As summer approaches, a lot of us would start tuning up the coolers and air conditioners in our homes to beat the heat. Not a bad idea, but did you know that there are plenty of other ways in which you can cool down your home during a hot summer day without relying entirely on the cooler or AC? In addition to cooling down your home equivalent to the effect produced by the AC/cooler, these methods would help you save plenty in terms of energy related costs which usually peak during the summer season. Here are 7 such low tech ways to keep your home cool this summer.
Install Awnings
Awnings do much more than simply shield your windows from rain and snow. They can in fact, also reduce the amount of solar heat absorbed by the windows by nearly 75%. Less absorbed heat means less indoor heat which would, in turn, keep your home cool in the summer.
Paint the Roof
It is considered wise to spend some money in painting your roof white before the summer heat sets in. White roofs act very much like the snow and ice which don’t absorb UV rays, but reflect them off instead. Thus, by painting your roof white, you can ensure that at least 50% of the heat that hits it is reflected off. This would result in a comparatively cooler indoor space as less heat is absorbed by the roof and let into the home. Painting the roof with a reflective paint would be more beneficial in this case.
Plant Vines
While many may advice you to plant trees around your home, we advise you to go for vines. This would be a great alternative to keep your home cool during summer, especially if you live in an apartment or in a busy suburb where planting trees is out of the question. Vines aka climbers can cling to the walls instead and protect them from the sun’s heat. The shade produced by the vines on the walls reflects indoors as well, reducing the indoor temperature y nearly 50%.
Use Shutters to Block out the Sunlight
While drapes would be able to filter only a portion of the sunlight and heat that enters your home, wooden shutters would do a much better job in blocking them out. So consider investing in some good quality wooden shutters for the windows in your home. This would definitely keep your home cool during the summer season.
Open the Windows in the Night
While it would be considered as a wise move to close the windows during the day, opening them at night would allow cool air to enter your home. Place a box or table fan near the east and north facing windows to pull in the cool air. Placing a box/table fan near the west and south windows would also help push out the hot indoor air. This arrangement would ensure ta proper cross breeze inside the home, thus keeping it cool during the night and the whole of next day.
Reverse the Ceiling Fan
The majority of ceiling fans come with a reverse switch that can be used to reverse the direction in which the fans rotate. Flip on the reverse switch in summer to allow the blades to suck up the hot air towards the ceiling instead of the other way around. This way, the room would remain cool throughout the day.
Switch off the Lights
Incandescent light bulbs tend to generate a lot of heat, contributing more to the indoor temperature. So make it a point to switch off these bulbs immediately after using them in order to reduce indoor heat. Better yet, consider transitioning to LEDs and CFLs which produce less heat when switched on. They are more energy efficient as well, allowing you to save energy in the process.
There is no need to spend a lot of money while trying to keep your house cool this summer. A lot of low tech practices like the ones mentioned here can help you keep your home cool and breezy literally free of cost.