With one record-breaking summer behind us and another on the horizon, many of us are dreading the impending cooling bills. While there’s no denying that effectively cooling a large residence can be financially strenuous, keeping an apartment comfortably cool throughout the sweltering summer months doesn’t have to be a drain on your resources. As you’ll find, there’s no shortage of ways to cool down an apartment and keep summertime utility costs firmly in check.
Hang Thermal Curtains
Thermal curtains can be a boon to any living space, especially a small one. As the name suggests, these curtains are composed of thermal materials, meaning they’re much thicker than traditional curtains. More importantly, however, this thickness enables them to minimize how much cool air escapes and how much warm air enters your apartment.
Thermal curtains aren’t just a worthwhile investment during the summer months, either. Throughout the frigid winter months, these curtains can be used to minimize how much warm air escapes and how much cold air enters your living space. Furthermore, since some thermal curtains double as blackout curtains, hanging them in your bedroom stands to enhance your summertime sleep quality. After all, if you do your best sleeping in total darkness, the early-rising summer sun is liable to ensure that you wake up much earlier than you’d prefer throughout the summertime. Additionally, if you live in a bustling urban area, you’ll be pleased to learn that some thermal curtains help drown out exterior noise.
Limit Oven Use
The smaller your living space, the more prominently the effects of summertime oven use are going to be felt. For example, if you reside in a studio apartment or an efficiency unit, using your hob during the summer months is liable to make the space uncomfortably warm. With this in mind, you should make an effort to limit oven usage during the summertime.
If you’re someone who does a lot of cooking, this is liable to seem like a punishment. However, rather than view it as a cause for dread, you should regard it as an opportunity to enhance your culinary abilities. As you’ll find, there are more than enough oven-less summertime recipes to last you the entire season. Additionally, if your landlord allows outdoor grilling, this summer might be the perfect time to step up your barbecue game.
Switch to Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs
There are a variety of advantages to making the switch to energy-efficient light bulbs. To start with, they have much longer lifespans, consume far less energy, and offer greater long-term savings than traditional incandescent bulbs. However, unbeknownst to many consumers, they also produce a lot less heat. So, if you’ve been wondering why your apartment is always so warm, there’s a good chance your choice of light bulbs is partially to blame.
Unfortunately, the short-term cost has prevented a large number of us from embracing energy-efficient CFL and LED bulbs. If this describes your rationale, be aware that despite having higher price tags, energy-efficient bulbs offer more in the way of long-term savings. In other words, spending a little more upfront can help facilitate incredible savings over time.
Invest in High-Quality Ceiling Fans
Every apartment should be equipped with high-quality ceiling fans. In addition to helping you take full advantage of nighttime cooldowns, reliable ceiling fans can be used to produce downward-flowing cool breezes and maximize the efforts of your air conditioning. So, if the ceiling fans in your apartment leave a lot to be desired – or your apartment lacks ceiling fans altogether – now would be the perfect time to upgrade. When shopping around for the right fans for your living space, make sure to check out the amazing offerings from Hunter Fan.
Depending on where you’re based, staying cool in your home during the summer months can be an arduous task. Fortunately, if you reside in a smaller living space, like an apartment, you have a huge leg up over people who live in much larger residences. After all, the less space you have, the less space you’ll have to cool. So, when it comes to home cooling, less is actually more. Apartment residents looking to enjoy a comfortably cool summer can benefit from the hacks discussed above.
