8 tips for keeping your home cool and energy efficient

With climate change concerns at the top of many people’s minds, being conscious of running a more sustainable, cost-effective home has become a priority.

While we do love the months when we can avoid checking our oil tank levels, warm weather brings similar concerns about how to achieve an energy-efficient home without breaking the bank.

Whether you’re looking to invest in a home retrofit with a new heat pump, or just need to pinch some pennies elsewhere, here are a few solutions that will help cool your home during warm weather in an environmentally-conscious and energy-efficient way.

1. Get a home energy audit

A home energy audit should be the first step toward deciding how best to reduce your cooling (and heating) costs, and it can help you determine whether to retrofit your home with new, more efficient appliances or fixtures, if necessary.

In a home energy audit, an energy assessor will perform a detailed examination of the residence, and they should also perform a thorough examination of past utility bills to understand your energy usage. Using specialized tools, these assessors are trained to identify sources of energy loss and make recommendations to improve your home’s efficiency.

Often these recommendations include sealing or insulating areas of the home to prevent heat loss, installing things like smart thermostats, LED light bulbs, smart power strips, upgrading appliances to those with Energy Star ratings, installing solar panels or new heat pumps, and other efficient technologies that increase a home’s efficiency while reducing energy costs in the long run.

Find out how you can make an appointment for a home energy audit by consulting the Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index, or contacting your local utility provider.

2. Go geothermal

People have been using geothermal energy for thousands of years to stay warm in cold weather and cool off in the heat. With our current technology, we can use the principles of geothermal energy to transfer heat from the ground to heat and cool the air, as well as heat water.

If you’re considering a sustainable upgrade to your home’s HVAC system, a geothermal heat pump, also sometimes called a geoexchange system, is a clean way to heat and cool your home using nothing more than a series of pipes that transfer the consistently cool air from the ground into your home.

Unlike a simple air conditioner, there are significant up-front installation costs associated with a new geothermal heat pump unit, including the heat pump equipment as well as installation of piping that will need to be buried on your property, but those costs are generally recovered after 5 to 10 years, and there are tax incentives for installing them.

Reviewed’s chief scientist, David Ellerby, PhD, cautions, “Geothermal heat pumps either need a lot of land to lay out shallow heat exchange pipes or a very deep drill hole. The geology needs to be right, too.”

Alternatively, if geothermal energy is not an option, Ellerby suggests an air source heat pump. “These are more like an AC unit. They're not quite as efficient as geothermal, but they're still a very good option, and there are fewer barriers to installation.”

3. Install a smart thermostat

Smart thermostats are not only a great way to control your energy use, but to actually start to learn about when and why you’re using the most electricity.

These Wi-Fi-enabled thermostats let you remotely control the temperature in your home and monitor and save energy with more efficient heating/cooling.

While these seem like convenience features, they’re actually great for saving energy, as the thermostat will adjust your temperature when no one is home and will even alert you if your HVAC filter needs to be changed, which is another way to make sure your home-cooling stays efficient.

4. Look for the Energy Star label when buying a new air conditioner

If retrofitting your home with a new HVAC system isn’t in the cards at the moment, and you just need a new air conditioner, be sure to look for one with the Energy Star label.

The Energy Star rating system is backed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that provides consumers with unbiased information about the energy efficiency of products they’re purchasing.

Since the Energy Star program was introduced in 1992, it has helped to reduce nationwide energy costs by $450 billion and has resulted in 4 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas reductions.

Energy Star-rated ACs typically use 9% less energy than non-Energy Star models, saving you money on your electricity bills. The Energy Star website offers side-by-side energy usage comparisons for most models of air conditioners, and displays rankings of the year’s most efficient appliances.

5. Get new windows or install insulated window treatments

Windows are a major source of heat loss in winter and cold air loss in summer, and by installing newer models with double-paned glass and special spectrally selective coatings that let in light but not heat, you can reduce heat gain inside your home during the summer months. You can also buy rolls of heat-blocking window film if you’d prefer not to overhaul every window in the house.

If your windows and doors are prone to drafts, it means the good, cold air your AC or heat pump is cranking out is likely escaping.

Seal those cracks with weatherstripping, door seals, window insulating foam tape, caulking, or insulation. You can also compare products on the Energy Star website to find the ones that are right for you.

Finally, installing insulating window treatments, such as cellular shades, solar screens, or blinds, can help keep the sun’s heat out of your home.

When shopping for new window treatments, look for products with an AERC energy rating. AERC is an independent organization with a mission to rate, label, and certify the energy performance of window products.

6. Install a whole-house fan

Depending on the size of your home, a whole-house fan can be an excellent, low-energy solution that keeps your whole family cool in hot weather.

Prices for whole-house fans range from roughly $500 to $2,000, with additional installation costs, which are significantly lower than installing a new heat pump. Whole-house fans, which pull air in from open windows and release it through the attic and roof, also expend significantly less energy.

According to the Department of Energy, a whole-house fan costs between $.01 and $.05 per hour to run, while a single 18,000 BTU window unit air conditioner costs $.17 per hour.

7. Install radiant barriers

Radiant barriers are a form of insulation typically installed in attics to reduce summer heat gain in the home and lower cooling costs. These barriers consist of a highly reflective material that reflects radiant heat rather than absorbing it.

When the sun heats a roof, the heat travels through the roofing materials to the attic side of the roof, warming the inside of the home. With a radiant barrier installed, radiant heat transfer from the underside of the roof to the other surfaces in the attic is minimized.

Radiant barriers are most effective in hot climates, and they're estimated to reduce cooling costs by 5% to 10%.

8. Make small changes

While most of the solutions we’ve discussed are long-term ways to cut back on your energy use and cool your home in a more sustainable way, there are actually plenty of little changes you can make on a daily basis that can add up.

Unplug electrical chargers, which generate heat, when not in use. (The same goes for small appliances and electronics, too. Video game systems, small kitchen appliances, and laptop chargers all draw energy and emit heat even when not in use.)

Replace your incandescent light bulbs with energy-saving CFLs or LEDs, which don’t emit nearly as much heat when turned on, and which reduce energy consumption (and costs) by up to 80%. (You can compare the electrical output of light bulbs on the Energy Star site, too.)

Use fans instead of the AC. While we’ve already mentioned the benefits of a whole-house fan, using a regular fan is the ideal way to cool yourself off in hot weather while saving energy at home. (In high humidity or temps over 95°F, though, you should definitely turn that air conditioner on.)

Get your green thumb going. One more thing you can do to increase the shade around your house is to grow native species of plants that will vine along your home.

While trees provide wonderful natural shade, vining plants that grow along trellises, arbors, or lattices will not just add to the curb appeal, but they’ll provide additional, fast-growing seasonal shade cover, too.