Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Heat Wave

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!