I have ducted A/C through out the house..all the bedrooms have ceiling fans..the back bifolds have louvres roofing to protect from afternoon sun..also privacy screens to go in to add to the protection apartment is over insulated so we don't tend to turn on A/C that much ..just to cool it down then we turn it off

Lyn Huppatz raises a very valid point with moving, particularly for those moving from the city to the country. It is very difficult to feel you are really living or belong in a place if you are not accepted and these barriers can be very difficult to cross. I've just traded city life for what I hope is some peaceful country living to see out my days and this aspect did cross my mind with thoughts of how to try to cope with it. Fortunately, I've chosen a wonderful place where everyone seems to be a newcomer, basically all escaping the city hustle and bustle so the welcome I've had is amazing with invites to join many local groups and clubs, I doubt I will have time for them all. Maybe instead of wondering about ourselves so much, we should also focus on how welcoming we make our own particular areas for newcomers - how much would we like others to say they have lived rather than just stayed.

we used extra wide black sarlon shade cloth attached to timber frames that were then attached to the frame of a pergola against the house..initially for sun screening but we found the screens so useful for hot, cold and windy weather and also excluded insects, frogs and snakes and made a great safe play area for kids and animals...the materials cost less than a few hundred dollars for the first experiment for a 7m x 5m area and the black sarlon, looks like fly screen when stretched tight to the frames and enhanced the view looking out, obscured the view looking in and added months of comfortable use to our outdoor area... another panel installed along a hot morning verandah grew a Boston Ivy all over it that was extra cool in Summer, gorgeous in Autumn and leafless to allow more light in Winter

Further to some previous comments I’ve made over the past few years on various subject matters ; anyone that would like some further detailed information on the subject on sun control window insulation films as an option to consider for improving both heat loss and heat gains through windows ( also referred too as window tinting and / or glass tinting ) , including glass security /glare control / fade protection and decorative glass treatments etc can check out some articles I had printed in the “ The Owner Builder “ magazine no’s 180 & 181 ( Dec-Feb 2013-2914 editions ) It may help those understand a little better the product for those having various issues, such as this present subject matter on cooling methods , in this comment section . As others have mentioned, one product may not solve all their particular problem/s and quite often more than one product / solution may often be required to obtain a better outcome . I’ve found a lot of problems start initially with overall buildings design , orientation and the amount of glass / windows used and their sizes /design and type / amount of insulation used overall . Having been in the window tinting industry for about 38 years now and covering both domestic and commercial buildings , I’ve noticed how the weather patterns changed to an extent that the solutions/ products that may have been available / used some 30 odd years ago ; now have new and updated products / solutions on offer . One can email me for further advice to clarify some issues . Although I’m a Tasmanian based business, I’ve lived and worked all around Australia and spent over 5-1/2 years in north Qld so do have some experience living in different climates .