Tips for reducing energy in the summertime (Houston: credit, how much)

[chicagomama]

We will be getting an energy audit on our new house (new to us, not new construction), but we would like to know of any more tips people have for saving energy, especially in the summer time. Someone was telling me something about installing some kind of barrier or something in the attic to reflect heat, but I didn't fully understand what they were talking about.

Also- what temperature do people keep their house at? (in the summer) Electricity is SO expensive here... but once it is spring and fall can we turn the air off and be comfortable?

[slnt]

Congratulations on your new home!

The energy audit sounds like a great start. Another thing you can do to cut down on the high Houston energy bills is to compare rates at Power to Choose
You can change out all the old style bulbs to the energy savings bulbs. Use ceiling fans instead of turning down your a/c. Tint your windows to cut down on heat and glare in your rooms. Get some thermal backed drapes to trap the heat (and cold for the few weeks we get winter) from getting into your rooms. Caulk around all windows, openings and doors. When you leave the house in the summer, turn up your thermostat to 81-82 degrees. Turn the water heater to 120 degrees. Get a programmable thermostat.

For a larger investment, you can get low-e dual paned windows. You can also add insulation and install a radiant barrier in your attic (or if you are planning to re-roof, you can add Tech Shield). As far as the radiant barrier goes, we were looking into it last year, and we found lots of negative reviews about the spray on (basically silver type looking paint that is applied under your roof in the attic) radiant barriers.

[ijk keo]

Originally Posted by slnt

Congratulations on your new home!

The energy audit sounds like a great start. Another thing you can do to cut down on the high Houston energy bills is to compare rates at Power to Choose
You can change out all the old style bulbs to the energy savings bulbs. Use ceiling fans instead of turning down your a/c. Tint your windows to cut down on heat and glare in your rooms. Get some thermal backed drapes to trap the heat (and cold for the few weeks we get winter) from getting into your rooms. Caulk around all windows, openings and doors. When you leave the house in the summer, turn up your thermostat to 81-82 degrees. Turn the water heater to 120 degrees. Get a programmable thermostat.

For a larger investment, you can get low-e dual paned windows. You can also add insulation and install a radiant barrier in your attic (or if you are planning to re-roof, you can add Tech Shield). As far as the radiant barrier goes, we were looking into it last year, and we found lots of negative reviews about the spray on (basically silver type looking paint that is applied under your roof in the attic) radiant barriers.

i totally agree with the lack of performance of the spray on radiant barrier. Thats why we dont offer it. windows is a huge factor, but can get expensive

[AlexTx]

We keep our house at 76 degrees. If it were up to me, it would be at 78 but apparently I'm cold natured.

[phaze]

I was thinking about started a thread on Energy Saving tips, but you beat me to the punch.

I was hoping for members to post the solutions they have tried and report on the success.

I've been reading about radiant barriers but I am not sure if the cost will live up to the savings/performance. I've read that some people complain about their cell phone reception being poorer after installing a radiant barrier. Possible?

Also, does anyone have experience with solar screens? Are they effective and economical?

[chris_ut]

For the attic consider a solar powered attic fan which will suck the hot air out and keep the attic close to inside temps. This typically saves 6-12% on your cooling bills depending on how much energy efficiency you already have. A fan with install is about $900 and you can get a $300 tax credit for it so total cost is $600 to you.

[slnt]

Originally Posted by phaze

I was thinking about started a thread on Energy Saving tips, but you beat me to the punch.

I was hoping for members to post the solutions they have tried and report on the success.

I've been reading about radiant barriers but I am not sure if the cost will live up to the savings/performance. I've read that some people complain about their cell phone reception being poorer after installing a radiant barrier. Possible?

Also, does anyone have experience with solar screens? Are they effective and economical?

We were going to get a radiant barrier for our attic when Hurricane Ike hit and derailed our plans (thanks to all our damage). From what I have read and found online it appears like it does help with cooling down the house in the summer as well as helping control some monthly electrical costs. One of the contractors (unrelated to getting a radiant barrier) that came to our house, told us about an attic he went into in the middle of the summer that had a radiant barrier and it was cooler than an attic without. I was in a house that had Tech Shield and the attic was quite a bit cooler than a house without.

We had solar screens in a previous house, I have found that window tinting does a much better job than screens. Now, we had this on a house 15 years ago so there could be some new improvements to screens making it better than in the past. From our experience, the window tintng did a better job at controling heat and glare.

[Felixmp]

I'm thinking about building one of these. I have a 1/8-1/4 gap where the attic stairs are at in the hallway and I'm sure that is letting some hot attic air into the house. Hopefully this will work....its a fairly cheap project. DIY: How to Insulate Attic Drop Down Access Stairs - Danny Lipford

[baggiegenes]

spend some time studying the airflow in your house, especially around where the thermostat is.

It's not uncommon for someone to have a thermostat upstairs with sun shining on it all day, which keeps the AC on, and the rest of the house gets cooled to about 68. Keep the blinds closed in the heat of the day, especially in the room with the thermostat and keep the fans on and doors open in all rooms to keep the air circulating. Fans use way less energy than your AC compressor.

[davidt1]

Don't use AC. Turn on the fans if you must. Open windows and doors. You will get used to it. I promise you won't die. Use gas stove instead of electric. Cook in the garage if possible. Why heat up the house?