Consider the spring days with temperatures of 85 degrees as an omen of what summer may be like. Ask yourself: Is my home ready for the heat?
“Some customers worry about the extra cost of cooling,” said DuWayne Dunham, energy services supervisor for Clark Public Utilities. “But in reality the cost can be rather low to keep your home comfortable. Especially with a little planning.”
By taking advantage of Mother Nature, you can keep your home cooler at no cost. However, it may mean making some behavioral changes. Dunham explains, “anytime it’s cooler outside than it is inside your home, it makes sense to open up the windows. That’s usually in the morning and evening.”
By getting up early and opening the windows in your home, you can move the hot air trapped inside overnight outside and lower the temperature inside. Then close the windows before the sun gets too high, or when you go to work. After dark, repeat the process. Just make sure to consider safety and don’t leave your home vulnerable. Also be careful with open windows if you have small children in the home. Screens aren’t strong enough to prevent falls.
If you have indoor blinds or drapes, drawing them shut during the day helps keep the heat out, but they’re not as effective as awnings, outdoor blinds, or deciduous shade trees that block the sun from windows. Placing inexpensive roll-up bamboo shades over windows on the south and west sides of your house is more effective than drawing the drapes. Canvas or aluminum awnings that partially block sun shining in southern or western windows also help.
When there are several days in a row of heat, you may need to consider another approach. During these times, our primary weapons for cooling our homes are portable, window and ceiling fans, and room air conditioners.
Affordable cool
Fans don’t actually cool air, but they create a draft that evaporates moisture on our skin and makes us feel cooler. Portable fans are inexpensive, can be moved from room to room easily and don’t cost much to run. Ceiling fans are also affordable and very inexpensive to run.
“Running a ceiling fan six hours a day, every day for a month, adds about 90 cents to your monthly utility bill,” said Dunham.
Room air conditioners come in two models, window and floor, and both types must be vented outside. Window models can usually cool one room. The free-standing models generally offer more cooling capacity and also can be moved from room to room. It’s true they will use more energy than a fan, but running a newer air conditioner carefully won’t empty your wallet either.
“Running an 1,100-watt air conditioner for six hours a day for a month adds just over $16 to your monthly bill,” said Dunham. “So for many customers, it’s worth the cost to be comfortable on hot summer days.”
If you own a heat pump, you can use it for cooling in the summer since they are dual-purpose. And, they’re permanent so there’s no need to pack them away in the fall. For that reason, summer is a good time to switch to a heat pump, or ductless heat pump, if your heating system is ready for an upgrade. Before you make the change, call an energy counselor or check the new www.ClarkPublicUtilities.com website for information on current rebates and incentives, and to find a local contractor participating in the utility’s Contractor Network.
Energy Adviser is written by Clark Public Utilities. Send questions to ecod@clarkpud.com or to Energy Adviser, c/o Clark Public Utilities, P.O. Box 8900, Vancouver, WA 98668.
