Stay cool for less

Keeping cool when it's hot makes life comfortable but can also be expensive.

Air conditioning your home can cost as much as $1 an hour. This can really add up during a hot summer, compared to using ceiling fans that cost about one cent an hour to cool your home.

Fortunately, there are lots of things you can do to cut down on your power use – steps that will save you money, reduce our impact on the environment and still keep you comfortable.

Here are some simple ways you can save power and hundreds of dollars that won't affect your lifestyle:

• be a fan of the fan – if you have fans, use them instead of, or with, air conditioners
• warm up your air conditioning – if you use air conditioning how cool do you set it? 23°C or higher is the ideal temperature. Each degree lower can add 10 per cent to the cost
• close the door on heat – only cooling the rooms you're using saves money. If your air conditioner has zoning, use it and keep doors to other rooms closed. It also means your air conditioner doesn't have to work as hard when you get home
• make a curtain call – closing windows and blinds before the air conditioning starts, keeps the heat out on hot days. During the hottest part of the day, a window can absorb 10 times as much heat as the same area of an insulated wall. Thick curtains are great as they also help to resist heat entering the home through windows
• block out the heat – shading external windows to keep the sun out of your home with awnings, external blinds or plants and trees gives you a head start to a cool home. Start on the western face of your home, which is the hottest in summer
• strip off to keep cool – wearing cooler clothing that contains natural fibres – cotton, silk, and wool can be more comfortable in summer months
• draught proofing to keep warm air out and cool air in – seal any gaps by buying products like draught excluders, draught and weather strips, and draught or weather seals, from your local hardware store. Focus on external doors and windows
• insulate and chill out – a well insulated home can be seven degrees cooler if insulated effectively and can save a three person home over $150 a year in electricity costs. Insulate in your ceilings, external walls and floors and cover all surfaces and corners too
• take a break – to help reduce the need for expensive air conditioning, try putting off jobs like cooking, washing and ironing to the cooler part of the day.

Follow these tips and your carbon pollution and money savings will start to add up:

• setting air conditioning a few degrees higher, closing doors to rooms you're not using and using curtains or blinds to block out the sun can save 10,000 black balloons and around $150 a year
• installing ceiling insulation can save up to 10,000 black balloons and more than $150 per year
• using awnings to shade windows from the sun can save 4,000 black balloons and around $55.