How Do You Keep Your Home Cool?

air king vs mosquitos by flatbushnelson, on Flickr.

As we face another super-hot day, we face another round of complaints about it. Or, we could focus on the good stuff, like cold drinks, and fan recommendations from neighbor Nelson Ryland:

I’ve become obsessed with super powerful fans. I just bought a huge industrial fan for our porch for $190. Which, if you put on high, you can pretend you are in a hurricane. Also bought a hyper strong whole house fan for $135. It’s in our office which, if you open all your windows, sucks tons of fresh air from outside and creates a great breezy feel all over the house. We turn the whole house fan on at night when it gets cool outside and it’s a pretty awesome cooling device.

He admits that his window air conditioners are superior on days like today, but that whole house fan sounds like a pretty great idea for “regular” hot summer days.

What do you rely on to cool your apartment or house? Any fans or ACs that you like best? And on days like this, do you take things like the cost of electricity or the recommendations to conserve it into consideration?