A Cool Home Without AC? It’s As Easy As A.B.C!

Yes, summer is approaching! For some, this means extended vacations in your back garden, for others it means a few months of excessive sweat, especially if you are working from home and your little office at the back of the house absorbs heat. And if you are one of the precious few that has air conditioning in your home, then move on! For those that don't have air conditioning, and you’re trying to find ways to keep your home cool, here are some options for you.

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[ctt template=”4″ link=”8j0_S” via=”yes” ]A cool home without AC? It's as easy as A.B.C.! For those that don't have air conditioning, and you’re trying to find ways to keep your home cool, here are some options for you.[/ctt]

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Protect your windows

If you have double-glazed windows, it's very handy during the winter months, but this gives the sun so much opportunity to beam into your house, it can feel like a sauna! You can invest in blackout curtains to block sunlight, or you can just keep your blinds closed. Making the most of shade, either through blinds or curtains, can keep your temperature gauge down by approximately 33%. In addition to this, consider the colors of your materials. While blackout curtains are great for blocking sunlight, other dark materials in the home can absorb heat.

Close unused rooms

During the day, closing off unused rooms will stop cool air infiltrating these areas when the day is at its hottest. By blocking out any opportunity for light to get into these rooms, you can use these areas as a respite, especially if the rest of your home is considerably hot.

Get a fan

If you haven't got a fan already, it's a cheap and simple way of keeping your rooms cool. And nowadays, you can get so many different fans to suit the aesthetic of your home, from beach themed tropical designs, to new-age silver and sterile set-ups, but if the fan isn't keeping the room cool enough, your fan might not be set to run counter-clockwise. By doing this, the air flow creates a wind chill effect. Also, try the old-fashioned container of ice cubes in front of a fan trick. Make sure to position the container at an angle, so the air blows off the ice around the room. Close the doors, and you can create a convection current, which will gradually cool the entire room.

Don't focus on the temperature of the house

Our ancestors didn't have air conditioning and ceiling fans, so there has got to be ways to cool ourselves without relying on the blessing that is AC! From wearing breathable clothes, to having a cool bowl of water by the bed night for you to dip your feet in, these will help. And always remember, your pulse areas, when cooled, will affect the entire body. So, by applying a cold cloth to your neck and your wrists, this will cool your body very quickly. And although this might scream a bit too loudly when doing this, there is nothing better than a cold shower on a hot day. By turning the dial to its coldest setting, it's the quickest way to drop your body temperature.

Let the cool night air in

Even though it's hot during the day, the nights are much colder. So, if you don't do so, give your home the opportunity to cool down during the night by opening up all the windows and letting the cold air circulate. If you wanted to, you could create a wind tunnel by setting up your fans accordingly to create a cross breeze. But remember, make sure you get up early enough to close the windows before the sun comes up and it gets too hot!

How low can you go?

Heat rises, if any of you paid attention in science class! So, if you've got a particularly uncomfortable home during the summer months, get your mattress, put it on the floor, and enjoy the coldest part of your house. Add a cold compress to the the back of your neck, or your forehead, depending on how you sleep, and you should stay pretty cool throughout the night. If putting a mattress on the floor isn't an option, consider dampening your sheets before bedtime or putting them in the freezer. Yes, this may sound strange, but you will reap the benefits of a cool night's sleep.

Yes, the summer months are fantastic, but if it's too hot, it's can be incredibly distracting. We need to have a nice cool house, but also, it needs to be functional and livable. So, if you haven't got the finances to invest in an air conditioner, try a few of these approaches.

This is a contributed post.

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