Best Practices for Cooling Old Houses

Though it’s standard in homes nowadays, central air conditioning hasn’t been around forever. In fact, window air conditioning units weren’t invented until after World War II, and central AC wasn’t widespread in homes until the 1970s. So, if your home was built before that, there’s a good chance that you don’t have central AC.

The good news is that you don’t have to suffer through the summer heat just because you live in an older home! There are plenty of different things you can do to beat the heat without the help of central AC. This post from your trusted air conditioning service in Oklahoma City, OK will cover a few of those cooling methods so that you can stay comfortable all summer long:

• High-velocity HVAC systems: A standard central air conditioning system relies on hidden ductwork throughout your home, which allows cold air to travel from your AC unit to each room. Construction crews nowadays factor in space needed for these bulky ducts when building houses, but that wasn’t the case before central AC was standard, which makes retrofitting an older home with central AC a challenging task. What you can do, though, is install a high-velocity HVAC system. These use 3” mini-ducts that can easily be snaked through ceilings, walls and places where standard ducts would be far too big.
• Ductless mini-split systems: As mentioned above, bulky ductwork is what prevents homeowners from retrofitting older houses with central AC. While mini-duct systems can work, what if you just eliminate the ducts altogether? That’s possible with ductless mini-split systems. These energy efficient units are similar to window AC units in the sense that they only cool one room at a time. Units are mounted either high or low on a wall, are controlled with a remote and can cool an area just as efficiently as central AC at a fraction of the cost.
• Ceiling fans: Of course, you could always just flip on your ceiling fans if you don’t want to pay to have high-tech air conditioning systems installed in your home. If your current ceiling fans are old and dated, you may want to consider going to the hardware store and upgrading them with newer and nicer models.
• Open windows: One of the easiest and most affordable ways to stay cool during the summer is to open up the windows and let the summer breeze in. You’ll instantly feel cooler as long as there’s a slight breeze.
• Close the blinds: The sun’s rays shining in through the windows are a major part of why our homes get so hot during the summer. The only way to keep that from happening is to block out the sun with curtains or shutters. Covering your windows during the day will do wonders to lower the temperature in your home.

You don’t have to feel sweaty and uncomfortable in your home this summer. Instead, pick up the phone and give Dailey Heating & Air Conditioning a call. Our competitive prices and friendly technicians make us one of the top air conditioning services in Oklahoma City, OK!

Categorised in: Air Conditioning Service

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