7 Budget Friendly Ways to Stay Cool in the Summer Heat

It’s summer, and for many of us, that means long walks on the beach, weekend barbecues,  cute cocktails and picnic lunches. Unfortunately, it also means stuffy, hot and humid homes, especially if we aren’t fortunate enough to have air conditioning, or if our air conditioning is broke – but it doesn’t have to.

Instead of languishing in your living room, sticking to the couch and feeling too hot to even move, check out these tips to keep your home cooler even if you don’t have an A/C:

Close Your Blinds

If you have blinds, use them. When the sun is shining, you can block as much as 30 percent of the heat that gets into your home by shutting the blinds during the day. Not only that but keeping the blinds closed could cut your home’s noonday temperature by as many as 20 degrees, so even if you don’t have A/C you don’t have to feel uncomfortable.

Open the Windows at Sundown

Once the sun goes down, depending on where you’re living, the temperature will probably start to drop significantly too. If you open the windows at this time, the hot, humid air in your home will immediately start to cool down for a more refreshing feeling that will last until sunrise, and beyond if you keep the blinds closed!

Stick Tinted Film to the Windows

Another window-based no A/C hack you can employ to bring your home’s temperature down significantly is adding tinted film to your window panes.  Not only can you use window film to lower energy costs, but you can also use it to block excess heat from seeping into your home, for an affordable cooling effect.

Leave Chores Until Sundown

You might think that your household chores have little to do with the temperature of your home, but think about how much heat the dryer and other common household appliances, like the dishwasher give off and you’ll see why it’s smarter to leave your chores until the evening, at least in the summer when the weather is hot.

Grill Your Meals

For the same reason, you might want to forgo cooking with the oven or stove and use your outdoor grill instead. Cooking indoors when the temperature outside is high will turn your whole home into an oven and make you feel very uncomfortable, so stock up on grillable foods for the duration of the heatwave.

Turn in Exhaust Fans

If you have exhaust fans in the bathroom and kitchen, you might want to consider turning them on for a little while even when you aren’t using the shower of cooking, because they will go a long way to getting rid of some of the hot air that is causing you to feel uncomfortable. Leaving them on for just 20 minutes after cooking/showering should do the trick.

Use Cotton Sheets

If you find it too hot to sleep at night because you get so hot and sticky, consider sleeping as close to the floor as you can, if possible, and go out and buy some cotton sheets – they’re more breathable, and they will make you more comfortable.

How do you stay cool when there’s no air conditioning to keep the temperature comfortable?