For those who are curious, our house is cooler inside than outside. And we're still glad we did not install air conditioning. I will admit, though, that some days in the house are a bit uncomfortable
You'd think the record heat in June would have pressured us to buy the awnings and insulated draperies to block the sun, but we haven't decided on style, color, etc. yet. So when it was 98 degrees in Falls Church yesterday, our house made it up to 87 degrees. That was a bit warm for me. But it cooled down to 78 in the house overnight and with the ceiling fan, it was quite comfortable for sleeping.
Today's Washington Business Journal news summary headline states, "Cooling costs in Northern Virginia up 55%." (See the story at: http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2010/07/05/daily11.html?ana=e_du_pap). Not our house! Our electricity utilization has gone up slightly since I put a dehumidifier in the basement, but much, much less energy is required than the typical house since we have no air conditioning!
15 years ago
The awnings and drapes should make all the difference. You are very brave to put off installing those in the middle of this heat wave! Imagine how much energy we'd be saving right now if all of our buildings had a passive solar design to reduce, if not eliminate, the need for A/C. Kudos to you both for showing us it can be done!
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