Sears Blue Climate Crew

Keep Your Scene Cool and Green

The summer months are often the busiest – and the hottest. As temperatures rise, so do energy consumption and costs as everyone strives to keep cool. If you think this spike is bad for your wallet, imagine what it's doing to the planet. With a little creative thinking, you can cool off, save money and protect the environment.

Use Air without the Conditioning

Like a swift breeze, a fan can blow away your heat wave woes. But right now, fans are often a last-resort cooling method, used only when the AC goes out. If you rethink your fan plan and use them strategically, you may find you don't need your AC much anymore.

Ceiling Fans

These swirling focal points aren't just design elements that get the air moving. When used consistently and at relatively fast speeds, ceiling fans can cool down a room for a fraction of the energy needed to power your average AC. And if you don't want to cut out the AC entirely, use your ceiling fan as a complementary cooling system – giving you lower temperatures and lower bills. To save even more energy, turn them off when you're not there – they cool you, not the room.

Standard Fans

Well-placed standard oscillating fans have an effect similar to a ceiling fan. Place one or two strategically around a room, and you'll feel cooler in no time. On a really hot day, place a bowl of ice in front of your fan – it's like do-it-yourself air conditioning. For best results, circulate cooler air by placing the fan in the northeast corner of the room.

Use the Off Switch

It's a given that lights radiate heat – even low wattage and fluorescent bulbs warm up the air. So if you want to keep it cooler inside, keep as many lights off during the day as possible – especially when you're not home. All it takes is a flick of the off switch.

Learn About Cross-Ventilation

In some ways, your home has a mind of its own – so let it do the work for you. Use the way your home is constructed in your favor, and it'll cool itself off.

• Open northern- and western-facing windows to let in cooler air.

• Cover the southern and eastern facing windows with white blinds that reflect the sun's heat.

• Stay on the first floor because heat rises into upper stories.

• Put your AC unit on the north side of the house in a nicely shaded spot.

• Make sure walls, windows and doors are well insulated to keep cold air from escaping and warm air from coming in.

• If remodeling, add roof overhangs to the southern and southeastern sides of the house to act like a sun visor for your house.

Plant Trees and Then More Trees

Not only do trees look great in your yard, they can also help keep the house cool when placed appropriately. In the long run, just one strategically placed tree could reduce your overall cooling costs by up to 25 percent. Plant several trees today – leafy shade trees to the south and west and evergreens to the north – and you'll have built-in efficiency tomorrow. Choose a fast-growing but sturdy species, such as thornless honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos inermis).