Summer isn’t over yet. Help keep the cost of cooling down with these tips.
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Temperatures are rising.
After a hot start to the summer, we hope you are enjoying this break from the heat before we head into August and the temperatures rise once again.
We also wanted to share three handy tricks for cutting down your cooling costs before the next heat wave hits.
#1 Fans and ice
You can easily make a DIY AC, with nothing more than a box fan and some ice. Simply put the ice into a bowl and place it in front of the running fan.
As the ice melts, it cools the air around it. The fan will then disperse that wonderfully cool air all around your home.
But fans can do more than that.
Another cooling trick is to run your ceiling fans counterclockwise—this will pull up the hot air, leaving you sitting in a cooler space. And installing a whole-house fan can literally pull out all the hot air from your home and syphon it up and out, at minimal cost.
#2 Green cooling
Plants do a wonderful job absorbing sunshine and reducing the summer heat.
If you’re planning to stay in your home for a while, it might make sense to plant several deciduous trees on the south side of your home.
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A whole-house fan can pull all the hot air from your home up and out.
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However, even more short-term green solutions can work.
One option is several potted sunflowers, which grow quickly but have large leaves. Climbing vines or foliage on a trellis can keep the front of your home cool, while a green roof will both increase your comfort and reduce your energy bills, year-round.
#3 A summertime schedule
For this natural trick, simply open up the windows in the early morning and shut them before you go to work.
This will allow you to suck in some cool air, and to keep out the hot air later in the day.
For even better results, draw the shades during the day, and consider getting heat-blocking blackout curtains.
These kinds of simple heat-busting tricks can be effective at reducing the heat during the summer months. And they can have a nice impact on your energy bill, lowering it by 30% to 50%.
Plus, small investments like planting a tree or installing a whole-house fan can also boost the value of your home.
I bring this up because the summer is also when the real estate market gets hot.
If you are considering selling your home, you can get started by getting an estimate of what it’s worth, thanks to this home value calculator that’s based on recent sales in the area:
Enter your street address here to find out what your home is worth
If you’re looking to buy, you might be interested in some of the great homes that have recently come on the area market:
Click here for all available homes for sale
And if you have any questions, including other tips and tricks on how to keep cool in the summer heat, give me a call at 217-351-4900. I’m here to help.