10 Unusual Pointers for Keeping Cool During The Hot Months

Posted by Gannon on March 31st, 2021

We went through a record-setting heat wave just recently in the United States. Here in Atlanta, we set an all-time record of 106 F. Residence with properly-sized a/c unit are sized for a temperature of 92 ° F and probably didn't remain so cool. I make sure numerous homes with air conditioners that seem considerably oversized didn't remain cool enough either.

Every summertime you can find lots and great deals of tips on how to save energy and keep one's cool at house: Use cooler clothing, utilize your ceiling fans, keep the sun out, go to a movie, get your a/c unit serviced, caulk your windows, and so on. I will point out a few typical suggestions in this post, but I'm likewise going to discuss some that you may never ever have seen in a post like this before.

Before we get into the real pointers, however, it might be practical to remember how the whole cooling thing works. Previously this year, I heard a terrific expression on the radio: Your air conditioning system is the faucet; the structure envelope of your house is the cup. If you have a leaking cup, your air conditioning system has to work harder. If your Air Conditioner is currently doing all it can, you may require to have a look at your structure envelope. Also, to return to the metaphor, a leak in your pipes may make it difficult to fill the cup, even it's not leaking much.

Here are three concerns to ask as you try to keep cool with an air conditioning system that has a hard time on those truly hot days:

- What can I do to minimize the amount of heat getting in?

- What can I do to make my a/c more effective?

- What else can I do to keep one's cool?

Let's dive into the suggestions now. I'm focusing here on existing homes. Whether it's a brand name brand-new home you simply moved into or a hundred years old, the house is currently there, so some design alternatives are off the table.

Tips for keeping heat out

1. Keep the sun out. Windows can be the biggest contributors to your heat gain. When the sun shines straight into the home, it typically brings a lot of heat, too, unless you have really good windows (with low solar heat gain coefficients). Solar screens on the outside of the window are fantastic for keeping heat out. You may likewise think about some momentary shading for the east- and west-facing windows on those super hot days.

2. Seal the strange air leaks. Most of the standard energy-saving suggestions tells you to caulk your windows and weatherstrip your doors. The issue with that is you're ignoring a few of the much bigger leakages, like, state, crawl space vents that open into conditioned area or a hole in the kitchen ceiling that functions as a refrigerator vent. Take a look around in your attic, crawl space, or basement, and you'll find the worst offenders.

3. Decrease the surface temperature levels. Some parts of your house may be hotter than others. For example, you might have a benefit room that's hardly ever comfortable. Attic kneewalls with inefficient insulation are frequently the offender there. Get the insulation in the cavities and put sheathing on the attic side of the kneewalls.

Tips for helping your air conditioning system

4. Change your filter. The majority of individuals let them get too unclean, and this is among the most common factors for poor efficiency in ac system. A dirty filter includes resistance and decreases air flow. Go air conditioning replacement edmonton on and check it now. I'll wait till you get back.

5. Enhance air flow. In addition to the air filter, your Air Conditioning might have other kinds of air flow issues. If the evaporator coil is dirty, insufficient air moves across it and your house doesn't cool down as well as it should. If the condenser coil is unclean, it will not dump enough heat to the outside. If your condenser coil is crowded with plants or other obstacles, clear it out. You can trim the bushes yourself, but you should most likely call a professional to clean up the coils.

6. Try to find detached ducts. If your ducts are beyond the conditioned space in your house, check to see if anything has come loose. Repairing a supply duct that's sending out all its cool air to the attic or crawl space (as revealed below) can have an immediate influence on your comfort. This issue is more common than you may believe.

Other ideas for keeping one's cool

7. Usage fans. OK, I know this one's not unusual, however if your air conditioning system is doing all it can but your home still isn't rather cool enough on those truly hot days, moving the air over your skin may be just what you need to remain comfy. Remember, though, that fans do not cool the air; they cool you. Shut off ones that remain in empty rooms because they're using energy and adding more heat to your house. Required to purchase a new ceiling fan? They now feature energy effectiveness labels demonstrating how energy efficient they are.

8. Use a window air conditioner. If you have actually done whatever above and your house is still uncomfortably hot, setting up a window unit A/C could provide you simply enough extra cooling to assist you make it through the heat wave. I know. I understand. They're awful and loud and might be versus the rules where you live. They use more power, which contributes to the pressure on the electrical energy grid, and may contribute more to worldwide warming. Still, if you've got an energy efficient house with a right-sized a/c, this could be the very best method to manage those heat waves when temperatures go well above what your main air conditioner was created for. It's a much better option than setting up an extra-large system just so you have sufficient capability to deal with the extreme heat occasions. A more pricey and irreversible option to the window unit would be a ductless mini-split heatpump.

9. Get a house energy evaluation. Trained home energy auditors can discover the problems I noted above and more and advise options. They likewise have devices to determine how dripping your ducts are, for example, in addition to the surface area temperatures of your floorings, walls, and ceilings.

10. Turn off your power attic ventilators. If you have power attic ventilators in the attic, have them disconnected so they do not run. They might well be robbing cool air from your home.

If your a/c repair company suggests replacing your unit with a bigger one to deal with heat waves, beware. A/c unit do not dehumidify well if they do not have long run times, and bear in mind that heat waves do not last forever and we do not have bad ones every year. If your AC can't keep up when it's hotter than normal outside, utilize the recommendations above to make it through. Your home will be more comfy and effective for it even when the temperatures go back to regular.