Search all WA Government Sites Print this page	When the outside temperature soars your normally cool, comfortable home can become the last place you want to be. Thankfully, there are a range of options available to help you control indoor temperatures. The main ways that heat enters the home in summer are through: • Heat transfer from the external surfaces of the house that are warmed by the external air temperature and the sun • The sun shining through windows directly heating the home interior • Hot air infiltration through open windows, doors, air vents and gaps around doors and windows • Internal heat generated by the people inside and the appliances being used. It is possible to use 'passive' cooling techniques to reduce your home's heat gain such as installing insulation, shading windows, ensuring good garden and landscaping design, and using natural ventilation. Using these techniques can help to keep your home comfortably cool without the need for expensive air-conditioning. Passive cooling techniques are easy to implement at the home building stage, but may be more difficult for existing homes. House design, layout, construction materials and other factors can all restrict your home's ability to reduce heat gain sufficiently and as such, air-conditioning may be required. Should you choose to purchase an air conditioner, adopting passive cooling techniques can reduce the size of the air-conditioner you require and its associated purchase and running costs. Further information For further information on ways to reduce your home's artificial cooling requirements see House Design. See the Choosing an Air-conditioner (PDF 194 KB), brochure for further information on air-conditioners. Also view the First Steps to Summer Cooling (PDF 157 KB), brochure for further information on the first steps to keeping cool in summer. To access Adobe Acrobat Reader for the PDFs provided on this site: www.adobe.com.au
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