1. Hang outdoor thermometers outside one or two windows on each floor. Then, you can tell at a glance when the outside air is cooler than the air in your home, and open windows, turn off the air conditioning, and put fans in or next to the windows.
You could, instead, mount a thermometer inside which has an inside and an outside temperature sensor. Do not mount the outdoor sensor where it will be in direct sunlight.
2. Run window fans and stand fans next to open windows all night long whenever weather permits. You will need less air conditioning the next day because much heat energy will have radiated out of the walls and floors of your home.
3. Set large, portable fans all over your home. This will make it convenient to move one to any location, so you use them often. See, Use All Types of Fans and Turn Off Your A/C.
4. On cool evenings, use a box fan or window fan in a window near where you are sitting, or place a stand fan next to the window. It will cool you with a breeze and also lower the temperature in your home.
5. Install ceiling fans in the living room, the sun room and the bedrooms, if you would use less air conditioning. In rooms over 18’ long, two ceiling fans could be installed. If your ceilings are high, hanging ceiling fans from down rods will make them more effective.
In the bedrooms, if you install ceiling fans that are larger than recommended, you can run them at a lower speed for quieter operation.
6. Check that your ceiling fans rotate counter clockwise in the cooling season. Ceiling fans rotate this way to push air downward to create breeze. If a fan is rotating clockwise in the cooling season, reverse its direction by sliding a switch on the side of the fan or by pressing the “reverse” button on the remote. If the fan has neither of these it may have a switch on its top surface or you may have to remove a small cover plate on the bottom to access the switch.
7. Don’t leave ceiling fans turned on when not in the room. Their motors create heat, slightly raising the room’s temperature. Several ceiling fans can raise the home’s temperature by 1º, which increases the cost of air conditioning. Also, this will waste electricity.
8. If a fan is using incandescent bulbs, replace them with 13-watt mini-CFL bulbs or LED bulbs. Incandescent bulbs create heat and waste electricity.
9. If your bedroom ceiling fan runs all night because you don’t like to get up to turn it off, buy a “ceiling fan remote kit” to convert the fan to remote control. They are sold at many stores where fans are sold.
10. If a fan is higher than about 8 ft. above the floor, replace the downrod to lower the fan to about 7 ft. The fan will become more effective in the summer, but almost useless in the winter. Downrods are sold wherever fans are sold, and all are the same diameter as on fans, (½” I.D.). Most fans are installed with short downrods, which can always be replaced, but there must be extra wire in the electric box.
11. Mount one or two 60” or 52” ceiling fans in your porch if you would spend more time there and turn off your air conditioning. turned off. They must be water proof.
12. If you have a ceiling fan in a large room, which is less than about 52”, replace it with a 52” fan. If it is smaller than this you may be using more air conditioning than necessary. Also, 52” fans can have very different maximum airflows, depending on the pitch of their blades, the number of blades, etc. The maximum airflows are given in CFM’s on the box or website.
Lower Your Energy Bills 