But I do other things to help the AC out. I don’t turn on the stove to cook – either its the microwave, toaster oven, takeout or cold foods. I only turn on the dryer at night. And I close the door so the heat doesn’t spread to the rest of the house. If I’ve been running errands I will not pull my hot car into the garage – which is next to the kitchen – no need to unneccessarily heat it up, which in turn heats up the kitchen. I’ll pull the car in at night after the engine has cooled off. I use the ceiling fans that I have in every room. I also keep the blinds closed when the sun is on them. I keep all closet doors closed – I’m not paying to heat my wardrobe and other crap in storage. And yes, I avoid chores like vacuuming or anything else that makes me hot or can produce heat – I’ll do it at night or in the morning.

We actually do this as a family activity quite often on weekends. We take our 3 kids to the downtown library for several hours picking out books and movies and playing some games as well. We always make sure to raise the temperature on the thermostat to over 85 while we’re away. So we’re making smarty-pants kids who can read an appreciate books and saving money. What a deal.