Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

 

Have you ever tried to find a solid AC repairman during the summer months? If you have, you know how hard it is to secure a visit on his/her part because of the air-conditioning frenzy. It’s as if the entire world had ditched all other cooling and heating system and uses only the AC unit. Just a couple of decades ago, the situation was quite different as people had other means of staying cool (ambiguity intended) in summer. In fact, most of these old-school methods are topical today and they won’t increase your electricity bill as an air-conditioning unit will.

 

Insulating the attic

During the hottest days of the year, a trip to the attic turns into a visit into a makeshift sauna. Air temperatures soar inside because of the material the roof is made from. Metal roofs, especially tin ones, are poor insulators, which causes the attic to heat up significantly more than the rest of the house. By placing insulation inside the walls, you are helping to equalize the air temperature throughout the house, preventing the house from overheating from above.

 

Investing in a ceiling fan

For most homeowners, a desktop fan is an inefficient cooling method. However, if you change its location and increase its site, it can become a powerful cooling tool. A large-enough ceiling fan can cool down enough air to decrease the temperature in a moderate-sized room. However, it uses less power than an AC unit and it doesn’t pollute the air.

 

It merely circulates the existing air evenly throughout the room, cooling it down in the process. When shopping for a ceiling fan, choose the models with fewer blades; three or four are more than enough. Furthermore, a fan with a steeper blade pitch, c. 15%, will circulate air better than a fan with flat blades.

 

 

Protecting the windows

The largest openings on your house have to be the windows so they require extra protection. The best solutions are windows awnings or a shade sail but if you’re aiming for longevity and durability, then plantation shutters are the right shading option to go with. They cast a limited shadow even outside the house so these shutters are ideal for people who own a garden. Furthermore, you will enjoy better insulation during winter months because modern shutters come with rubber trimming on the edges for better airtightness. In addition, the glass windows will be 100% safe during the next big hailstorm.

 

A cool bed to lie in

In order to cool down your bed, pushing the table with a small fan next to your head might not be the healthiest of options. A much better solution is to get linen, bedsheets, and pillows that are made using advanced cooling technology. Next time you go shopping for bedding, look for words such as “cool kick” or “air cooling” on the packaging. These phrases might sound cool, but the technology behind such bedding is the composition of the material it is made from. By allowing air to flow through the fabric itself, the pillow or the pillowcase cool down your skin that is in contact with the bedding.

 

Adopting a “night flush”

Air conditioning comes with a remote controller that you can use to program the air temperature. This feature is perhaps what people miss the most in a fan. However, you can still regulate the air temperature without fancy gizmos. Nighttime is the most important period during which it is necessary to lower the room temperature because we sleep better in colder climates.

 

Adopt a procedure called a “night flush” that involves opening the top section of the windows before bedtime. This allows for the air to circulate near the ceiling straight toward the large fan that traps this gush of fresh air and distributes it evenly across the room. After you get up in the morning just close the windows and the cool night air will remain trapped inside. The ceiling fan will keep it at a reasonable temperature and the shutters will prevent it from heating up again when exposed to the sun’s rays.

 

The 5 methods we have listed here are as simple as they are cost-efficient. Any of these cooling options cost far less to install than an AC unit and their maintenance is virtually non-existent. All you need to do after the installation of plantation shutters is just to wipe them with a clean cloth, for example.

Written by Patrick Adams

 

 

About the Author

Patrick Adams is a freelance writer and rock-blues fan. When he is not writing about home improvement, he loves to play chess, watch basketball, and play his guitar. More than anything, he loves to spend his time in his garage, repairing appliances and creating stuff from wood.

 

 

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