The temperature is rising. The humidity is surrounding you. You feel the warmth on your face (as always) and the bugs are starting to bite. Summer is here! Florida’s blistering summer months can be an exhausting collection of sweat, rosy cheeks, sunburns and mosquito bites — all of which are seemingly unavoidable unless you permanently plant yourself under your covers, and even then you’ll start to perspire. But, you’re not the only one affected by the sun’s piercing rays — your home takes a beating, too. Here’s what you can do to protect your home from the worst of summer’s arsenal.

FOR HEAT

Your first instinct is to drop the air conditioning to glacially low levels in order to counteract the catastrophic heat. But, when your electric bill lands in your mailbox, you’ll quickly regret hyperactively pressing the down arrow on the thermostat, so try some of the following instead.

• Cover your windows with light-colored blinds to reflect UV rays.
• Plant trees and shrubbery on the west and east sides of your home to soak up the sun right in its natural path.
• Use a battery-operated portable fan to increase the airflow indoors.
• Insulate your attic floor to prevent its absorbed heat from sinking down into your house.
• Reduce the current heat sources in your home by cooking with a microwave or pressure cooker instead of a stove or oven; air drying dishes instead of using the dishwasher; and line-drying clothes instead of using the dryer.

FOR BUGS

With summer heat comes creepy, crawly critters shamelessly invading our homes and buzzing in our ears, swarming our sandwiches and nibbling on our sweet skin. Keep the bugs at bay with a few simple steps.

• Seal the gaps surrounding doorways and windows with caulking to eliminate entry points for insects. You may even want to install a steel or aluminum threshold underneath your doors for added security.
• Add screens to the exterior of doors and windows to act as a shield.
• Hire an exterminator, or simply purchase insecticide at any home improvement store and spray the perimeter of the house yourself.
• Keep exterior lights dim to avoid attracting pests to your home.
• Light citronella candles to ward off mosquitoes.

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