a/c alternatives

[rosadesal]

we just got our DTE bill for the last month and its more than double what it usually is. there have been a few hot days here (we're in michigan), like in the 90's, and we're also living in a third floor apartment so whlie its easy to keep the apartment cool during the morning and early afternoon, after 4pm and especially from 6-8pm when everyone is cooking dinner, it gets REALLY hot in here, even if the windows are all open and the temperature outside isn't too bad. id prefer not to use the a/c unless we NEED it....would it make sense to get a big fan and put it in front of the balcony sliding door? would it use less electricity to run a fan all day instead of the air?

[queenbean]

A fan uses MUCH less electricity than the AC. Our house gets really hot in the late afternoon too. What we've done is we pull all the blinds and curtains to keep the sun out. We shut all the windows when it starts heating up outside. Ceiling fan in the dining room is always running to keep air moving. We run the box fan when it gets warm, but if it's not cooler outside than inside, we never open the windows or pull air in from the outside. A lot of times, I'll even run the central air's fan without switching it to "cool"... just that little bit of air circulation helps a bunch, without running up the electric bill so much.

You could try cooking ahead of time, or cooking double batches so every other night you have leftovers to keep from heating up the apt. every day cooking. Also, the crock pot is my best friend. Same with my toaster oven. I can make almost any baked dish in the toaster oven, and it seems to heat up the house much less than the range oven. We also do a lot of quick dinners -- potatoes and eggs, deli-meat sandwiches, grilled cheese, things that don't take a lot of time to cook.

[USAmma]

You can take a lot of baths or showers, or get a spray bottle with water and just keep spraying yourselves. With the fan on you'll still be nice and cool. Or just plan to hang out at the mall or the public pool during the heat of the day.

[mammastar2]

We try not to use the stove. Crock pot, microwave.

We keep the house closed and the curtains closed if it's hotter outside.

We run fans.

At night, we open the windows, and put a big box fan in one to pull in cooler air. This means we start the next day at a reasonable temperature, instead of each day the morning temp in the house creeping up.

[~Megan~]

At night we open the windows and suck in all the cold air. I wish the kids room was upstairs so I'd feel more comfortable leaving the window fan in all night in her room. I take it out of her window at night though for safety.
But this only works if its cooler at night than during the day. Here it can be 10-20 degrees cooler at night sometimes.

Having a few oscillating fans helps us a lot. I try not to use the stove/oven at all in the late afternoon or evening as its much hotter then. I will sometimes bake in the morning and then microwave it to heat it up at dinner.

[mpeel]

Check out the off the grid forum. I asked about keeping cool without AC. We are in the deep South and are doing without this summer. Thankfully it has been a cool summer. But, it can still get warm in here. The humidity has been unbearable some days.

If you can, cook outside for all meals. I have an oven outside and a grill. Open all windows and put fans in them at night. Close them all in the a.m. but leave the fans running. Moving air feels cooler. If possible, cover your windows on the outside to keep them from heating from the sun. I am working on this. Keep all lights off in the day. They generate heat. So does the computer, TV, fridge, etc. We put our fridge outside in the shade on the porch. TV is not used during the day and may be eliminated all together. Computer is off when I am not working. I work from home at my computer. But, it is kept in a room I can isolate if it gets too hot so it is not heating up the rest of the house. In the evening as soon as the temp outside is cooler than in, open the windows back up.