so by now the rain has stopped. The winds are still a little gusty.

Those kids in Europe looked like they were having such fun in the fountain.

 

[sanfanciscotreat]

How has Cindy affected the NOLA area?

 

[NW-Bound]

Wow! I am glad you were OK with 105F. I know you don't have the humidity we have, but still that sounds very hot for 11PM.

Here in New Orleans, I awakened in the middle of the night to lower my thermostat from 72F to 70F. We had a low of 73F due to all that rain lowering the temperatures, but the rain also brought lots of humidity and I'm such a sensitive thing. Even though I like humidity, it was a bit much. Looks like Tropical Storm Cindy has made landfall so by now the rain has stopped. The winds are still a little gusty.

Those kids in Europe looked like they were having such fun in the fountain.

With low humidity, 105F is not as bad as it sounds, although I much prefer the 78F indoor temperature. And 78F is quite comfortable with near zero humidity and a fan blowing.

I did envy the kids playing in the water.

And while taking a short cruise on the Rhine River, I spotted some nude sunbathers on the river banks. Yes, I took some photos, and the zoom lens of my pocket camera only provided some not-so-sharp photos, but it was enough to see clearly that these had no clothes on. These German adults would take off their clothes even if there were no heat wave, so posting these photos here would not jibe with the thread topic.

 

[W2R]

How has Cindy affected the NOLA area?

Not at all, as far as I can tell. New Orleans is inside the levee system, and areas outside the levee system did have more flooding than we did. Here in the city, we are below sea level but we have pumps and canals to take care of some of the excess water. The pumps were able to keep up with the rainfall for the most part. I think there was some minor flooding in some flood prone places but that was about it.

As for wind effects, I have a lot of twigs and tiny branches all over my lawn but have not seen any large fallen branches or fallen roof shingles in our neighborhood.

 

[audreyh1]

We had made a few trips to/from CDG into Paris using train and metro, so initially thought about doing the same again. Quickly changed our mind when encountering this weather, plus I looked up the Web to see that the train tickets would cost 10 euros each, plus 1.9 euros for the metro. So, it would be 24 euros for two to haul luggage through this heat for a 1-hour trip, vs. 45 euros for Uber. Uber won big time, and I even felt generous to give an additional 5-euro cash tip.

By the way, the only time we took a taxi from Champs Elysees to CDG was in a 2003 trip, and it was because the train did not run at 4AM. I remember clearly paying 50 euros back then, so the Uber ride was quite less expensive.

And going into Paris from Orly where I dropped the leased car, we had to call a van because there were 4 of us plus luggage. The fare was quite reasonable at 60 euros, to be split among 2 couples. And after fighting the traffic driving the car back to Orly, I was in no mood to ride any metro with our carry-ons.

We paid €50 plus tip for a taxi from around CDG to central Paris in 2015. We were rewarded with a super nice ride in a Tesla!!! Little traffic, but still a long ride.

Given the challenges of hauling luggage on the metro in Paris (mainly because of stairs, no elevators) we quickly decided to use taxis whenever we moved to/from hotels. There is also a security issue in Paris. The metro from CDG to Paris is one of the most famous for pickpockets. It's hard enough to keep an eye out when you aren't dealing with luggage.

Otherwise we use public transportation all the time, and when within say 0.5 mile of the train station we'll walk weather permitting, but otherwise - taxi for us!

We spend so much $$ on European hotels that when we travel that transportation costs pale in comparison.

 

[audreyh1]

It made it to 110 degrees here at 3:30PM! Hottest I've ever seen in Texas for sure.

Back to 109 now......

 

[gerntz]

Lived in PHX most my life (50 years) and ironically I can count on one hand how many times they have implemented a water restriction on us and all of those occurred when I was a kid. My water/trash bill has never been over $70 and we have a pool, but have no grass areas. Not sure exactly how PHX has pulled this off given the huge growth over the years. From what I understand is we have a great underground supply with good infrastructure and we get lots of "cheap" water from the Colorado river. I have to scratch my head when I hear on the news about cities (like Colorado, California etc..) that have to go on strict water use with heavy finds for violators. PHX seems to do just fine... Hope this continues, but they always say water will be the next gold standard in the future since we will be running out someday....

Well of course you have plenty of water from the CO River. It dries up by the time it gets to Mexico. B4 PHX & LA , it flowed nicely all the way to the Gulf of Cortez. Poor fish. Oh well.

 

[ABQ2015]

It is only 101 degrees in Albuquerque today but my older home swamp coolers have a problem keeping up once it hits about 95 degrees. All the ceiling fans are on but I'm still a little too warm. Luckily, it is supposed to cool off the next few days.

 

[Ready]

I haven't seen the sun in four days. It's 60 in the morning and rises to about 66 during the day. I wear a sweatshirt most of the day and sometimes a winter jacket in the morning to walk the dog.

 

[meierlde]

I asked my Az neighbor how he handles the summers. Easy he said - just stay inside in the afternoon. He also bought a remote start for his car. He goes to a store/movies, etc and fires up the remote start when he's ready to leave. The car starts with the AC on. He waits 5 minutes and gets into his cool car for the ride home.

Actually the song about mad dogs and englishmen by Noel Coward, which was written on a drive from Hanoi to Saigon, so much more humid than Phoenix, however still applies well to Phoenix (Only Mad Dogs and Englishmen go out in the Midday sun) I do understand that this is the reason for siestas in spanish countries, best to take an indoor nap then.

