Is the Florida summer heat turning your home into an oven? Your not alone. Read on for 7 quick and affordable tips to help keep your home cool and save energy.

Keep It Cool Tip #1: Using inexpensive mini blinds or curtains can work wonders to reduce the sunlight and heat streaming through your windows. Installing these inexpensive options on your windows can completely change the temperature in those areas of the home. Ensure they are white on the side facing the outside. Solar screens and window film are other options that can also reduce the heat coming through your windows.

Keep It Cool Tip #2: Standard incandescent light bulbs can significantly heat up a room without you thinking about it. Replacing standard bulbs with high-efficiency, low-heat LED bulbs will help cut back on the heat.

Keep It Cool Tip #3: Cook wisely - eat cold meals, cook outside on your grill in your patio, or use the microwave for cooking whenever possible to minimize the heat indoors. When you do cook indoors remember to:

• Cover your pots to minimize indoor humidity, Florida is humid enough without adding to it
• Use your range hood or microwave vent fan to vent hot air outside
• Turn your oven off a few minutes before food is cooked to reduce oven heat inside
• Check the oven by turning on the light and looking through the glass, rather than opening the oven door

Keep It Cool Tip #4: Windows and doors are a major source of heat gain in the house, so keep your windows closed and locked and doors tightly closed to help prevent cool air from escaping. If you have older single pane windows and doors without proper weather stripping we suggest looking into some replacement windows that will be more energy efficient. If you can’t replace your windows and doors with more energy efficient models, repair any gaps or replace weather stripping around your windows and doors.

Keep It Cool Tip #5: A ceiling fan or portable fan uses much less energy than an air conditioner, but they’re only effective when you’re in the room to feel the cooling. Run your ceiling fans in a counterclockwise direction (when looking up) when you’re in the room to help keep you cool through the summer. This allows you to set the thermostat on your AC higher and save some energy too.

Keep It Cool Tip #6: Turn your hot water heater down to a lower temperature setting. Doing so allows it to run less and produce less heat. Hot showers can create a lot of excess heat and humidity in your home.

• Take shorter showers
• Take cool – rather than hot – showers
• Run your bathroom exhaust fan when showering or bathing, and keep it running for 10-20 minutes afterward, to help remove excess heat and humidity in the room

Keep It Cool Tip #7: Planning ahead with some long term strategies can keep your house cooler, these include:

• Plant some shade trees on the south and west sides of your home
• Install low-e insulated glass windows or storm windows
• Add an awning over sunny windows
• Replace your existing roof with cool shingles or light-colored metal roofing

These are only just a few of the many strategies to help keep your home cool in the Florida summer. Putting some of these home improvements to work for you can provide relief for many years to come. White Aluminum will be glad to help, just contact us and setup a FREE In-Home or Virtual Consultation today.