10 Brilliant Ways Our Readers Cool Off Their Homes in the Scorching Hot Weather
If you’re dripping sweat simply by sitting on your sofa, your hair is getting curlier and just generally larger thanks to the humidity, and you’re eating more popsicles per day than you typically eat all year, guess what? You’re me during this never-ending summer heatwave!
My apartment has two window AC units, but it’s on the fourth floor of a walkup, and it’s peak heat right now in NYC. I’ve been on the lookout for ways to keep it cool, and I love tips like this car window shade hack, the trusty ice fan trick, and this sheet method for keeping cool.
In fact, 113,100 people read and loved the latter method — in which writer Jamie Sanders tapes a bed sheet up to trap cool air in her living room on super-hot days — and 94 people commented with additional ways they cool off their own homes. Here are some of the best cooling-off tips I found from the comment section.
1. Try the sheet method, but with a blanket or a shower curtain.
Several commenters said they apply the same general principle to trap cool air in a room. Commenter cindy54536 prefers a blanket for a thicker blocker, and Cindy and nikki8112 both say that blankets can also keep warm air in in the wintertime (which, at this point, feels so, so far away, but I’m pocketing that for when my apartment has the same problem in the cooler months!).
Commenter judyann6802 used a clear shower curtain, which works great for trapping heat in winter and cool air in the summer, but she warns that in the summertime, it’s not great for blocking sunlight, which can also help reduce heat.
2. Add a tension rod if you’re going to leave the blanket, sheet, or shower curtain up for the whole summer.
Several commenters also mentioned that instead of blue painter’s tape, Jamie could also try a tension rod as a rental-friendly way to keep the sheet up, if she were looking for something to last longer than just a few days. Jamie lives in LA where the summer is more mild and only has to pull out the hack on the hottest day or two, but thanks to glenellyn2615, megsaint4448, loretta6765, and Linnea Page for the suggestions for those of us who live in a perpetual swamp city in the summertime.
3. Use doors if you have them.
Lots of commenters noted that Jamie’s “sheet method” is similar to using doors in your apartment to make your AC work efficiently. (Unfortunately, Jamie and others with more open floor plans have no doors to work with.) But one commenter had an epiphany! “I forgot that I have a pocket door between the living room and hallway — I’ll start using it to help my tower fans cool the space,” writes radiant1nme1294. “I’m also in LA in an older building without central air.”
4. Blackout curtains will be your best friend.
People also suggested using blackout curtains in a threshold to block light and trap cool air in, proving that blackout curtains are useful for several purposes and in several spots. User arbpen6805 is an advocate for putting up blackout curtains and keeping them closed during the day; she does this in her living room and kitchen.
5. Keep your shower curtain closed to help cool off your bathroom.
“Closing the shower curtain seems to help cool the bathroom,” arbpen6805 also writes, and I’m pocketing this tip because my bathroom is one of the hottest rooms in my apartment. It has no fan and is too small to add a window unit.
6. Use ice packs to keep your body cool.
Arbpen6805 also notes that their desk is positioned right next to their air conditioner, but for those who aren’t so lucky, you could take a page from michellebell’s book. “In my building, it’s actually quite difficult to use an AC,” Michelle explains. “Our windows are tricky (solid across the bottom), and we’re not supposed to alter the look of them with hoses and such. During that May heatwave a few years ago, I literally worked with an ice pack on me at all times.”
7. Set up a swamp cooler.
Michellebell has also utilized a swamp cooler, aka an evaporative cooler, a fan-like device that cools a home off by passing air over pads of water. Arbpen6805 and cindy54536 are also fans (no pun intended).
8. Put up shades and awnings to give your AC a bit of a break.
Many commenters pointed out that shade trees near the home always help, too. If you don’t have that, you might have to put up your own shade, even to help cool the inside. “We think our AC has to work harder because the part outside gets very hot,” commenter sherrie9264 says. “We’re getting ready to put an awning over that window on the side of the house to see if that will also help.”
9. Hang sheets between your curtains and window to create a barrier.
In their over-100-year-old home, brekkepearl has a window unit AC in the bedroom but relies on other cooling methods to keep everywhere else chilled. “I hung white sheets between the curtains and the windows,” they said. “From outside, it looks like roller shades and made a huge difference.” (Could this be the sheet method 2.0?)
10. Skip cooking with the oven.
Lastly, cindy54536 and brandysnap123 recommend embracing summertime as a time to embrace your slow cooker, outdoor grill, microwave, toaster, and other small appliances. “Less heat than your stove and oven,” Cindy says.