 

[NW-Bound]

My parents' first home in Phoenix only had a swamp cooler. It worked well until the monsoon season started and brought higher humidity. Homes in AZ built in the 50s and 60s, perhaps even early 70s, only had a swamp cooler and no AC. Oldtimers would tell people about growing up without even a swamp cooler. People then would soak bedsheets in water, then hanged them up on cloth lines inside the home for the evaporation to cool the air.

Evaporative coolers were no longer installed in new homes starting in the late 70s. And people started to retrofit central AC's into their old homes to use when the monsoon season started.

Evaporative coolers lost their popularity because people got soft and whined during the monsoon season. And a dual AC/evap system would require more maintenance, as the evap pads had to be replaced yearly. As land was getting scarce and most of the new homes were two-story, getting up there on the roof was not a simple task for homeowners. Aesthetic aspects are also important, as ACs compressors can be mounted on the ground, unlike swamp coolers. Water consumption is not a big deal, as a swamp cooler with a recirculation pump uses tens of gallons of water a day, a lot less than a lawn or a swimming pool.

 

[zinger1457]

Homes in AZ built in the 50s and 60s, perhaps even early 70s, only had a swamp cooler and no AC. Oldtimers would tell people about growing up without even a swamp cooler. People then would soak bedsheets in water, then hanged them up on cloth lines inside the home for the evaporation to cool the air.

Evaporative coolers were no longer installed in new homes starting in the late 70s. And people started to retrofit central AC's into their old homes to use when the monsoon season started.

That may be true for the Phoenix/Tucson area but not all areas of Arizona. I built my house here is SE AZ in 1997 and most new homes at that time were still using evap coolers. It wasn't until a few years later when the county changed the building codes prohibiting the use of evap coolers as the sole source of cooling that they stopped using them in new construction.

 

[NW-Bound]

I was not aware of any ordinance regarding evap coolers. Maybe there was or is. I simply thought that new home owners did not want them anymore for the reasons I cited.

 

[Beldar]

We have dual cooling in our home, evap cooler & central air. The swamp cooler works great until about either 95F or humidity over 20%, at that point the efficiency falls off. Then it's AC time. Right now the AC is screaming but only pulls the house down to about 77F (it's 108 today).

We can run the cooler until mid May, and then back on in Oct. It's great for clearing the house of stale air during the "winter". We change the pad every 5 yrs or so.

I'll probably replace the cooler later this year as it's over 20yrs old and starting to wear out. But it's a great value when you have one.


_B

 

[Zona]

Long time Phoenician here. We have had the good fortune to take a few June-Sept trips over the years, and would do it every year if finances allowed. We're not retired yet, so this summer we are still in town w*rking. I tend to think about summer as though it's winter - most activities are indoor (gym, work, movies, shopping). I don't get outside much this time of year, and I'm not a "lay by the pool in the sun" type of person. Grocery shop early in the am on weekends to avoid a scorching car. Catch up on tv shows, movies, and books. Lay low and wait for October, when it finally starts cooling down again!

I've spent a few summers in the Chesapeake Bay Area and in the Caribbean without air conditioning; I'll take conditions here in Phoenix any day!

 

[NW-Bound]

Yes. The real question is not what the outdoor temperature is, but what the indoor one is. I was reminded of that a few days ago in Paris, where the temperature was merely 96F, outside as well as inside.

Now, that means admitting that AC is considered a life-support system in the Southwest, and I have been saying this for years. That in turn begs the question: What does one do when the AC fails, or the utility power is out?

Ah, this is where my 2nd home at 7,000-ft elevation comes in handy. As long as I have at least 1/2 tank of gas in my car, I can escape to there in 2.5 hours.

A prudent guy always plans for contingencies, and has backups.

 

[Koolau]

Wow! I am glad you were OK with 105F. I know you don't have the humidity we have, but still that sounds very hot for 11PM.

Here in New Orleans, I awakened in the middle of the night to lower my thermostat from 72F to 70F. We had a low of 73F due to all that rain lowering the temperatures, but the rain also brought lots of humidity and I'm such a sensitive thing. Even though I like humidity, it was a bit much. Looks like Tropical Storm Cindy has made landfall so by now the rain has stopped. The winds are still a little gusty.

Those kids in Europe looked like they were having such fun in the fountain.

I've been to Phoenix and NOLO during summer. The hotter of the two FELT like NOLO because of the humidity. I'm sure it depends on the time of year and other factors so YMMV.

 

[Koolau]

Not at all, as far as I can tell. New Orleans is inside the levee system, and areas outside the levee system did have more flooding than we did. Here in the city, we are below sea level but we have pumps and canals to take care of some of the excess water. The pumps were able to keep up with the rainfall for the most part. I think there was some minor flooding in some flood prone places but that was about it.

As for wind effects, I have a lot of twigs and tiny branches all over my lawn but have not seen any large fallen branches or fallen roof shingles in our neighborhood.

First time I went to NOLO (maybe age 16) we took a short river cruise (might have even been a stern-wheeler. In any case, it was strictly a tourist thing.) We're cruising along and suddenly I realize that the boat is higher than the the city. It was as if the Mississippi was a bath tub (or a flume ride) and NOLO was on the floor. Soon as I got home, I raced to the public library and got out the encyclopedia and started reading up on NOLO. It was fascinating to read about the levee system and how people had been able to divert the river around the city and make it livable.

I made subsequent trips to NOLO including Mardi Gras. My heart broke for the city when Katrina hit. I still cringe whenever I see a storm heading for NOLO.