Tips and Tricks to Keeping Your House Cool This Summer

This time of year all many of us can think about is keeping our houses cool in 90-degree temperatures and 100% humidity.  But trying to escape the heat that takes over in the summer months comes at a cost.  For those who live in an older home, their summer utility bills can be astronomical.  We are here to help with tips and tricks to keeping your house cool this summer.

1. Start with your windows- It sounds simple, but if the sun comes through your windows it will make your house warmer.  Try using window coverings during the middle of the day to keep the sunlight out, especially if you are gone most of the day.  Try one of our favorite products such as thermal curtains that are specifically designed for this purpose.
2. Hot air is most likely coming in from more than one place- The most common places where the outside is can come in from are the windows and door frames.  Some that people may not think of are crawl spaces and recessed lighting.  Your utility company will come in handy with this!  Many of them can provide an audit on your home and will even offer rebates if you take their advice.
3. Insulation- This is key all year-round.  For those who do not know how insulation works, let us enlighten you.  Heat flows from a hotter place to a cooler place, so not having insulation means that heat is seeping into your house and your Air conditioner is having to work a lot harder than normal.
4. When and how you run your air conditioner- Most people think that it is better to leave their air conditioner on all day when they are at work so they come home to a nice cool house.  This is fact will make you have a higher eclectic bill than your neighbor who decides to turn their AC up a little bit while they are at work.  This again is due to the fact that hot air likes to move to a cooler environment, so while you leave your AC on all day and temperatures reach 95 degrees, your AC has to work that much harder to keep your house cooler.

If you are in need of a new AC unit this summer make sure you look for an ENERGY STAR certified unit.  They use 10% less energy, on average and cost about $70 per year to run.  So beat the heat this summer with our tips and tricks- OR go to the pool and stay cool by the water!