The heat has arrived. Summer has blasted us with our first major heat wave in Colorado, and we can only expect more as the summer heats up! We have some suggestions on how to stay cool this summer, without opening the freezer door and sticking your head in for some relief! Here are some energy saving tips to keep you cool this summer.
- Block The Light – Keep your house cool by drawing the blinds closed starting around noon. As the sun moves into the afternoons the radiative heat flows through your windows and starts heating up western facing rooms. With blinds drawn you can minimize the head coming in.
- Open Windows At Night – That’s right. As the temperature cools off around 9pm, open up your windows and let the fresh air permeate your home. Throughout the night, temperatures should drop, and in early and late summer they can drop into the 60’s or lower, cooling your house for the morning. When you wake up, close all the windows to keep those cooler temperatures inside.
- Fans – Make sure your fans are circulating air in the right direction. In the winter you want your fans pulling air down. In the summer you want your fans pulling air up. Buy some stand up or box fans and place them so that they draw cooler air from north or east facing rooms, or even the basement. Handheld fans also help, directing bursts of air to help cool you off.
- Water Wraps – Grab some pieces of cloth, preferably long thin ones. Drench these in cold water and wrap them around these key areas: just above your waist, around your neck, around your wrists, and around ankles. After a few minutes you’ll notice your body temperature dropping. Do this anytime you feel like you’re overheating! This also works if you have a fever.
- Drink Water & Electrolytes – That’s right. With increased temperatures we naturally start sweating more, depleting our body of water and much needed electrolytes. One trick many people don’t realize is that drinking room temperature water cools your body off more than iced water. When you introduce really cold liquids and food into your stomach, your body has to homogenize the temperatures by heating up your body for a little while. Once the liquids are the temperature of your body, you can absorb them.
- Head To The Mountains – Sometimes a trip out of the heat is all we need. Visiting some of our beautiful sceneries can help you escape the oppressive summer heat. Typically temps in the high country can range 10-20 degrees cooler than what the planes experience.
Trying these simple remedies can help keep your energy bill down during these heat waves. Do you have some helpful hints for keeping cool during the summer? Share your ideas with us.