Dog Days of August - Quick Tips to Cool Your Home
The heat of the summer is far from over. In fact, some of the hottest and most humid days may still be in front of us. August is notorious for being hot and sticky, so you’re not alone if you’re still looking for some ways to cool your home. Plus, relying less on your air conditioner will keep your electric bill down while also taking some of the burden off the power grid during the hottest days. Here are some quick tips to cool your home and fight the heat.
1) Use interior shading.
Close all of your blinds or curtains in your house to keep the sunlight out. Sunlight will make your house significantly hotter, so keeping blinds shut when you don’t need natural light will keep the temperature down inside. The best time to shut your blinds is from the late morning to early evening when the sunlight is strongest. Consider using blackout curtains in windows with the most sunlight streaming in.
2) Use light to your advantage.
Although reducing sunlight in your home will keep your house cooler, you should mind the artificial light. Artificial lights use electricity and emit heat, so you should rely on artificial light as little as possible. In order to reduce sunlight warming your house while also reducing heat produced by artificial lighting, make sure to only keep your blinds open in rooms you are actively using. Everywhere else you should keep the sunlight out.
Also, if you’re going to use artificial light, switch to energy-efficient bulbs and LED lights which use less electricity and release less heat.
3) Dehumidify.
The heat is bad enough without high humidity. Humidity makes the heat feel significantly worse, so cutting down on humidity levels in your house will make you feel much cooler. Invest in a dehumidifier to cut down on humidity and wear loose cotton and other fabric clothing to allow your skin to breathe. Also, buy breathable bed sheets like cotton or bamboo so you don’t get overheated at night.
4) Avoid the oven.
Your oven produces a lot of heat, so it’s best to avoid it altogether or at least plan around using it during the day. Consider using the oven only when the heat of the day has dissipated or try cooking outside on a grill.
5) Shade your home.
Giving the outside of your home shade will reduce the temperature inside the house. You can use awnings over windows to reduce the heat or plant some trees and bushes to provide additional shade and cooling to your home. Plus, trees and other plants release evaporated water that also brings down temperatures.
6) Insulate.
If you’ve taken measures to cool down your house but still aren’t getting good results, it may be because of poor insulation. If your doors and windows aren’t properly insulated, then the cool air in your house may be escaping and hot outside air may be replacing it. Check all of the insulation and seals around your doors and windows and seal them properly or update them if need be.
7) Use a whole house fan.
Whole house fans are a great way to cool down in the summer without using all of the electricity that an Air conditioner consumes. Whole house fans can be used at any time of the day, but are most effective when temperatures drop in early evening or night. They work by cycling hot, trapped air out of the house and replacing it with cool and fresh outside air.
Check out our lineup of whole house fans so you can save up to 90% on your air conditioning bill.