Heat/Humidity in Yarmouth area during summer (Portland, Caribou: oceanfront, houses)

[hennirl]

I've seen about ten million posts about the winter, but what I haven't seen too much of are posts about summer. Specifically around the Yarmouth area (or anywhere along the coast I guess), how hot/humid are the summers? We're going to be building a house in the area and trying to decide if central A/C is worth it or not. We grew up in upstate New York and the summers there were absolutely miserable. Extremely hot, extremely humid, and it lasted for weeks on end.

[maineguy8888]

Depends on how close to the ocean you are.

[jdhpa]

Originally Posted by maineguy8888

Depends on how close to the ocean you are.

Are the summers in Caribou muggy?

[maineguy8888]

Originally Posted by jdhpa

Are the summers in Caribou muggy?

No, pretty average.

If one lives within a few miles of the ocean, summer is quite a bit cooler.

[mainebrokerman]

I grew up on the coast.....my father lives has tidal oceanfront - yes it is cooler along the coast with the seabreeze coming off the water

very rarely will it break 90 degrees and if it does it doesn't feel that hot because there is usually a breeze...

if you have a house you can open the screened windows up and let the breeze in ...then you wouldn't use a/c much.

however ive seen new construction that seems to keep the heat in particularly on the 2nd or 3rd floor if you have them....
depends on many factors how open your place is to surroundings.....other houses /trees and blocking the sun coming in

its definitely not a need but it will be a convenience a few days a summer.
im seeing more and more dual heat pumps installed.. (heat/cold air )

[atlantatomaine]

Y’all are so lucky....weather has become unbearable in Atlanta....very hot summers and hot wet winters...it has been raining non stop for 2 years....plants and trees are starting to rot.

[OutdoorLover]

The ocean never really warms up, so when you get a "sea breeze" off the ocean, it's decidedly cooler in a coastal town in summer. "Land breeze" days can certainly be warm when a heat wave comes into the area. You won't though, get too many days in the 90s in a typical coastal Maine summer. I live at the MA/NH border on the coast, and we don't even get too many here - maybe 2 weeks if you add the 90-degree days up across the whole summer.

One other thing to take into account though is that the humidity is typically much higher right at the coast. and that makes a 32-degree day feel colder, and an 85-degree day feel hotter, than the thermometer alone might suggest.

You certainly won't "need" A/C, and you can always put window units in the bedrooms during summer months. But, if you're already getting forced air HVAC for heating, the incremental cost of adding A/C isn't too bad, and it would keep you a little more comfortable during hot spells with lower humidity and quiet, whole-house conditioning.

Another thing you can research/think on would be Fujitsu or Mitusbishi low-temperature heat pumps, which are growing in popularity in new construction in New England. That will give you both heating and cooling from one unit.

[svband76]

Originally Posted by atlantatomaine

Y’all are so lucky....weather has become unbearable in Atlanta....very hot summers and hot wet winters...it has been raining non stop for 2 years....plants and trees are starting to rot.

I have to chuckle a bit when I see a/c units in windows in Maine. Though they probably laugh at me wearing my 7 layers of clothing in mid-October.

[hennirl]

Thanks much for the input. If I don't _need_ AC, then instead of going HVAC I'm going to go radiant floor heat. Much more stable temperatures, more efficient, no dust blowing through vents, quiet. Much better way to heat the house. The downside is you don't have AC with that kind of system. If it were up to me that'd be the way that I went (I actually enjoy the heat) but my wife is the opposite.

[maineguy8888]

Originally Posted by OutdoorLover

The ocean never really warms up, so when you get a "sea breeze" off the ocean, it's decidedly cooler in a coastal town in summer. "Land breeze" days can certainly be warm when a heat wave comes into the area. You won't though, get too many days in the 90s in a typical coastal Maine summer. I live at the MA/NH border on the coast, and we don't even get too many here - maybe 2 weeks if you add the 90-degree days up across the whole summer.

One other thing to take into account though is that the humidity is typically much higher right at the coast. and that makes a 32-degree day feel colder, and an 85-degree day feel hotter, than the thermometer alone might suggest.

You certainly won't "need" A/C, and you can always put window units in the bedrooms during summer months. But, if you're already getting forced air HVAC for heating, the incremental cost of adding A/C isn't too bad, and it would keep you a little more comfortable during hot spells with lower humidity and quiet, whole-house conditioning.

Another thing you can research/think on would be Fujitsu or Mitusbishi low-temperature heat pumps, which are growing in popularity in new construction in New England. That will give you both heating and cooling from one unit.

Coastal Maine struggles to get into the 70s during some summers. Last summer, there were many days where parts of coastal Maine were in the 60s or even 50s.
(You are right about that damp coastal chill; there were some days when living half a mile from the ocean in Portland caused a chill to the bone that rivaled anything I have ever experienced in far northern Maine.....)