Luckily, there are dozens of affordable, do-it-yourself actions you can take NOW to keep the heat out, and put the freeze on your energy bills. The tips offered here are listed in order from easy and instantly gratifying (and cooling!) to low-cost or more involved, but with big payback.

1. Don’t be a blow hard! Running your AC all night long, or when you’re away for the day wastes energy. Set your thermostat to cool just when you really need it, and to a reasonable temperature- 74-75° F is sufficient for most people, especially if you’re in a climate that’s dry in the summer.
2. ‘Nuke it. Use your microwave to cook. Turning on the stove for small summer meals wastes energy and heats up your home.
3. Decorate! Hang light colored window coverings. They reflect heat and light.
4. Keep window coverings closed on south- and west-facing windows during the day to keep temperatures from rising inside.
5. Mind your ‘fridge and clean those dirty coils! Clean coils help a refrigerator run more efficiently. The smoother it runs, the less heat it will release into your home.
6. Turn over a new leaf and grow house plants. According to NASA, they clean the air by converting pollutants into plant food. Clean air will make your home feel fresher when the heat is on.
7. Plant a tree! Grow a deciduous shrub or small tree outside south- or west-facing windows to help block light and heat during the summer.
8. Don’t be a dim bulb! Use compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) where appropriate. Regular lamps release about 90% of their energy as heat. CFLs use more of their energy to create light, not to heat your home.
9. Ok – be a blow hard! Install an EnergyStar ceiling fan. Air movement makes people feel cooler.
10. Give your house new clothes. Insulate your walls and attic to keep hot air outside where it belongs!
11. Show the sun where to stick it! Install awnings on your south- and west-facing windows to block sun during the heat of the day.
12. Look to the sky and make your roof a cool roof! Reflective coatings or membranes installed on existing roofs will reduce roof temperatures by up to 60 degrees, and therefore lower the temperature in your house.

Doing what you can to stay cool on the cheap does double-duty by saving scarce energy resources. Happy cooling!

This entry was posted on Friday, July 10th, 2009 at 9:09 pm and is filed under Do, Learn. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.