Even though I was born in the Northeast, I have spent the vast majority of my life in the Southeast.
When I was just a kid going into second or third grade, my mother moved my whole family down to the Southeastern portion of the country.
We went from a place that has snow in the winter and beautiful falling leaves in the fall to a state that has basically one season. That one season can be divided into three sections, though. Those three sections are hot, hotter, and Hell on Earth. When I was that age and we first moved here, we did not have any sort of air conditioning in the house. Although it is illegal to even build a home without AC now in our whole state, back then it was common not to have air conditioning. Because of the lack of cooling devices, my family learned easy ways to stay cool, and nowadays when we all have Central heating and cooling HVAC, we can still use These easy ways to save on our cooling bill each month. First of all, plant things that will provide shade for your house. Some people are scared to death to have trees anywhere near their house, but trust me, having shade is worth the risk of having a limb fall on your house. Secondly, take cool showers. If you take a cool shower in the evening, don’t dry your hair, and sit under a ceiling fan, you can literally set your air conditioning thermostat 4 or 5 degrees higher without ever getting hot. This will save you energy and money. Thirdly, do something about your windows. Whether you choose blackout curtains or film on your windows, do something to keep the Sun from the layering into the house. All of these simple things will help you save a bundle on your cooling Bill. Trust me. I know.