Washington is experiencing its first heat wave of the summer. The temperature according to my phone right now is 90 degrees. Much warmer than the 65 degrees we experienced for the Fourth of July.
While Western Washington has fairly mild summers, we do occasionally get extended heat waves that can drain the pocketbooks of those trying to stay cool.
Here are some tips on how to stay cool, conserve energy, and save money:
- Cover the windows. Seems simple enough right? Cover the windows with blinds, drapes, or even blankets. The goal here is to try to stop the sunlight from warming up the home.
- Use a ceiling fan or floor fan as much as possible. Ceiling fans use less electricity than a central air conditioning system.
- Cool only the rooms you use. If you use an air conditioner, try and cool only the rooms you use.
- Get out of the house. Visit a local lake or a friend who has an air conditioner.
- Schedule an annual tune-up of your air conditioner or heat pump. Not only will this improve the performance, but it helps save money.
More Tips on How to Stay Cool and Save Money
- Energy Savers
Website from the U.S. Department of Energy with tips on how to save money and energy at home. - Tips from the City of Seattle
Tips from the City of Seattle on how to conserve energy this summer. - Saving Starts @ Home
Energy saving website from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). - Washington Utilities and Transporation Commission
Tips on how to conserve energy from the Washington Utilities and Transporation Commission. - America Saves
Tons of tips and resources from the America Saves Website.