Homes with boiler systems as their primary source of heat lack the duct work needed for traditional central air conditioning systems. But, just because you have a boiler system doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the comforts of air conditioning. There’s no need to spend thousands of dollars on costly renovations to install duct work, when you can cool off without tearing apart and remodeling your home. There are several air conditioning options available for homes with boiler systems. Here we focus on the features of three of them. Unico Air Conditioning Systems Unico offers a high-velocity air conditioning system with tiny vents that can run through narrow spaces, allowing air to penetrate rooms through small ducts. The vents are hidden and run between walls and through attics for minimum disruption to your decor, while the condenser unit sits outside the home. Designed for homes with no duct work, the Unico system can be an ideal solution for homes with boiler systems.

The unit itself runs so quietly that you wouldn’t even know it’s there, due to the insulated air handler and vibration pads. how much does an ac window unit costThe cooling coils lower humidity levels in your home, which reduces the workload on the air conditioning unit and helps you save on your energy bills.your ac unit is not cooling SpacePak Air Conditioning Systemsbig lots ac unit SpacePak air conditioning systems use an aspiration system to circulate air into rooms without creating a draft. These systems are normally installed in an attic and use discreet, hidden piping to keep your home at a consistent, cool temperature even during the hottest of summers. SpacePak systems, ideal for homes with boiler systems, don’t take up any floor space, and also have a condenser unit that sits outside the home.

The system operates quietly so that you aren’t disrupted every time the unit starts up. These systems also dehumidify your home so that it will stay cooler without running up your energy bill. Of the three, the Fujitsu Mini Split system is the perfect solution for homeowners who have boiler systems, and requires the minimum amount of disruption to your home. It offers both a heating and cooling system that is perfect for seasonal transitions, although you can use it year round. It’s easy to install and easy to use, making it perfect for the homeowner who doesn’t like complex gadgets. Its small size and flexibility makes it perfect for apartments, home additions, or any area of your home that you want to keep cool or warm. You can literally fit it anywhere, using the small wall-mounted unit or a completely hidden unit. If you have more than one area that you want to cool, you can connect multiple indoor units to one outdoor condenser, with the ability to have a separate thermostat on each floor of the home.

The Fujitsu system runs quietly and also saves you money through its inverter circuits that provide more efficient cooling and Halcyon’s Energy Savings Program. The system knows when you leave the room and adjusts the temperature accordingly to help you save money on your energy bills. Not only is this system energy-efficient, it can also contribute to your family’s good health. Those suffering from allergies can benefit from the Fujitsu system because the deodorizing system reduces odors, absorbs dust and stops the growth of bacteria and mold through static electricity. Learn more about Fujitsu Mini-split Systems and how you can add one to your home here. When you own a home with a boiler system, there is no need to go through expensive home renovations to install duct work just to keep cool in the summer. There are various air conditioning systems that are available to you that require a minimal amount of disruption to your household and can provide year-round comfort in your traditional home.

Many Americans are turning to their air conditioners to combat the current heat wave. These artificial breezes are a relatively novel innovation, however, as this history of air conditioning explains. Throughout the ages, humans have gone to great lengths to keep cool, from transporting mountains of snow to putting their underwear in the icebox, as Will Oremus reported in 2011. His original article is reprinted below. Anyone tempted to yearn for a simpler time must reckon with a few undeniable unpleasantries of life before modern technology: abscessed teeth, chamber pots, the bubonic plague—and a lack of air conditioning in late July. As temperatures rise into the triple digits across the eastern United States, it's worth remembering how we arrived at the climate-controlled summer environments we have today. Until the 20th century, Americans dealt with the hot weather as many still do around the world: They sweated and fanned themselves. Primitive air-conditioning systems have existed since ancient times, but in most cases, these were so costly and inefficient as to preclude their use by any but the wealthiest people.

In the United States, things began to change in the early 1900s, when the first electric fans appeared in homes. But cooling units have only spread beyond American borders in the last couple of decades, with the confluence of a rising global middle class and breakthroughs in energy-efficient technology. Attempts to control indoor temperatures began in ancient Rome, where wealthy citizens took advantage of the remarkable aqueduct system to circulate cool water through the walls of their homes. The emperor Elagabalus took things a step further in the third century, building a mountain of snow—imported from the mountains via donkey trains—in the garden next to his villa to keep cool during the summer. Marvelously inefficient, the effort presaged the spare-no-cost attitude behind our modern-day central air-conditioning systems. Even back then some scoffed at the concept of fighting heat with newfangled technologies. Seneca, the stoic philosopher, mocked the "skinny youths" who ate snow to keep cool rather than simply bearing the heat like a real Roman ought to.

Such luxuries disappeared during the Dark Ages, and large-scale air-conditioning efforts didn't resurface in the West until the 1800s, when well-funded American engineers began to tackle the problem. In the intervening centuries, fans were the coolant of choice. Hand fans were used in China as early as 3,000 years ago, and a second-century Chinese inventor has been credited with building the first room-sized rotary fan (it was powered by hand). Architecture also played a major role in pre-modern temperature control. In traditional Middle Eastern construction, windows faced away from the sun, and larger buildings featured "wind towers" designed to catch and circulate the prevailing breezes. In late 19th-century America, engineers had the money and the ambition to pick up where the Romans had left off. In 1881, a dying President James Garfield got a respite from Washington, D.C.'s oppressive summer swelter thanks to an awkward device involving air blown through cotton sheets doused in ice water.

Like Elagabalus before him, Garfield's comfort required enormous energy consumption; his caretakers reportedly went through half a million pounds of ice in two months. The big breakthrough, of course, was electricity. Nikola Tesla's development of alternating current motors made possible the invention of oscillating fans  in the early 20th century. And in 1902, a 25-year-old engineer from New York named Willis Carrier invented the first modern air-conditioning system. The mechanical unit, which sent air through water-cooled coils, was not aimed at human comfort, however; it was designed to control humidity in the printing plant where he worked. In 1922, he followed up with the invention of the centrifugal chiller, which added a central compressor to reduce the unit's size. It was introduced to the public on Memorial Day weekend, 1925, when it debuted at the Rivoli Theater in Times Square. For years afterward, people piled into air-conditioned movie theaters on hot summer days, giving rise to the summer blockbuster.

It's not an exaggeration to say that Carrier's innovation shaped 20th-century America. In the 1930s, air conditioning spread to department stores, rail cars, and offices, sending workers' summer productivity soaring. Until then, central courtyards and wide-open windows had offered the only relief. Residential air conditioning was slower to take hold: As late as 1965, just 10 percent of U.S. homes had it, according to the Carrier Corporation. Families in the South made do by sleeping on the porch or even putting their underwear in the icebox. By 2007, however, the number was 86 percent. As cool air spread across the country, Sun Belt cities that had been unbearable in the summer became more attractive places to live and work, facilitating a long-term shift in U.S. population. Europeans have been slower to embrace air conditioning, but like cold beer and ice water, it's beginning to catch on there, too. Data on air conditioning in the developing world is scarce, but it's safe to say most Africans and South Asians still make do without it.