Summer is back and, this time, it’s personal. Or that’s what it can feel like when the heat is seemingly bearing down on your directly with no hope of lifting. We all want to stay cool, but the cost of keeping your AC running all day, having those fans on, and standing in front of an open freezer will burn your cash just as quickly as the sun might burn your behind. But there are ways to keep your costs cool and yourself cooler.
Take care of yourself
First of all, recognize that you don’t necessarily need to make big changes to the home in order to get cool this summer. Staying hydrated, making sure that you have a supply of frozen treats on hand, and taking a cool shower before bed can all help you manage the heat. One of the best tactics to reduce your temperature is to use a cool pack or cold water to hit the pulse points of your body. Your wrists, neck, elbows, and temples are all parts of your body where your pulse is close to the skin and cooling these areas down can spread that cool through the rest of your body by way of your blood vessels.
Raise the barricades
In general, a single small investment in the home to beat the heat is much better than having to pay for your AC constantly. As such, there are a few upgrades that can make a significant difference. Perhaps, thermal blinds from companies like Blinds to Go have the biggest role to play. After all, the sunlight streaming through the window is going to play the biggest part in raising the temperature of the home. There’s also insulating wallpaper you can use to further strengthen that divide between a nice, cool house and the sweltering day outside. It’s wise to look for air gaps in your windows and to caulk up any that you find, when possible. The key here is that you want to keep the heat outside, rather than welcoming it in. In general, unless there’s a lovely breeze, you shouldn’t be keeping your windows open in the daytime.
Stay on top of your AC
Let’s be real; most of us are going to have to rely on our air conditioning to make it through this heat. There’s no shame in that. There is a shame, however, in paying way more than you have to because you’ve never thought to check that it’s working as well as it should. If you’ve had an old AC unit for a few years without a service, there could also be all sorts of obstacles, debris buildups, and mechanical issues, making it way less efficient. Teams like Kaiser Air Conditioning can find and fix the problem, helping you cool the home much more cost-effectively. It’s wise to arrange annual maintenance and service so that you don’t have to deal with more costly repairs down the line, as well.
Get out of the house
It might sound like a cheap tactic, but what better time is there to leave the house than when it’s nice and sunny out? Packing for a day at the beach is all well and good, but you can just as easily hang out around some nice air-conditioned spaces you don’t have to pay for. This can include a trip to the mall to have lunch with a friend or spending a day in your local library with a lovely book for you to get stuck into.
Don’t use that oven
Don’t worry, this isn’t a recommendation that you starve. No, there are plenty of excellent cold meal ideas that you can check out from sites like Lifehack. First of all, most of us are going to be too tired out by the heat to do much in the way of cooking. However, most importantly, turning on the oven is one of the worst things you can do on a hot day. It’s going to generate more heat than your home is able to get rid of and this heat can spread from room to room, raising the temperature overall. If you have a craving for warm, cooked meat, then it’s recommended you look to BBQ or microwave, instead.
A mixture of making sure that your home is equipped to deal with the heat and some smart ways of ensuring that you don’t have to rely on that home is going to help you get through the summer. With the tips above, you’ll be ready for any heatwave.
