Among all the must-have modern conveniences, few are as environmentally unfriendly as the ubiquitous air conditioner.
Air cons, particularly the older types, can be energy guzzlers, making for big power bills and boosting your home's carbon footprint. No one wants to live in a sweatbox, and although replacing your air con with a greener version is one option, there are other ways to keep cool.
If you're building a new home, you may have the luxury of incorporating design features made for tropical climates. In beach houses he has designed in Thailand, architect Roddy Murray, of R.J. Murray Design, uses traditional methods of cooling, such as ventilated roof spaces and latticework on the tops of walls. The point is to achieve cross ventilation, he says, although in Hong Kong homes, given the constraints of much building design, more lateral thinking may be required.
In a major renovation project, Murray says, walls can be opened up to remove barriers to air flow, and larger doors and windows fitted.
Flats often have sliding doors that open out to a balcony, but if these are of the older type, usually at least one of the glass panels is fixed, reducing air flow. Replacing such doors with a modern system that has a much wider opening can make a difference, he says.
'Maximising and encouraging the free flow of air from one side of an apartment to the other will create a natural, cooling breeze and give a greater feeling of comfort and well-being, and is good for reducing your carbon footprint.'