Staying cool

[tortoise]

How do you stay cool on hot muggy days?

We have an air conditioner, but don't use it. I shut all the windows this morning. Not quite early enough! I pulled the shades.

On the east side of the house, there is a glass patio door. There is a thermometer on that side of the house. It read 100 this morning at 8:00! I have been pestering SO about putting blinds on the patio door. I hung up a sheet over the door.

The west (shade) side didn't feel a whole lot cooler than inside, so I didn't open those windows.

At 2:00, I'll uncover the east windows, and maybe open them if it is cooler outside than inside.

So far, it is 75 degrees inside. Weather.com says it is 79, feels like 82. The rabbit shed was at 70. (It gets hot in the afternoon).

I used to do this at my house and it stayed at 70 in the summer. People thought we had air conditioning! But if I forgot to switch and left windows open on the sunny side it got crazy hot and stayed that way for a long time.

 

[Aidenbaby]

We open all the windows at sundown and close the south windows between 10 and 11 am. Our house is oriented North/South so we get a fair breeze coming through for most of the day. Usually there is a 10 degree difference between outside and inside. Not too bad on 90 degree days but not fun on 100 degree days. I'm trying to hold off for as long as possible before putting the window AC's in.

As for our south facing sliding door, we have 1/2 blinds and 1/2 a flannel flat sheet. We can't afford to replace the blinds yet or get curtains so we're making do. When we are able to afford it, we'll be getting some heavy drapesfor it and also lightweight sheers.

 

[noobiechickenlady]

We open our windows at night, use fans throughout the house, wear as little clothing as is decent & spray each other with peppermint witchhazel.
Our windows are currently covered with dark drapes, but I want to get some shade cloth & hang some outside the windows or plaster the windows with the stick on tinting. The heat still makes it inside during the day since the sunblock is on the inside of the glass.

 

[pioneergirl]

In the past, we'd just flip on the central AC, but this year I'm pulling the plug. If we are going to be even remotely SS, we have to start now! lol

Front door faces south, however there is a foyer before entering the main, so I open the west french door and the south front and get a good flow through of air. Curtains on the east stay closed, but all other windows/ curtains are open, ceiling fans on. My only problem is no windows in the kitchen, so while I'm cooking (like now, baking bread, and lots of it) the kitchen is HOT. Got the fan going but thats it.

Around here we get a decent breeze most days, but around 6pm the wind stops, making it pretty stagnant.

 

[abifae]

bean bags in the freezer. the same type you use to heat in the microwave, just freeze 'em

i also am in colorado where the humid is no issue. i spray water at the fan to blow cooled wet air back at me LOL!

 

[valmom]

We really only get hot days a handfull of times each summer. 80's are the norm. We have large trees shading the south side (that drop their leaves in the winter letting in sun). We have room fans in the LR, BR, and central area of the house. When it gets too hot we go down to the basement!

Oh, and cold water (drinking) helps bring down body temperature in the core. Water is a great heat sink, and bringing up x amount of cold water to body temp is a great use of exess heat in your body. I'm not convinced that a cold shower is all that effective- I can't stay in the shower all day! And, I figure it also constricts the blood vessels on your surface, letting even less core heat escape.

 

[Aidenbaby]

Abi reminded me of another thing we do on occasion. Sometimes, I'll put a damp washcloth over the top of a fan for a homemade evaporative cooler.

 

[DawnSuiter]

We feed the chickens frozen berries from the gardens.

We also have a system of drawing shades 'here' and moving fans 'there' to bring in the cool air and shut out the sun. Half the house is shaded by trees and that side is the air conditioner. The other half however is in full sun from mid day through the evening and provides a giant wall to heat facing due west. I am working on growing vines on that side, a permanent perennial.

Reflective truck window shades work quite well in West facing windows in a pinch and can often be found at dollar stores.

We also have a water misting system, outdoor shower and all the creature comforts outside so live out there as much as is possible.

Next year we'll have a few "steel trees" to add... tall re bar bent to shape an awning with vining plants growing on it.

 

[ORChick]

You could always move to W. Oregon . We are having a long, wet, cold Spring. The forecast is for 60* today, low 40's tonight - and it is warming up from what it was! I am so tired of this. When it does get hot though the humidity is very slight, so quite bearable. (My neighbour freezes bottles of water to put in with the rabbits on the few really hot days we get here)

 

[VickiLynn]

It's hot here today. But we live in the country and usually get a good breeze, and we have lots of shade trees in the yard, so the windows are open, but blinds closed on the sunny side. We have some fans in strategic places (like where ever I am ) and we're sipping some raspberry iced tea (heavy on the ice) that I made last night.

We debated turning on the AC, but we'd have to close the windows - and I HATE being closed-up. It's supposed to gradually cool down the rest of the week, so we'll muddle through.