Denver Direct: Keeping an Old House Cool
skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Friday, June 7, 2013
Keeping an Old House Cool
This upstairs 1924 window in a Craftsman bungalow was restored, allowing the top sash to come down and the bottom sash to go up. Sunscreen, a reflective screen, was installed in the window screen. The shade was pulled down during the day, and the summer furnace switch was turned on. The homeowner was comfortable and did not require air conditioning, saving money and the environment.
Photo E. Wheeler
Thank goodness, it cools off in the evening! And, thank goodness, bungalows, Denver Squares, cottages and mid-century moderns were designed to stay cool in the summertime. There was no air conditioning when they were built! And, thank goodness, many older homes are in neighborhoods where shade trees have matured.
Here are practical tips and thoughts about staying cool in the summertime.
The easiest this to do in the summer is to close curtains or shutters, pull down window shades, and turn up slates in blinds in the early morning. Keep windows closed all day.
Open windows and doors at night after it has cooled down. Double-hung windows are designed to pull the top window down to let hot air out and to push up the bottom window to let cooler air in. These windows can still work today if paint is removed and they are “unstuck” by a professional that knows what to do. If your home has transoms – like many Denver Squares – open them to let out hot air and cooler air will rush in to replace it.
Before the marketing of air conditioning, furnaces had fan switches labeled “summer” that could be turned on in warm months. (Today, many of them still do. Few are marked for marketing reasons, but they work just as well.) Furnace fans are excellent for circulating the colder and heavier air on the floor.
Today, homeowners are encouraged to increase insulation to reduce heating costs. Insulation also helps to cool homes. Insulation in the attic is particularly beneficial since there is more heat differential there than in the winter.
If the home is still hot after doing all of the above, a whole-house fan is the next step to consider. Turn it on at night only. If this doesn’t do the trick, consider an evaporative cooler, also known as a swamp cooler. Coloradoans have stayed cool in the summer for decades with these wonderful appliances. Today, they do not have to be mounted on the roof; many are mounted on the floor. It makes no difference where it is placed. With evaporative coolers, windows and doors can be open and moisture is put into the air.
Air conditioning is expensive and noisy!
In days gone by, people opened up their homes as the sun went down, sat on the porch and visited with neighbors until Colorado’s cool air and drowsiness settled over all.
at 10:24 AM
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Post Comments (Atom)
Editor's note.
Submit for publication: I consider any emails I receive to be publishable unless otherwise indicated e.g. (FYI ONLY, DO NOT PUBLISH, NOT FOR PUBLICATION. ETC.) Editor@DenverDirect.tv
BLOG ARCHIVE
-
▼
2013 (346)-
▼
June (27)- The subversion of democracy
- Judge rules against park advocates, refuses to sto...
- Nightmare on Greed Street
- The Friends of Denver Parks denied injunction to s...
- MORE CARCINOGENIC TOXINS ADDED TO PURPLE PIPE WATE...
- Central Denver Recreation Center Public Meeting
- ALL THINGS MJ with Jessica LeRoux - June 24, 2013
- The City Park West Neighborhood Association is up ...
- THE MONEY ZONE
- All Things MJ with Jessica LeRoux - June 16, 2013
- Latest news on Hentzell Park hearing - June 14, 20...
- Latest update from Friends of Denver Parks re: Hen...
- AN OBSCENE DEBATE from The Naysayer by Phil Goodst...
- Walkabout at the East High farmers market - June 9...
- No Kill Day is today - City Park Meadows - 3:00 to...
- Denver's Annual Gay Pride Parade - June 16
- Free lunch sites for kids this summer
- ALL THINGS MJ with Jessica LeRoux - June 10, 2013
- INC agrees to join Hentzell Park Lawsuit
- Imprisoned by Profit – Taking Action against For-P...
- Keeping an Old House Cool
- Fracking gets real...
- DENVER'S CITY COUNCIL ROLLS ON TOWARD A64 MARIJUAN...
- Denver Parks not so great after all
- Draft Text of Retail Marijuana Local Licensing Ord...
- Haboob (Dust Storm) east of Manzanola, Colorado
- ALL THINGS MJ with Jessica LeRoux - June 1, 2013
-
CONTACT US
Got a tip? Information? Press release? Contact us by email -Editor@DenverDirect.tv
Who we are:
Editor
Gerald Trumbule
Featured Contributors
Linda Drake
CREATIVE COMMONS LICENSE
All of the work on this site, including the original YouTube videos by www.DenverDirect.tv, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Click on the symbol above for explanation.
More info on old houses and how to take care of them are at www.congressparkneighbors.org under Historic Preservation and Other Links.
ReplyDelete
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete