What do you do to keep your home cool on the cheap?

[LDSmomma]

We open the windows at night, and put a fan in one to exhaust the hot air out, and pull cool air in. In the morning, we close the windows. I also am trying to cook without the oven on hot days. Crock pot tonight!

In June, our power company is starting a program where from 2-7, we pay more for power usage than the rest of the day. I'm looking for good ways to save energy, so I'm used to it before then!

[Poddi]

How about everybody walk around at home with just undies? That should be cool. (And saves the amount of laundry, too) Seriously that's what we'd do if it gets hot here. I've never lived in a house with A/C, so you just wear less and less clothes as it gets hotter.

[A Mom's Love]

Originally Posted by LDSmomma

We open the windows at night, and put a fan in one to exhaust the hot air out, and pull cool air in. In the morning, we close the windows. I also am trying to cook without the oven on hot days. Crock pot tonight!

In June, our power company is starting a program where from 2-7, we pay more for power usage than the rest of the day. I'm looking for good ways to save energy, so I'm used to it before then!

Other than closing the windows, you can do something to block the sunlight and it's accompanying warmth from coming in. You could buy those special black out curtains or a foam board fit to the window with aluminum foil covering the side facing out should do the trick.

PS We're LDS 2

[Pumpkin_Pie]

I definitely need some tricks this year. I always say I am going to open the curtains and windows at night and then close them up during the day to keep the heat out, but keeping the house dark during the day, especially if we are at home just seems criminal. I am definitely going to invest in a few more fans this year to move the a/c air that I have in my bedroom around a bit more to make it feel cooler.

This past winter, I insulated a bunch of my outside walls with wool blankets tacked to the walls, and it made a HUGE difference in the amount I spent on my gas bill. I receive heating assistance, and two winters ago, I still had to spend a significant chunk, and this winter, I still have about a months worth of credit to use up and haven't paid anything out at all for the entire winter.

[woodchick]

Keep the shades drawn to keep the sun out during the day.
Drink ice water.
We hang out outdoors or in our basement living room.
Grill and eat outdoors.
Spend the afternoons at the beach or in the air conditioned library.
Light, airy clothing.

You could also do your cooking for lunch and eat cold dinners to avoid cooking during the 2-7 window.

[eirual]

We open the house at night, then draw the curtains during the day. It deffinitely has to be a happy medium between staying cool and sunshine=happiness. If nothing else, I draw only the southern-facing shades to get the bulk of the heat rays away, or certainly the upstairs curtains.

Spend a lot of time in the basement (okay, I don't really do this, but growing up on hot nights I'd sleep in the basement since my parents had a pull out couch down there). Keep juice-pops frozen in the freezer. Bust out the hose for the kiddy pool...or dish pan and cups....or a small pitcher of water to play "drip, drip, drop" (like duck, duck, goose, but wetter).

[TEAK's Mom]

I live in Alaska.

I also close all of the curtains during the day and eat a lot of raw food.

[camprunner]

We put alluminum foil over a big window we have to reflect the sun which helps a bunch. The insulated curtains we have barely help at all. Beyond that, I need help too. We live in a very hot and humid climate so leaving the windows open isn't always the best idea.

[Magelet]

Originally Posted by Poddi

How about everybody walk around at home with just undies? That should be cool. (And saves the amount of laundry, too) Seriously that's what we'd do if it gets hot here. I've never lived in a house with A/C, so you just wear less and less clothes as it gets hotter.

we do this too.

no a/c, just a couple fans. keeping still, drinking water, eating light, refreshing meals instead of heavy foods.

[lmonter]

Run the dishwasher/washing machine at night.

Close your thick curtains during the day so sunlight doesn't heat up those room/that side of the house.

Use the grill outside to cook dinner.

We may also run our kitchen window a/c (pops in and out of the window) and have fans strategically placed for air circulation. Or when/if I need to keep the bedrooms (upstairs) cool, we stick an a/c in one of the windows, fans strategically to move the air around into the other rooms, and hang a thick blanket on a shower curtain in the hallway to keep the rising heat out. It's not pretty, but it works and you can feel the difference - was easily a 10-15*F difference on either side of the blanket/curtain.

[LDSmomma]

These are great! I've had a headache the last two days, which coincides with the windows being open. I think it's from pollen. Do y'all worry about pollen invading your house with windows open?? Is there a better time of day for pollen?

TIA!

[lmonter]

If I remember right, pollen does it's thing in the morning the majority of the time. It doesn't affect us/me so much, except when it's about to rain. I can always tell when it's about to rain because my allergies go bonkers - the plants let loose with all they've got right before it rains, then the rain forces it all down toward the ground rather than miles up in the atmosphere or whatnot.

But I've had my seasonal allergies and asthma for almost 20 years, and never have I stopped opening the windows at night and closing them up during the day. It's just how I grew up and how our family rolls.

[velochic]

Originally Posted by LDSmomma

These are great! I've had a headache the last two days, which coincides with the windows being open. I think it's from pollen. Do y'all worry about pollen invading your house with windows open?? Is there a better time of day for pollen?

TIA!

