Summer is here, put your heart at rest. You know what that means: tan, longer days, blows on the bill. How to refresh the house? If you use the air conditioner a lot it is not economical for your pocket or for the planet.
Yet Summer is the time to flex our mighty green muscles: you don't need to use the air conditioner to keep the house cool. And you don't have to do it all the time. A report from last year says that the use of air conditioning can increase global temperatures by 0,5°C by the end of the century. Are you getting into it too? No, right?
The options to refresh your home in a natural way vary according to the type of home and budget, but there are something for all tastes and budgets. And in any case, they are good for the Earth and the wallet. Here are three.
Keep the heat out
And clearly keep the cool inside. They all fail by increasing the need for air conditioning. And they do this in two ways: first, by creating heat in the home (for example, using the oven to bake a cake). Second, bringing in heat from outside. Very simply: limit appliances in summer, because they release heat. Wait until the evening or night for your dryer and dishwasher. And if you really want to cook something, the grill (natural gas) is better than the oven in the kitchen.
Most of all, keep the curtains closed to keep the sun out. It's ABC, says Claudette Hanks Reichel, a professor at Louisiana State University. She loves natural light as much as the next guy, but you don't need it that much when it's 40°C and humid.
For those who want to take a step forward, sun screens e solar films they help limit the sun before it even touches the window glass. A bit as if they were mosquito nets for the heat. There are different types around, at prices ranging from €20 to around 100% (depending on size and quality). You can ask an installer to fix them, but you can also do it yourself.
Keeping this filter down in the morning makes the solution perfect, preventing heat from entering the house (when it's already inside it obviously doesn't work so well).
Finally, for those who are Saints or Heroes: consider planting a few trees in the garden to provide natural shade. If you have money and time, change the flooring and put a reflective, white one.
Be smart with your air conditioner
You may not be able to avoid using it altogether. Especially if you live in very humid areas. However, this does not mean that you need to keep it running all day: there are ways to optimize its use that do not put the planet and your bill on fire. First of all, evaluate the energy class: don't waste time thinking about saving €100, get the best class and you will save 10 times as much with use.
Replace and clean the filters (the user manual is valid) so as not to make them consume too much energy. Use it in Economy mode, so it turns off when the temperature has been reached, or enter an economy mode to conserve it.
Finally, always keep in mind that with the air conditioner on you have to shut yourself up in the house (otherwise for every minute that humidity enters from the outside the device struggles more). A good alternative may be to mount a ceiling fan.
As you can see, no trick: just common sense.
Embrace technology
If all these things to keep make you feel even hotter, think about how to refresh your home by giving yourself something to do the job for you. Looking forward to more futuristic solutions a simple programmable thermostat, for example, should not cost you more than 50 € and can be programmed for all hours of the day and night. The ideal setting is around 25 ° C, 25 ° and a half.
If the temperature is too high for you, adjust the air conditioner to a lower temperature and then configure the thermostat to raise it little by little up to 25°C, so that your body gets used to it. Your neck will thank you.
The more expensive thermostats, then, learn from your behaviors: they have sensors that control the temperature of the rooms based on the time you spend there. Think about the recent thermostat Google Nest, is considered one of the best around. For around € 250 you should solve the problem and simply repay it with the energy savings you will get.
Small high-tech tricks: smart power strips keep the house cooler simply by stopping giving energy to the appliances you are not using.
Everything goes in the right direction in these cases. Good luck and drink a lemonade to my health!
