One of the best ways that any business can show that it cares about the community that it serves, and the environment in which it operates, is for it to find ways to help save the planet by conserving energy. Unfortunately, in hot weather, it can be difficult to stay cool and reduce your energy use as the same time. As hard as it may be, there are 5 simple ways to keep your office cool while still reducing your energy expenditures for the sake of the planet - and your energy bills!
earth-158805_6401. Install Insulation

Employees will often turn on fans and air conditioners upon first entering the office, but because the cold air isn't held by the building very well, the energy used to keep these appliances running remains steady or even increases throughout the day. When an office is poorly insulated, it makes holding cold air in and keeping warm air out more difficult. Making sure that windows and doors are well insulated and having insulation blown into walls are great ways to keep your office cool without using extra energy throughout the day.

2. Zone Air Conditioning

For many offices, there are spaces that are not used on a consistent basis. For instance, you may only use the conference room a few times per week, hardly spend a significant amount of time in the store room or utility closet, or have yet to hire someone to occupy a 45-square-foot work space. When you have spaces in your office that you don't use as often as you might use your lobby or restrooms, it wastes energy. Having a zone-based central air system installed means that you are able to use energy to cool spaces that you use the most and not waste energy cooling spaces that you are hardly ever in.

3. Ceiling Fans

Using ceiling fans more than your central air conditioning system saves energy for the planet and money for your business. A few ceiling fans would use up a fraction of the energy necessary to power an entire central air system, and they're much cheaper to purchase and maintain than central air conditioning units. Using ceiling fans can decrease energy use even further if you're sure to only turn the fan on when you are actually using the area that it is in.

4. Shade Trees

Planting shade trees outside your office can drastically reduce the amount of energy you use to cool the office because the sun's light and heat are not as easily able to increase the temperature inside your office. Though this method can take some time to have an effect, it's one of the best ways to show your community your investment in our planet, save your office some money, and save some energy.

5. Replace Old Lighting

Older light bulbs give off about 75% more heat than modern light bulbs such as LED or CFL bulbs. If your staff are using cooler lights, but still getting the same amount of brightness, they will be less hot and therefore less likely to turn on a fan or the central air conditioner. As an added bonus, LED and CFL bulbs cost less to operate, so you end up saving money by using less energy to fuel the bulb, spending less money on purchasing replacement bulbs since these newer bulbs last longer, and you also keep your office cooler, meaning there is less energy spent on trying to bring the office's temperature down to a comfortable level.

Many consumers genuinely appreciate any effort that a business makes to help preserve or enhance the current state of our planet. Doing any one of the energy-saving things on this list would be great way to reduce business costs. Doing all five would not only show your level of commitment to saving energy to your staff, customers, and business partners, but could help your bottom line once tax cuts for some of these improvements are redeemed each year. Help your business, your customer base, and our environment grow happier and healthier with every energy-saving move you make!