Make Sure Your Home Can Beat the Heat

Energy use often rises with excessive heat, but there are a number of simple, economical ways to boost comfort, save energy, and reduce electric bills. Most of these energy-saving steps can pay for themselves relatively quickly. For example, weather stripping and caulking are inexpensive ways to boost efficiency and cut energy costs year-round.

A substantial portion of total residential energy costs is spent cooling homes. Reduce energy costs and ready the air conditioner with a cleaning and tune-up. Clean or change filters monthly during the cooling season. If you’re purchasing a new unit, check the efficiency rating, which could impact your annual energy costs. For greater operating efficiency, install the unit in a shady area and keep it free from plant overgrowth and debris.

Sunlight and heat easily enter homes through windows. Closing curtains, blinds, and shades can reduce heat gain by up to 40%. Installing awnings or shutters over windows exposed to direct sunlight can reduce indoor heat gain by up to 70%. Outdoor landscaping—such as shade trees, shrubs, or other plants around the foundation—can also reduce energy costs.

Ventilate your attic and check insulation. Adequately sized vents or an attic fan can help keep hot air from building up.

If your attic has less than 6 to 8 inches of insulation, consider adding more. Proper attic insulation can save up to 30% of your cooling bill. Be sure the insulation doesn’t block vents or cover exhaust fans.

Another inexpensive way to keep cool and reduce air conditioning costs is to use ceiling and oscillating fans. The moving air makes the temperature feel cooler, even with a higher thermostat setting. For each 1-degree increase in the thermostat setting, cooling costs can be trimmed by about 3%.