How to Cool Your House Without Air Conditioning

Air conditioning is a monthly expense and even more so if you don’t have a home with an air conditioning system already installed. Many folks enjoy working around air conditioning and cooling the house without it. Basically the idea of cooling your house without air conditioning is accomplished by minimizing heat sources and removing built up heat. Heat can be stifling and drain energy, leaving family members listless and grouchy. Excessive heat can cause heat exhaustion and affect blood pressure. Not only does a cooler house promote family health and happiness, but cooling without air conditioning is a great way to save money.

Here are a few helpful tips to accomplish this:

1) Insulate your attic. This will cut down on the transfer of heat through the walls and roof. This will give you the greatest change in comfort for the least expense. Even if you don’t think the attic affects the rest of the house, it does by collecting heat from inside and out and holding it in the house.

2) Another attic tip is to install a foil radiant barrier in the attic under the roof rafters.

3) Install heat reflecting film on all the windows that face the sun. This will reduce glare, and furniture damage caused by the sun, as well as helping keep out the heat. Mid afternoon sun can heat a house up several degrees that can take hours to dissipate.

4) Pull drapes and shades. Add overheads, latticework, awnings, and shelters to prevent sunlight from streaming through the windows, this reduces the heat gain within the house.

5) Plant trees, large bushes, and vines which will provide shade and cooling evaporation in the future. This will also help direct cooling breezes if you plant correctly.

6) Be sure to keep an eye on the temperature, inside and out, open windows and doors to let in cooler air when the temperature is lower outside, make sure to close them when it gets warmer outside as well as the drapes or blinds.

7) Use portable and ceiling fans to circulate air throughout the home. Moving air feels cooler than still air.

8) Reduce indoor humidity, avoid mid day laundry chores, showering and cooking. All of these cause moist warm air which can make the house feel warmer than it is. If you have to do any of these things make sure to have a fan running in that area, or even a dehumidifier.

9) Keep all heat generating appliances and lights turned off unless you absolutely need them. This includes the stove and oven, high wattage bulbs, and electrical appliance, the television and stereo.

Everyone wants their home to be comfortable, warm enough when it is cold outside and refreshingly cool when it is hot outside. Your climate is important in deciding how to handle the temperature of your home.

Keeping your home cool is definitely important if you live in a place with high humidity or extremely hot summers, if you live in a more moderate climate keeping cool without air conditioning can be accomplished much more easily. If you have tried all the tips above and the house is still too hot, then it is time to start shopping for air conditioning products.