Does Leaving Your Aircon On During The Night Make You Sick?

According to doctors and medical scientists, the bedroom should be one of the coolest rooms in a home. Unfortunately, during the hot season, the interior temperature tends to settle at relatively high levels, making it impossible to enjoy a good and refreshing night’s sleep without any cooling means.

Many people believe that sleeping with their air conditioning on throughout the whole night would make them sick. While this isn’t entirely wrong, it isn’t 100% true, either. Let’s take a closer look at what happens when you leave your aircon running during the night, in order for you to understand how you can enjoy a comfortable temperature in your bedroom without any risk of getting sick in the process.

To start with, you should try to understand how air conditioners work to keep your indoor temperature constant. When you select a specific temperature value, the unit determines whether it is lower or higher than the actual temperature in the room and adjusts its operating parameters accordingly. The higher the temperature gap between the current and the desired value, the harder the machine will need to work to comply with your request. Depending on the mode settings, this could mean that the units will have to increase the power of the airflow or to blow air for a longer time to achieve the desired result.

A powerful airflow directed toward you could make you sick, indeed. However, you may not fully understand how and why this happens and what to do to prevent it. Hopefully, the following explanation will shed some light on this matter, in order for you to enjoy a good night rest without taking any health risks. The real problem is that most people sweat under their sheets while they sleep. As they feel hot, they tend to get rid of the sheets, without even being aware of it. Under these circumstances, sleeping with the aircon on could be dangerous, particularly if it blows cold air directly toward your head or your chest. Provided that you can avoid this situation, you can safely leave your air conditioner on during the night without any worry that it could make you sick.

The following tips will help you enjoy a cool and welcoming sleeping environment that won’t make you sick. Read them carefully and use the ones that best suit you. You’ll never have to think about this issue ever again.

Use bed linen that’s not too hot and wear sheer pyjamas. Your main goal should be to avoid sweating a lot during your sleep. The less you sweat, the lower the risk to get sick because of your aircon.

Start cooling your bedroom at least 30 minutes to one hour before bedtime. This will allow the temperature in the room to reach a comfortable value. Depending on the size of your bedroom and on the exterior temperature, you may only require 15-20 minutes to reach your temperature goal. This should allow you to sleep peacefully for the most part of the night, as your air conditioning won’t have to put up with such a high-temperature gap, even during the hottest time of the year.

You should know that air conditioners feature a temperature sensor that measures the indoor temperature and calculates how hard the unit would work to achieve your specific temperature setting. When it reaches this value, the aircon unit stops blowing cold air until the temperature drops by a certain amount. This means that during all this time you won’t have to put up with air blowing directly toward you while you sleep. Besides, the outside air is usually hotter during the first part of the night. As the earth cools off, the air temperature decreases to a more manageable level, and that will also put less pressure on your air conditioning system. You won’t have to worry about getting sick, because your aircon won’t have to work as hard during the second part of the night to keep a stable indoor temperature.

Some air conditioners feature a “sleep” setting. Check out yours to see if you have this feature. By using it, you will benefit from the cool air in your bedroom without having to put up with loud noises or powerful cold air flows. This mode has been designed to offer users the peace of mind that they won’t get sick because of leaving their air conditioner on during the hot summer nights.

Moving your bed or installing the air conditioning unit in a safe position are two other things you can do to stay safe from a health point of view, even when you decide to leave your unit on for the night. Of course, if your bedroom is very small, you may not be able to achieve this goal, as you won’t be able to move your bed. However, larger bedrooms allow for the smart positioning of the furniture to secure maximum of comfort and a minimum of risk to get sick because of the air conditioning.

The efficiency of your home’s insulation is also very important, so try to address all problems that might be preventing you from achieving the thermal balance. Invest in high-quality double-glazed windows, repair all cracks and ensure all rubber seals around windows and doors are always in perfect condition. A properly insulated house will require less effort to maintain a comfortable indoor temperature, regardless of the season. Not only you’ll save money on your monthly electricity bills, but you’ll also be able to leave your aircon on day and night without any worry for your health.

All these being said, keep in mind that each human being is unique. If you are extremely sensitive or you suffer from various medical conditions, you should be extremely careful. The best thing to do is to discuss your intention of sleeping with the aircon on with your doctor. Together you’ll make the best decision for yourself or for any of your beloved ones that are under your care.