People often talk about the many improvements they can make to their heating, ventilation plus air conditioner program to extend its lifespan. Sure, you can use a smart temperature control to schedule running cycles, adjust the temperature on the temperature control up a few degrees while the two of us were in Summer or down while the two of us were in winter, plus so on. You could even invest in various temperature controls equipped with zone control technology, so you can leave unoccupied rooms untreated by the HVAC system. However, what about the actions you can take outside of directly increasing your system? Planting trees is 1 possible route of action, since the shade produced by the tree will cause less sunshine to hit (and warm) the wall of the home where the sunshine is shining. Another solution comes from the color ploy of the exterior of the home, as pastel or lighter colors can help deflect sunlight. I guess that’s genuinely the case, because I used to live in a home that was mostly dark red stone on the outside. Given the dark color plus material itself, the bricks absorbed all of the sunshine plus turned the home into an oversized pizza oven. One other change that can be made for long-term benefit is to redo the roof shingles, but use light-colored shingles instead of black or dark brown. Like the paint choice, light colored shingles will deflect light more effectively. All of these chances are worth considering when pursuing a house improvement project, as they all impact the home plus how well it deflects Summer heat for years to come!