Keeping a house cool in the summer

[Ryan Coke]

So it is helpful as far as you know Ken?

The problem with location is that it is quite narrow on that side, and it is my only outside access to the back yard with the way the grade and retaining wall are on the other side.

[ken0042]

It was helpful enough that my elderly father went into the attic a few years ago to replace the one he had in there that was ~25 years old.

That being said, I wonder if in Calgary a couple of whirly birds would accomplish the same thing? I have also seen solar powered roof vents that could also work.

[jeffh]

Your condenser unit would usually end up on the side of your house that has window wells for the basement, as you need to maintain 2-3'(cant renember) for free access to the back. A cheap and simpler way to cool your house is to leave your furnace fan running all the time and circulate the cooler basement air. I heard of people removing their furnace access door to allow substantially more basement air into the return side of the blower. Youd have to rig the safety door switch to stay closed.

[psicodude]

I had a similar issue with side access, so they just installed it at the back of my house. It worked out well as I have a breakfast nook thing that sticks out 4 feet from the back of my house, and they just stuck the condenser beside it. No offense to jeffh, but that fan thing is useless for cooling your home. it just moves the warm air around a bit.

[Ruttiger]

Originally Posted by Slava

Spend the money on A/C. It's awesome and ignore people who say "you only need it for two weeks a year". Maybe you only *need* it for a few weeks, but there are lots of other times when it's great to have.

Agreed. My wife almost melted down last year when I was hesitant to go ahead with A/C while she was on mat leave with our daughter. When all was said and done, we got it installed (of course) and are thrilled with it, especially considering having an infant at home. Like Slava said, maybe only need it a couple weeks a year, but definitely raises your comfort level from April through September.

[BigNumbers]

Any recommended installers?

[GP_Matt]

Whoever you go with, I would try to book ASAP. If you wait until it is hot they won't give you an appointment until August.

[jeffh]

...just something I heard of guys doing. Personally never tried it.

If you leave an upstairs bathroom exhaust fan on as well it'll let out some of that warmer air. I know leaving your furnace fan on all the time does make the air in your home much fresher as you will continually drawing outside air. Opening an upper and lower shaded window will help cool by natural ventilation. Throwing more insulation in your attic will help as well by limiting the heat transfer from your hot attic. My home has about an r75 after i threw r40 batts on top of the blown in. I prefer my central ac from may thru to september, but thats not cheap and easy.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Originally Posted by OldDutch

We have a "suitcase" style AC unit. It moves air left to right, instead of up and down. You can put it under a deck, so noise is minimal, and it is covered year round.

You're talking about the Carrier 38HDR's right? Those are narrow enough to tuck between cantilevers too so they don't impede access.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by jeffh

My home has about an r75 after i threw r40 batts on top of the blown in.

How much did that compress the blown in? Wouldn't the compression affect the insulation value?

[OldDutch]

Originally Posted by I-Hate-Hulse

You're talking about the Carrier 38HDR's right? Those are narrow enough to tuck between cantilevers too so they don't impede access.

Yes, that is the one I have. I have a raised front door about 4 feet off the ground on the side of my house. I put in against the foundation, under the walkway.

My neighbor has the same model but tucked at the side of his backyard walkway from the front yard to the back. It allows for a narrow access way, and does not block the whole area like a square unit would, so you can still walk past.

They're great for that kind of application, or under a deck as it requires very little vertical clearance. Drawback is mine was about $5K. It was our only option and like others mention we had a 2 year old, it saved us a few cranky nights that is for sure.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Barbecue

That too

fire up that Barbecue on your porch for all your grilling, searing, pan frying, smoking needs.

A bbq with a good side burner is awesome too. You can boil up a pot of water super fast outside, hang out with a beer in the sun instead of heating up your house.

We make pizzas at home every week too and the BBQ is actually way easier than the oven. And the best part of BBQing... not pots or pans to clean!

[missdpuck]

Originally Posted by Dion

I've heard that the Mexicans down in Arizona would hang wet bed sheets over open windows at night in an effort to keep their homes cool. Air that passes through wet sheets becomes cooler.

