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Barbara C.
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| Posted: May 22 2009 at 11:44am | IP Logged
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I need any advice that anyone can offer for how to keep cool this summer.
We live in a three-story town-home. The air conditioner is the one that was put in at construction, years before we moved in. Let's just say that at this point it is in desperate need of replacement. Last year the only thing the air conditioner did was suck a little of the humidity out of the upstairs, but by the end of the summer the interior and exterior units kept freezing up.
We are really trying to get out of debt. My husband would like to wait to replace the air conditioner after we get out of debt and are able to pay for it with cash. This would not be possibly until next summer at the earliest. In the meantime, I have got to figure out how to cool this place down. The baby was sweating through nap time with two fans on her yesterday and the high was only 80 degrees.
Here are the obstacles:
1. Windows can not be opened with the exception of two on the main floor (which can't be opened very far), due to safety concerns.
2. A window unit can not be used because all of the windows open side-to-side rather than up-and-down. (It's also against the rules of the condo. association.)
3. We have to be careful with fans because the "baby" keeps trying to stick her fingers in them.
4. I've looked into portable air conditioners but most of them seem to have an exhaust that needs to be run through the window and as result seem to be rather inefficient.
Any ideas would be appreciated. IL has relatively mild summers compared to my home-state of KY, but I know if we're feeling miserable now it's going to be worse come July and August.
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Barbara
Mom to "spirited" dd(9), "spunky" dd (6), "sincere" dd (3), "sweet" dd (2), and baby girl #5 born 8/1/12!!
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: May 22 2009 at 12:02pm | IP Logged
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what if you put a bit of screen over the fans? that would keep fingers out
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Jodie, wife to Dave
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Barbara C.
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| Posted: May 22 2009 at 12:23pm | IP Logged
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Like tying mesh fabric or something? I'm not sure if I could get it tight enough.
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Barbara
Mom to "spirited" dd(9), "spunky" dd (6), "sincere" dd (3), "sweet" dd (2), and baby girl #5 born 8/1/12!!
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: May 22 2009 at 12:24pm | IP Logged
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what about using a double stick tape and maybe getting window screening from the hardware store?
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: May 22 2009 at 12:53pm | IP Logged
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also if you could get a bar so that the upstairs windows could be cracked open but not able to be opened any further.. the hotter air up there would be able to escape. Or gate off a room and be able to leave the door to it open and have that window open
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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sewcrazy
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| Posted: May 22 2009 at 5:42pm | IP Logged
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We also live in IL with no working air at this time.
Last year we ran a dehumdifier on each room of the house. Small ones on each level worked much better than a "whole house" model. The bedrooms are upstairs. I kept those doors closed and placed very thick curtains over them when the sun was hitting them.
We mounted fans up high. I just put up little shelves and clapmed the fans on them to avoid little fingers.
It sounds silly, but clean, crisp 100% cotton sheets made be at least feel cooler at night.
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LeeAnn
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Servant2theKing
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| Posted: May 23 2009 at 6:12am | IP Logged
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You might want to have a HVAC person check the AC...it might be a simple issue, such as needing more freon, which is a much less expensive fix than replacing an entire unit. MY dh says low freon (due to a leak) was our main problem. I don't remember the other issues we had. Thankfully our sil is in the HVAC business and was gracious enough to take care of the problem for us! Also check your furnace filter..if those are dirty it can effect AC efficiency.
Keeping windows closed and covered with shades or blankets can greatly decrease the level of heat entering the house. Staying on the bottom level of the house whenever possible may be helpful. Can you install ceiling fans instead of using floor fans? In our area we see used ones at garage sales and thrift stores quite frequently.
Running dehumidifiers at each level and using bathroom exhaust fans faithfully when showering can help decrease humidity levels. A neat trick we learned when running a dehumidifer...add a hose to the drain extension and let the run-off flow into a drain, so you don't have to constantly empty it.
When our wholehouse AC was broken we all slept in the same bedroom, with kids camped out on the floor. Putting cool washcloths on foreheads can help. During the day the children took cold showers, played in a sprinkler or had water fights (outside) to help cool off.
You have my sympathies...heat and humidity are very difficult to cope with.
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Barbara C.
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| Posted: May 23 2009 at 10:11am | IP Logged
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I've had the coolant replaced twice and it ran between $600 and $800. I also had the interior coil cleaned the year after we moved in for another large sum because previous owners had not changed the filters often enough. (It really needs to be changed twice a month.)
We also learned that there was a duct work issue with the entire subdivision of townhomes. A/C repair person said that they've had constant problems that they never understood until they got a good look at our duct work, or lack there of. That's one reason we were hesitant to sink much more money into the A/C. But I talked to a few neighbors last year, and they didn't seem to have near as many problems as we did and they all have newer exterior coils. So a new A/C would probably work at about 80% as opposed to the 5% ours does.
