Twenty-three Tips for Keeping the House Cool

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Twenty-three Tips for Keeping the House Cool (http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/218#more) Adapted from Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings, by Alex Wilson, Jennifer Thorne, and John Morrill. Puzzling out how to keep your house as cool as possible during these hot summer months? Trying to remember the conventional wisdom but not quite sure how it goes? Those window fans, for example, should they be placed to draw air in or out? Upwind or downwind of the dwelling? And what about windows, shades, and awnings? Are windows on the North side of the house better left closed or open during the day? Are awnings better than shades? Find out the answers to these questions and more, right here: Simple Solution:(http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/218?print=1) The recent heat spell on the East coast ( & West Coast as well), dredged these questions up for me, and I am sure these questions are seasonal for many of us. Efficient cooling saves money, energy, and the quality of our lives. Turning to Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings by Alex Wilson, Jennifer Thorne, and John Morrill of the American Council for an Eneryg-Efficient Economy has provided a wealth of answers to just these questions and more. I've compiled 23 tricks about how to keep a house cool to reduce the need for air conditioning from this book, as well as a few from The Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook. These tips are really useful. Tricks for keeping the house cool. Adapted from Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings by Alex Wilson, Jennifer Thorne, and John Morrill. 1. Reduce the cooling load by employing cost-effective conservation measures. Provide effective shade for east and west windows. When possible, delay heat-generating activities such as dishwashing until evening on hot days. 2. Over most of the cooling season, keep the house closed tight during the day. Don't let in unwanted heat and humidity. Ventilate at night either naturally or with fans. 3. You can help get rid of unwanted heat through ventilation if the temperature of the incoming air is 77 F or lower. (This strategy works most effectively at night and on cooler days.) Window fans for ventilation are a good option if used properly. They should be located on the downwind side of the house facing out. A window should be open in each room. Interior doors must remain open to allow air flow. 4. Use ceiling fans to increase comfort levels at higher thermostat settings. The standard human comfort range for light clothing in the summer is between 72 F and 78 F. To extend the comfort range to 82 F, you need a breeze of about 2.5 ft/sec or 1.7 mph. A sow-turning ceiling-mounted paddle fan can easily provide this air flow. 5. In hot climates, plant shade trees around the house. Don't plant trees on the South if you want to benefit from passive solar heating in the winter. 6. If you have an older central air conditioner, consider replacing the outdoor compressor with a modern, high-efficiency unit. Make sure that it is properly matched to the indoor unit. 7. If buying a new air conditioner, be sure that it is properly sized. Get assistance from an energy auditor or air conditioning contractor. 8. Buy a high-efficiency air conditioner: for room air conditioners, the energy efficiency ratio (EER) rating should be above 10; for central air conditioners, look for a seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) rating above 12. 9. In hot, humid climates, make sure that the air conditioner you buy will adequately get rid of high humidity. Models with variable or multi-speed blowers are generally best. Try to keep moisture sources out of the house. 10. Try not to use a dehumidifier at the same time your air conditioner is operating. The dehumidifier will increase the cooling load and force the air conditioner to work harder. 11. Seal all air conditioner ducts, and insulate ducts that run through unheated basements, crawl spaces, and attics. 12. Keep the thermostat set at 78 degrees F - or higher if using ceiling fans. Don't air-condition unused rooms. 13. Maintain your air conditioners properly to maximize efficiency. Additional tips from the Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook edited by Doug Pratt and the Real Goods staff. Warm Weather Window Solutions14. Install white window shades or mini-blinds. Mini-blinds can reduce solar heat gain by 40-50 percent. 15. Close south and west-facing curtains during the day for any window that gets direct sunlight. Keep these windows closed, too. 16. Install awnings on south-facing windows, where there's insufficient roof overhang to provide shade. 17. Hang tightly woven screens or bamboo shades outside the window during the summer to stop 60 to 80 percent of the sun's heat from getting to the windows. 18. Apply _low-e films._ (http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/137) (see below) 19. Consider exotic infills in your windows, a new technology that fills the space between panes with krypton or argon, gasses that have lower conductivity than air, and which boost R-values. Tips for your A/C19. Provide shade for your room A/C, or the outside half of your central A/C if at all possible. This will increase the unit's efficiency by 5 percent to 10 percent. 20. Clean your A/C's air filter every month during cooling season. Normal dust build-up can reduce air flow by 1 percent per week. 22. Turn off your A/C when you leave for more than an hour. 23. Several studies have found that most central air conditioning systems are oversized by 50 percent or more. Shop for Supplies: _Consumer's Guide to Home Energy Savings_ (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0918249384/caremailgreeting) This book will help you find energy-saving products and show you how to use them most efficiently.Energy Saving Low-e Windows (http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/137#more) Excerpted from Real Goods Solar Living Source Book,edited by Doug Pratt and executive editor John Schaeffer. The biggest news in window technology is "low-e" films for low-emissivity. These thin metal coatings allow the shortwave radiation of solar energy to pass in, but block most of the long-wave thermal energy tying to get back out. Simple Solution:(http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/137?print=1) Low-e films block most solar heat gain while transmitting most visible light. Windows treated with low-e film help in both the winter and summer, with little heat leakage coming inside on a hot summer day, or leaking outside in winter. A low-e coating is virtually invisible from the inside, but most brands tend to give windows a semi-mirror appearance from the outside. Low-e windows are available ready-made from the factory, where the thin plastic film with the metal coating is suspended between the glass panes, or, low-e films can be applied to existing windows. Helpful Hints: _Real Goods_ (http://www.gaiam.com/) offers a do-it-yourself product that is permanently applied with soap and squeegee, or they can be applied professionally. These films offer the same heat reflecting performance as the factory-applied coatings, and are relatively modest in cost (especially compared to new windows!). These windows do require a bit of care in cleaning, as the plastic film can be scratched. Some utility companies offer rebates for after-market low-e films. Shop for Supplies: _The Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook_ (http://www.realgoods.com/care2/shop/shop4.cfm) The Sourcebook remains the best introduction to energy-efficient technology for common folks. -Whole Earth Review From novices to pros, this book explains renewable energy and efficient building practices. Great reference to start design and cost estimation from each section. One of the best features of this book is the addition of the National Electric Code for RE systems. It's possible to pick a building material to build a house, design a solar electric system, decide on appliances, determine the use of a greywater system, and more from 562 pages. No more looking up pages on the net!

 

The coward believes he will live forever If he holds back in the battle, But in old age he shall have no peaceThough spears have spared his limbs Stanza 16 of the Havamal (the Sayings of Har) from the Poetic Edda

 

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