Keep yourself and your house cool this summer. Summer can be wonderful, but the sun isn’t always fun when it gets too hot. Instead of cranking up the air conditioning and pushing up your energy bills, try some of these tricks to cool the house summer, without breaking the bank.
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Close The Blinds
Keep your blinds closed, especially on windows facing north or west. For even more effect, buy some black-out curtains to shield your home from the harshest summer sun.
Block The Heat
Stopping the heat from getting into the house in the first place means you spend less on cooling and Emergency AC Repair. Shade windows and wills with external coverings, like blinds, awnings, or large potted plants. Plant trees that will cast shade over your home during the summer, but still let the sun in during the winter. If you have the budget, invest in window tinting, and ceiling insulation. This keeps things cool in summer and warm in winter.
Just 1 Degree
If you do need to use your air conditioner, set the thermostat to between 24 and 27 degrees, or as high as you feel comfortable with doing. Increasing the thermostat by only 1 degree in warm weather can really reduce the cost of your appliance by a surprising amount.
If you want to upgrade your air conditioning, pick one that has a high energy-star rating, and make sure you choose the right type for your home.
Adjust Ceiling Fans
It can feel as though ceiling fans only push the hot air around your home instead of cooling it down. If your fans are rotating the wrong way, this could actually be the case.
Set your ceiling fans to rotate counter-clockwise in the summer to push the air straight down to cool you down, and clockwise in the winter pull the cool air up. When it’s warm, set the fan to a higher speed, whereas lower speeds are best in cooler weather. Ceiling fans can be used alongside other cooling systems, and make a lot of difference to the temperature in your home.
Close Doors And Seal Gaps
Close the doors into any rooms that you aren’t using in order to keep cool air where you need it the most. Seal any gaps around doors and windows. Lay draught excluders to stop cool air from escaping.
Evaporate air conditioners are a lot more effective if you open some doors and windows to increase the air-flow through the house.
Hang Out In The Evening
During the day, it can be a great idea to close your windows and stay inside. When the temperatures get cooler in the evening, you might want to open your house up to cool it down naturally. Just remember to lock up again overnight!
It might be cooler to cook dinner outside on the barbecue instead of in a hot kitchen, so make the most of a cool breeze in the evenings whenever you can get it.
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