We have ceiling fans in every bedroom, but with the exception of the one in the playroom they all wobble horribly. I don't know if they were installed correctly (they were up when we moved in). A lot of heat & cold does come in through our windows. I put extra thick window shades behind a few of the windows two years ago. Perhaps I should invest in another set or two.
Thanks for all of the ideas. Keep 'em coming. Even if the ideas themselves don't seem to work for us sometimes they can inspire an idea that might.
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Barbara
Mom to "spirited" dd(9), "spunky" dd (6), "sincere" dd (3), "sweet" dd (2), and baby girl #5 born 8/1/12!!
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SaraP
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| Posted: May 25 2009 at 1:40pm | IP Logged
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They do make window units for side-to-side windows (try Googling "casement air conditioner"), but that doesn't help with the condo association rules.
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Stephanie_Q
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| Posted: May 27 2009 at 10:09am | IP Logged
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Barbara C. wrote:
The baby was sweating through nap time with two fans on her yesterday and the high was only 80 degrees.
IL has relatively mild summers compared to my home-state of KY, but I know if we're feeling miserable now it's going to be worse come July and August. |
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My kids have been "dying" of heat during the last few "80 degree" days, but I have been hoping that part of it is a matter of adjusting to the warmer temps. We were getting used to the warmer temps and now it's cooled down a bit - and at 75 inside, my kids are bundled up in blankets.
We cool the house at night with open windows / ceiling fans; keep the S and W windows covered during the day and run our A/C just enough to knock down the humidity during the day - a dehumidifier should help you. When it gets to the point that it's hot at night - we just keep the A/C (dehumidifier) going + ceiling fans to keep everyone cool enough to sleep comfortably.
You might think about planting some fast growing shade trees on the south and west side - won't be much help this summer...but is a good "long-term" investment in energy savings.
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dd 6.02, dd 8.03, ds 3.05, ds 12.06 at Catholic school.
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stacykay
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| Posted: May 27 2009 at 1:51pm | IP Logged
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Barbara C. wrote:
I've had the coolant replaced twice and it ran between $600 and $800.
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We have had the freon replaced way too many times to count, in our a/c. But it has never ever cost that much. At most, $150 (I would have to pull out the old file in the basement, and I am too lazy to go look to see for sure!  ) I don't know what the difference b/t MI and IL could be in the costs, but it might be worth calling around to get estimates from many companies.
We definitely do the closed curtain on any sunny window, even though I run the air most of the time (my ds with asthma has a hard time handling humidity.)
I don't know the expense for an attic fan installation, but many of our friends have them and love them. They say they might have only one or two evenings they wished they had air.
Do you have any problems with your furnace heating the home in winter? I was just wondering, as you mentioned a duct work problem.
I am such a wimp with heat and humidity! I will pray for you!!
God Bless,
Stacy in MI
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Barbara C.
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| Posted: May 27 2009 at 2:20pm | IP Logged
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We do have heating problems, too. The only two rooms that ever really get thoroughly heated (or cooled) are the upstairs bathrooms. We have a small space heater that we use upstairs when we get dressed in the mornings and after baths. We have a gas fire place that stays on most of the winter. And on the really cold below zero days we pull out heavy blankets and snuggle on the couch. We also run the oven just to get more heat.
Last summer I bought about four packs of these http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=47 6761&cmSource=Search black out draperies, and we can tell a pretty big difference.
Most of our heat comes in through the kitchen where almost one entire wall is glass (sliding doors + large window). I've got a sheet up over the blinds of the sliding door, but it probably needs something thicker. I would like to replace the blinds as they are dingy and broken. Maybe a better investment would be thick curtains for the kitchen at this time.
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Barbara
Mom to "spirited" dd(9), "spunky" dd (6), "sincere" dd (3), "sweet" dd (2), and baby girl #5 born 8/1/12!!
Box of Chocolates
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JSchaaf
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| Posted: May 27 2009 at 2:37pm | IP Logged
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I just heard a commercial about mini split AC. I have no idea if this would meet your needs but thought I'd share the link!
Jennifer
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stacykay
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| Posted: May 28 2009 at 6:16pm | IP Logged
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Oh, one more thing. If you can afford insulation, and depending on your tax bracket, there is supposed to be a 30% rebate for it on the 2009 income taxes. Dh is planning on adding to ours in the next couple of weeks.
God Bless,
Stacy in MI
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knowloveserve
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| Posted: May 28 2009 at 11:17pm | IP Logged
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Growing up, the "poor man's air conditioning" method was used frequently in my home. Dad would buy a large block of ice from the store and put it in front of the fan... it really did feel great to have the cool icy air blowing on you... while it lasted anyway (can't remember how long the effect lasts... but it might be useful during naptimes at least)
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Ellie
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Topic: Cooling/De-humidifying
