# HVAC: Air Quality pre-AC?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hvac-air-quality-pre-ac/545479>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 4, 2010, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hvac-air-quality-pre-ac/545479 "2010-07-04T02:40:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\
**Post date:** [July 4, 2010, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hvac-air-quality-pre-ac/545479/1 "2010-07-04T02:40:13Z")

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What did we do before air conditioning in relation to controlling humidity to cut down on mold growth for better air quality? Granted, buildings were not as air-tight, but we survived, didn’t we? Or, did we get by with sick buildings???

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**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\
**Post date:** [July 4, 2010, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hvac-air-quality-pre-ac/545479/2 "2010-07-04T05:28:05Z")

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Probably the same thing that AC-less houses and buildings do today…continue to exist quite happily. Toxic molds aren’t necessarily a myth, but they are [very, very, rare](http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/toxicmold.html), despite media coverage and quack web sites implying that they’re in every nook and cranny.

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**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\
**Post date:** [July 4, 2010, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hvac-air-quality-pre-ac/545479/3 "2010-07-04T06:12:17Z")

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More of the buildings came equipped with great big oscillating fans. Classrooms had windows. The humidity was awful, but we didn’t know we had a choice.

My aunt used to put out a big chunk of ice and let a small fan blow over that. Best nap time ever for a sleeping chld.

At night I slept in babydoll pajamas with the window open and my head at the foot of the bed. I kept the fan on low so that I could hear the music from the local teen hangout. That was the best way to listen to “Wonderfland by Night” or “Beyond the Sea.”

Damn. _That_ was cool.