keep house cool

How to Keep Your House Cool – Without AC!

June 11, 2017 | Love Where You Live | By: The Goodhart Group

How to Keep Your House Cool –  Without AC!

There are so many positive things about living in the Washington DC area, but hot summer days are not one of them. Turning your thermostat way down to cool off your home is certainly refreshing, but can cost you big money. Wondering how to keep your house cool without cranking the AC? Here are some simple things you can try this summer.

Fans

Fans are such an easy way to keep air circulating in a room and keep your house cool. If you have a ceiling fan, it should be running counterclockwise. This pulls the hot air up to the ceiling and keeps the cool air closer to the floor. If you have a box fan in your window, have it point outward, to push hot air out of the room. Adding or adjusting fans is a quick and easy way to help cool rooms.

Tree Shade

Trees are the absolute best natural shade you can get. Having trees in the right place (right outside your windows) keeps the sunlight out and helps keep your house cool. When trees are bare in the winter months, sunlight will flood the room and help warm it up.

Turn off the Oven

As good as afternoon cookies sound, using your oven in the middle of the day only creates more heat in your house. Try to do any necessary cooking first thing in the morning. Or use your grill (or slow cooker) to avoid turning on the oven during the dog days of summer. Or have a cold dinner of sandwiches or salad to help keep your house cool.

Draw the Curtains

Not only are blinds and curtains great accents for your home, but they also provide excellent insulation to keep your house cool. Keep your curtains closed during the day and have your blinds turned upward, so no sunlight is reflected into your house. To keep some natural light in your house, open blinds that are not facing the sun.

Open the Windows

Take advantage of the cooler evenings and open up your windows. Doing so creates a wind tunnel throughout your house without having to crank the AC. Make sure you close all of your windows in the morning so the hot daytime air doesn’t come in and heat up your house.

Lights Out

It almost goes without saying, but when you aren’t in your house or using a room, make sure the lights are turned off. Lighting can add considerable heat to a room. If you have a window in a room, use its natural lighting! It will save you some money and keep your energy bill down.

Be sure to program your thermostat wisely. Why cool your house when no one is home? Set it to lower the temperature just before everyone arrives home for the night. Today, “smart” thermostats connect to your phone and allow you to adjust the temperature remotely through an app.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Think outside the box (or thermostat) and try these creative ways to keep your energy costs down this summer. These simple tips can help lower temperature of your house — and your energy bill. When you’re complaining about the heat, think of DC’s cold and snowy winters!

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If you need any recommendations for getting your home ready for summer, please let us know. We have an extensive list of contractors and vendors to share. Whether you need new windows, landscaping, or a handyman to install a ceiling fan, we can recommend someone for the job!

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