|
No one likes to live in a hot and stuffy house. Keeping your home cool when the weather is hot is a priority for many people. Using air conditioning can keep your interior comfortable, but this relief has a hefty price. Learn to master a few of the following tips to reduce your expenses while your house remains refreshingly cool. Increase Outdoor Shade Most heat that builds in a home is a direct result of sunlight hitting the roof and shining in through the windows. Outdoor shade can be an effective way to naturally lower the interior temperature of your home. Deciduous trees growing in a landscape can help block warm sun rays from hitting a structure. You may also enjoy increased air conditioning efficiency by as much as 10 percent if you plant trees or shrubs around the unit to shade it. Although planting trees up to 20 feet in height isn't a small undertaking, the savings you will experience can make this effort worthwhile. Improve Window Efficiency Windows are a significant source of heat entering into a house and cool air escaping from it. Installing solar screens over windows can block as much as 70 percent of the sun's rays from entering into a residence. Make sure that you install these solar screens on all eastern and western exposure windows to block early morning and late afternoon solar energy. Newer window technology offers glazing that blocks the majority of the sun's heat rays. Always close windows during the hottest hours of the day to keep the hottest air from entering the house. Adjust Interior Temperature Raise your interior temperature when you're not at home and during the overnight hours. When you are at home, keep the thermostat at 78 degrees or higher. You might be surprised at how comfortable you can be at higher temperatures as long as your HVAC unit removes the humidity from the air. You could save up to 15 percent on your overall bill just by raising your thermostat a couple of degrees when you are not at home. Use Fans Moving air is extremely effective for increasing the comfort level in a residence. Fans need not be expensive or high-tech to help keep a home bearable in the heat. Ceiling fans are one option for moving air in rooms. You could also use window fans in windows to exhaust warm air out of the house or pull cooler air in. Avoid Cooking Skip the stove or the oven on the hottest days of the year. Instead, go out to eat, bring food in, or use the outdoor grill. You could also just eat cold sandwiches or salads to avoid heating up the kitchen. If you must cook, use the microwave instead of the oven or stove. Maintain HVAC Equipment Proper maintenance is essential to keep equipment running efficiently. Have an HVAC professional service your air conditioning unit once a year. Replace worn parts at this time. Exchange filters regularly when they become clogged. If your unit is older, you might consider replacing it with a newer and more efficient unit. With attention to detail and ongoing maintenance, you can keep your house cool without overspending. To learn more about their options for air conditiong, Lehigh Valley residents should visit http://ugihvac.com/cooling.php.
Related Articles -
air, conditioning, lehigh, valley,
| 
