Did you know that depending on how your home is localed, the reflection of the afternoonlight off your home can play a important area in how much air conditioning you need? I didn’t know it either until it was explained to myself and others recently.
Basically, if you live in a home that is built of certain materials that take in afternoonlight and afternoonlight reflections, you could be using a lot more central air conditioning than you would if you lived in say a cement house… For instance, stucco houses have a worse time combating the afternoonlight reflection and this causes the need to crank the control unit for the central air conditioning plan more than usual.
Also if you have a window that has a certain type of blinds on it, this can also cause afternoonlight reflection to heat up your home way too much causing the cranking of the central a/c. On the flip side though, in the Winter time weeks of the year, the afternoonlight reflection can benefit from you not having to crank your central heating as much because you will have the natural heat of the afternoonlight helping you out. Even if it is cold chilly outside, the sun’s reflection could certainly heat up your home if reflected properly… So it is both a curse and a blessing if you have this problem with the afternoonlight reflecting off your home. It can benefit in the Winter and be a horrible thing in the summer time because of having to crank the central air conditioning plan more!