Hey, that's what I do.

I haven't read the entire thread. Has anyone mentioned Mitsubishi Mr Slim ductless a/c? I've seen it used successfully down here in home additions, or historic homes where you wouldn't want ductwork. the outside unit is small.

[csnarpy]

We did ours with Action and they did a great job. Had it done 5 years ago and we couldn't be happier. We did it because of my wife's pregnancy, as well.

For all those naysayers, a fan can never get rid of humidity. Ac wins.

Also, keep your pregnant wife happy!

[psicodude]

I got mine from Costco and they contracted The Service Experts to do the work. They were awesome, to be honest. Everything was done quickly, professionally, and exactly as advertised. The little Italian guy that ran the install (he had an apprentice) even put an extra cold air return in my basement for a case of beer. I was speaking to the City inspector and he mentioned that he loves working with The Service Experts because they know their stuff and he never has issues with their work. The Lennox compressor in conjunction with my Nest works perfectly and I couldn't be happier.

[jeffh]

Ken, it compressed it a little bit. That was mostly from me placing it tho. Originally was an r40 blown in, so i knocked about 5 off to be fair. The vertical members of the rafters really helped to hold the batts in place. Plus it is just so much cleaner up there, just a big smooth white blanket. About $300 for 30'x20' r40s.

Also ceiling fans are great for above your bed during the hot summer nights, spend a little extra and get the wireless remote models. Well worth it. They look nicer than most of your standard light fixtures too.

[AndyL]

Originally Posted by missdpuck

Hey, that's what I do.

Swamp cooler - oldschool for the win

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Ryan Coke

I had an hvac guy suggest getting an attic evacuating type fan installed in the roof. He said it could be on a thermal switch so that at a certain temp it would start drawing air out of the hot attic, and that it would make a significant difference in the interior temp.

Has anyone heard of this, or had it done? I have been thinking of doing this, since for some reason my wife doesn't want us to get A/C, and I don't have a good location to place the exterior unit.

I rigged a similar system in my garage. Cost me about $100. I put in a Broan 509 with a thermo/humidistat. You can trigger it to vent on humidity (why I got it) or on temperature. The controller was specifically made for attic fans. If you have a gable end it would work as an attic fan perfectly well. Cut hole between studs, run power (easy in an attic), done.

[Vox]

Originally Posted by psicodude

I fought the heat in my house for years and no matter what trick I tried, I couldn't keep the house from getting up into the mid-twenties on warm days. I put in central A/C (from Costco) last spring and haven't looked back. Yeah, it was expensive, but worth every dime. Especially if you have kids.

I am interested in how people are doing the tinting on their windows. Is this something you get from Lowes, or a specialty store? Any recommendations?

We have central AC but added tinting to our large windows on the main floor. We have windows over the entire south and west side of the house, many two floors high, and even two AC units couldn't keep the house cool unless I started them early in the morning. Without them we hit 30 degrees most days in the summer.

The tinting made a significant difference, and lets the AC run less aggressively and keep up. The tinting also helps on fall days where there is lots of sun, but the temperature is low enough outside that the AC won't run (AC doesn't run when temperatures are low or the units freeze up).

We had quotes from a number of companies in town. There are a huge number of colors and shades, so it's worth having someone bring out samples large enough for you to put on your windows and look through. Lots of manufacturers as well, including 3M and others. The most amazing thing with most of the films is not just their heat rejection, but they cut 99% or more of the UV. Had one guy demonstrate this with a meter. Stunning how much more they cut out than low E windows. All our furniture, books and even floors were fading from the UV.

The window covering is relatively affordable, and we love it in conjunction with our AC. Likely going to do the up stair windows this year. One company claimed we'd recover the cost of the film within a couple of years from reduced AC use, but I don't believe that. Maybe over a decade, but no way over a year.

Oh, and we'd never do it ourselves. You may be more talented than me, but I wouldn't be able to get the film on windows without having bubbles everywhere. The pros have no problem at all.

[jeffh]

An attic ventilation fan would be nice, but my issue is trying to get power up there? It legal to tap into one of the light or bath fan circuits?