We don't have a basement. However, we do have an attic fan. Since we don't have humidity here in Colorado, once the sun goes down, it cools off really quickly. But the upstairs an attic can hold heat a long time (great in the winter!). With the attic fan, we can cool the house at least 5 degrees in about 20 minutes! We generally have it on until we go to bed.

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If you decide to sleep in the basement please make sure you have a window or door in the basement you can get out of in case of a fire. It is not worth giving up safety to be comfortable or save $$$$.

I am sure if we had a basement we would do that - not a lot of houses in So Cal have basements though. I know DH's grandparents do and they do this.