Reduce or eliminate air conditioning use by relying on passive cooling techniques
Why This is Green
It doesn’t get smarter than this: rely on natural cooling and ventilation to reduce or eliminate your A/C use—even in hot climates. It’s a simple and cost effective way to reduce energy bills, greenhouse gas emissions, and depletion of natural resources.
The goal is to reduce the amount of sunlight (i.e. heat) entering your home during the day, while capturing cooler temperatures—either passing breezes or night air—in order to lower your indoor temperature. Then, either you won’t need to use your air conditioner or, if you do, you’ll use it less.
Passive cooling techniques include using plantings, exterior shading devices, window shades, plus fans (attic, ceiling, and floor). The Department of Energy estimates awnings reduce solar heat gain by as much as 77 percent on windows with western exposure. If you’re renovating or building a new home, you can also design windows to facilitate natural airflow throughout.
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How To
Shade your home to reduce heat introduced by the sun. Rely on plants, awnings, and curtains to shade windows during the hottest hours of the day.
Shut windows when the exterior temperature is hotter than the interior.
Fan up! Use fans to get indoor air flowing, move breezes around, and to cool you off. They use considerably less energy than A/C.
At night, take advantage of cooler temperatures and lower humidity. Open windows to catch the breeze, or create some with window fans—one to draw in the sweet smell of cool evening air, and another to shove the hot stuff out.
