Summer-time brings rising temperatures and climbing humidity, which means people will be looking to their air conditioners for daily relief. Sadly, using your air conditioning unit all day and night for an entire season will have a costly effect on your hydro bills. As a homeowner, you don’t have to choose between staying comfortable and spending too much on energy. Here are some key tips for staying cool for the upcoming months without using your air conditioning.
The first tip you should follow is to upgrade your doors and windows to energy-efficient replacements so that your home is properly insulated and the cool air is sealed indoors — old entrances encourage drafts that will make your rooms sweltering for the entire season. For windows, you should choose options that have low-emissivity glass, advanced weather stripping, warm edge non-metal Super Spacers and durable vinyl frames. These features will be similar for larger glass entries like sliding patio doors and garden doors, so they will be prepared to protect the property from unwanted air leaks and to help regulate the indoor temperature. Steel doors and fiberglass doors are also manufactured to create a thermal break between the indoors and outdoors with elements like full-perimeter compression weather stripping, self-draining sill designs and strong frames.
These may seem like renovations that will cost you more money than high energy bills, but they are long-term solutions that will help you with hot summers and dreary winters for years. If you are still not convinced about their value, there are provincial programs like The Green Ontario Fund that will assist you with your big energy-efficient renovation. This specific home energy program will help you get money for new windows when they are purchased from and installed by participating contractors — you will receive a rebate of $500 per window, reaching a potential maximum of $5000. The fund is giving Ontario homeowners these substantial rebates so that they feel encouraged to get energy-efficient improvements, reducing the consequences of climate change.
After replacing your old entrances and using the Green Ontario Fund for rebates, there are a number of ways to cool off without air conditioning during the summer-time that you can consider. For instance, you can use your new vinyl windows to your advantage and try night cooling as your main method of dropping the indoor temperature — this means you keep the windows closed during the day, open them up after the sun sets to circulate some refreshing air and close them again by sunrise. Another way to stay cool without air conditioning is to use window treatments that are white because they will block and reflect heat from direct sunlight, while darker curtains, blinds or shades will absorb it and make the room hotter.
It’s important for homeowners to drift away from their dependence on air conditioning because the habit is a bandage-solution for dealing with extreme temperatures. The city is going to have an increased threat of heat waves during the summer, which will pose health concerns for residents that are infants, children or senior citizens. Organizations like Toronto Public Health and The Atmospheric Fund have warned that citizens should limit air conditioning-use during the season and focus on long-term solutions like installing high-performance windows, updating buildings and planting more trees. Air conditioning units will fail if the power goes out but upgraded windows and optimal construction will be effective no matter the situation.
When you make the right home improvements, you won’t have to waste energy and money running your air conditioning unit every single day. Your indoor air will be a cool respite from the humidity and heatwaves happening all summer long.