I have SEVERE seasonal allergies. That is, I take a daily allergy pill, supplement it with regular doses of Benedryl, use my Neti pot, and take a teaspoon of local honey daily and this morning I still woke up with my eyes swollen shut and wanting to rip my throat out through my ears for ANY relief. I go through an INSANE amount of tissues. I'm not able to work or even drive right now (mostly because of the Benedryl, but also because the swelling of my eyes makes it difficult to see distances well).

I completely gave up on trying to keep the windows open this time of the year. We conserve during the winter so we can splurge during the warm months. I'm in the humid midwest. By the time the allergens are no longer a problem (July), it's too miserable to open the windows.

When the pollen count is low... late summer/early fall... we have a whole house fan that we use to cool things off. Open a few windows and turn on the fan and it just sucks the cool, fresh air right through the house. Sometimes we leave it on for a while just for the breeze, but usually we can just turn it on for 15 minutes, then shut the windows and it keeps it cool. Our house is made of stone.

So, no help, but I certainly understand allergies.

[BetsyS]

We don't really have our windows open this time of year, either. I don't have allergies, but I hate cleaning up the fine yellow film that covers every surface available!

We do lots of these things (light clothes or less clothes, light, cool meals, keeping the window blinds shut, etc), and we're able to keep the AC on about 78 *most* of the time. I also sleep with a fan directed at me (I'm pregnant, and I'm already burning up all the time; it's only in the 80s here right now...ay ya yi).

[SophieAnn]

We run the central air from about mid-May to late-Sept. Windows are never opened in the summer, A/C is always on (it's more efficient at keeping the house cool/low humidity than getting it there). Thermostat is set around 23.5C, and about 1 degree cooler overnight.

Our hydro bills are lower in the summer than they are in the winter.

[LDSmomma]

Originally Posted by lmonter

If I remember right, pollen does it's thing in the morning the majority of the time.

I think that's true, but where I live, the pollen count today is nearly 5800. On the scale of pollen, extremely high is over 120. EVERYTHING outside is bathed in yellow dust right now, and when I ran the car A/C when we left this am, I could see the pollen flying around the car (I opened the windows to vent it all out, and once we were rolling it wasn't a problem anymore). So, pollen really is an issue here, much more than in other parts of the country.

So, like you said, pollen's worst in the am, so I think I'm gonna start working harder to remember to close up the windows before then!!

Originally Posted by BetsyS

I hate cleaning up the fine yellow film that covers every surface available!

Exactly! This morning, I noticed our dining table has a layer of pollen right now. Gross!

[Purple*Lotus]

Originally Posted by LDSmomma

These are great! I've had a headache the last two days, which coincides with the windows being open. I think it's from pollen. Do y'all worry about pollen invading your house with windows open?? Is there a better time of day for pollen?

TIA!

I can't open my windows. I did it twice last week because it was so hot I could not take it, but I had to put the window AC unit in because my allergies were so bad.

Originally Posted by velochic

I have SEVERE seasonal allergies. That is, I take a daily allergy pill, supplement it with regular doses of Benedryl, use my Neti pot, and take a teaspoon of local honey daily and this morning I still woke up with my eyes swollen shut and wanting to rip my throat out through my ears for ANY relief. I go through an INSANE amount of tissues. I'm not able to work or even drive right now (mostly because of the Benedryl, but also because the swelling of my eyes makes it difficult to see distances well).

I completely gave up on trying to keep the windows open this time of the year. We conserve during the winter so we can splurge during the warm months. I'm in the humid midwest. By the time the allergens are no longer a

We must be related, our routines sound very similar Except I had never heard about the local honey!!

[provocativa]

Invest in a dehumidifier. We used to wipe ourselves down with wet washrags when we were kids. Now, I keep spray bottles of water in the fridge. Pre-kid I would keep water in the bathtub and dip in and out every now and then (obviously a drowning risk for littles). There are often ceiling fans at Goodwill or the Habitat Store here. Learn how to make a solar oven, and use it. Eat more sea salt and fat. The both support your adrenal glands. We lose salt when we sweat too much; salt helps prevent heat stroke. Extra salt can help us retain water (you will be more comfortable with a sheen of sweat evaporating, than with rivulets flowing everywhere.

[pranamama]

if you hang cheapo indoor/outdoor window coverings from the eaves so the sun can't hit the window it prevents a lot of heat from entering, also rescheduling the day to sleep in most of the time helps with being able to stay up late while it is hot and go to bed later, I don't like leaving windows open when sleeping so have to stay up while cooling the house.

[Tammy in Germany]

Originally Posted by LDSmomma

We open the windows at night, and put a fan in one to exhaust the hot air out, and pull cool air in. In the morning, we close the windows. I also am trying to cook without the oven on hot days. Crock pot tonight!

In June, our power company is starting a program where from 2-7, we pay more for power usage than the rest of the day. I'm looking for good ways to save energy, so I'm used to it before then!

I live in Europe and the summers in the valleys can be hot and humid. I keep fans running on low, open the windows after 11pm...as in the summer it doesn't get dark until 10pm. Dinner is usually sandwiches, salads or something on the BBQ with fresh fruits and veggies. During the day I have heavy curtains I close and a small portable AC I run for a few hours to keep it cool. Works perfectly.