How Your Windows Can Keep Your Home Cool in the Summer

30 Jul How Your Windows Can Keep Your Home Cool in the Summer

The summer is usually a time for soaring electric bills as we run our air conditioners day and night to keep cool. As you open yet another eye-popping power bill, you have to wonder: how did our ancestors keep cool in the age before AC? Are there tips we can put into use today? While few people would completely forgo air conditioning on our occasional 98 degree days, a few tweaks can cut your reliance on cooler days. A lot of it comes down to your windows. Here’s how to make them tools in your fight against summer heat:

1. Carefully channel breezes through your home.

You may feel tempted to just throw all the windows open. This is actually not the best way to get good circulation through your home. Instead, pay attention to the winds around your home. Do you find that the wind tends to blow a particular direction throughout the day? Take advantage of this by opening windows along the wind’s path. This can direct breeze through your house to keep you feeling cooler. This practice is known as “tuning” your windows. It can make your home significantly more comfortable.

2. Remember that heat rises.

Since heat goes up, you can direct it out of the house by opening the right windows. Open upstairs windows on the sunny side of the house to vent heat. Then, open downstairs windows on the shady side to let cooler air inside.

3. Think about your schedule.

Are you going to be home all day? Open up windows to take advantage of air currents. Heading out all day? You might keep the house a little cooler by closing up before the heat of the day sets in. This way, when you get home later on, you’ll find a cooler space.

4. Use your fans well.

Do your rooms have ceiling fans? Use them when you are home to move air around and make the house feel cooler. The moving air does not cool the home, but it does make you feel more comfortable. Fans should move in a counterclockwise direction during the summer to push air down. Make sure you turn them off when you are not at home; the motors in your fans add a bit of heat to the room, so they can actually work against you when you are not around to enjoy the breeze.

Do you have older windows that won’t open to help you cool down? Get in touch with Aspen Exterior, the premier window contractors in Palatine for a consultation. We can recommend new windows that can help you keep your house cooler, naturally. The better you feel, the less you’ll be likely to use the AC and the lower you power bills will be all summer long.