That’s when it dawned on me that everyone else in the neighborhood had shutters or drapes or shades drawn during the peak heating hours
So there is a reason people pull their curtains during the summer. I thought most people in this area were just really shy or very private. But that shade pulling has nothing to do with all that. No, I recently learned that this custom is to mitigate the direct sunlight heating which occurs when windows are left uncovered. And I found out that this is a big time HVAC cooling cost saver. I mean big time. This is all new to me as I’m learning all about just how to adjust to a summer unlike any I have ever experienced. And it’s been a bit of a learning curve. At least I was smart enough to have the HVAC technician come out to give an air conditioning tune-up before it got hot. But still, I wish I had known about the direct sunlight heating. Yet, I learned the hard way. When we moved in, we didn’t want to spoil any of the window space to take in the light. But as we got closer to summer, I noticed that the air conditioning was really kicking on a lot. And then after I got the first HVAC cooling bill of the summer, I knew I had to do something different. That’s when it dawned on me that everyone else in the neighborhood had shutters or drapes or shades drawn during the peak heating hours. Shoot, the cost of putting up window coverings wasn’t nearly as tough to swallow when I saw the difference it made in the utility bill.