The weather has settled into a monotonous march of 100-degree days. With no break forecast for the near future, we're looking for ways to keep our cool.

Air conditioning

Keeping the A/C humming is a priority in August, and that starts with a clean filter. Check the filter once a month in summer, said Tom Damiani, who serves on the board of directors of the San Antonio Air Conditioning Contractors of America and owns Damiani's Comfort Design.

He likened the filter to arteries in the human body. “If you have a plugged filter, you're basically closing off the arteries to your heart, and eventually it's going to have a heart attack.”

A dirty filter eventually will clog the coil and cause the system to work harder.

Having the unit serviced at least once a year can help homeowners spot problems such as a dirty coil or worn parts. Technicians also can identify issues with ductwork and insulation, often the culprits when a unit runs excessively or when the house has hot and cold spots, Damiani said.

The air conditioner also will run longer if there's a lamp, television or other heat source near the thermostat, notes Angie's List, a provider of consumer reviews on service companies

A programmable thermostat will help keep both the house and the electric bill comfortable. “Don't set the thermostat back more than 5 degrees from where you want it,” Damiani said. Sure, turning the temperature up to 85 or 90 degrees while no one is home will keep the unit from running. But the extra energy it takes to cool the house back down will eat up the savings.

Damiani stages his programmable thermostat in two-degree increments. It's set to drop from 80 to 78 after work, then to 76 at 10 p.m. so he and his wife can sleep cool.

Ceiling fans

While fans don't lower the room temperature, they make it feel cooler. “I'm a fan of fans,” Damiani said. It's less expensive and just as comfortable, he said, to run a fan and set the thermostat on 78 than to turn off the fan and drop the thermostat to 75.

Make sure the fan is spinning in the correct direction. It should be spinning counter clockwise to cool. The simple test is to stand under the fan. If you don't feel a breeze, turn the fan off and reverse the direction.


Window coverings and shade trees to block the sun help keep a house cool. “Don't let someone prune your trees up so much you've got sun all over your house,” Damiani said.


When you reach in the fridge for a cold drink, you want it to be cold. To keep the fridge in optimal condition, clean condenser coils at least once a year and make sure door seals are airtight. And, no, don't open the refrigerator door to cool off. That wastes electricity.

Angie's List advises closing the door on a thin sheet of paper to test the seal. If the paper slips, cold air is likely slipping out, too.

Set the refrigerator temperature between 37 and 40 degrees and the freezer at 5 degrees, the company said. A standalone freezer should be at 0 degrees.

Cool dreams

Slipping into a cool bed feels dreamy, especially on a hot night. Bedding made of lyocell, a wood-pulp fiber, is the coolest to the touch, said spokeswomen for both Lin Marché and Heirloom Bed Co. in San Antonio. “It's like sleeping on butter,” said Nancy Cruz, design consultant at Heirloom Bed Co. “They feel like an expensive silk sheet, but (silk sheets) become hot because they don't breathe well.

Legna lyocell sheets sell for about $1,000 for a queen set.

Bamboo-fiber bedding costs less than lyocell and is almost as cool, Cruz said. A queen set of bamboo sheets at Heirloom Bed Co. costs $480.

A new kind of cool comes in the form of gel overlays on memory-foam pillows. The gel, a petrochemical product, is cooler to the touch than foam, fiber or down pillows, said Robert O'Connell, a spokesman for Sensorpedic, manufacturer of the SensorCool gel overlay pillow. It's attached to both sides of the foam pillow, and open cells in the pillow's foam allow air to circulate. The pillows cost $60 each for a standard size at dillards .com.

The overlay differs from gel-infused memory foam pillows, mattresses and mattress toppers, he said. When gel is used as part of the foam, it's typically for support and not cooling, he said.