Tips

Secrets to keeping your home cool and breezy in the summer without using an air conditioner

If you often struggle to fall asleep due to the unbearable heat at night, here are a few ideas you can try.

16 March, 2024

The months of June and July are when the scorching heat occurs all over the country. There are times when the outdoor temperature reaches nearly 50 degrees Celsius. The sweltering air makes many people feel suffocating. However, what is even more horrifying is the alternating power outages and water shortages. Even indoors, the oppressive heat still surrounds.

If you often toss and turn and have difficulty sleeping due to the heat at night, you can try some of the ideas below.

1. When sleeping at night

– Use a fan

A gentle fan breeze helps to evenly circulate the air throughout the room. Even when using air conditioning, the fan still helps to make the room cooler because the air is evenly distributed. If you don’t like the feeling of air blowing directly on you while sleeping, you can use a wall-mounted fan.

– Water mattress

A water mattress, like an air mattress, but filled with water. Water absorbs more heat than air, so the water mattress makes you feel like you’re lying on a pool, feeling cool. However, sleeping on a water mattress feels a bit wobbly and unstable, which makes many people have difficulty sleeping if they are not used to it. Therefore, if possible, you should try it before buying.

– “Ice” pillow

Place a small pillow in the freezer one or two hours before you go to sleep. To prevent the ice from freezing in a block on the surface of the pillow, you should wrap the pillow in a plastic bag before putting it in the freezer.

– Fabric pillow

Use silk or satin pillowcases. These types of fabrics will make you feel smooth and cooler when you sleep.

– Sleeping on the floor

The specific weight of warm air is lighter than cold air, so warm air floats at the top of the air. Cold air lies at the bottom. If your house has multiple floors, the ground floor is always the coolest place.

2. Cool down the house

– Save energy

Implement measures to minimize activities that generate a lot of heat. You should limit the use of TV and computers during the day because they generate a lot of heat. Switch from incandescent bulbs that emit a lot of heat to fluorescent or LED bulbs. You can postpone doing laundry and watching TV until the evening on hot sunny days.

– Close the curtains during the day

Closing the curtains during the day helps to block the heat from the sun. Don’t let the light and hot air outside enter the house. Make sure that when the first rays of sunshine appear, you must wake up and close the curtains, windows immediately. The sunrise time in summer is very early – about 5 am.

To provide better protection, the family should use insulated curtains or tinted glass for windows (similar to cars, tinted glass prevents heat transfer from the outside in winter, and in summer it prevents solar radiation). If you don’t have tinted glass, you can cut pieces of cardboard or newspapers to temporarily stick on the glass door.

– Pay attention to the colors and materials of curtains

In addition, use white or light-colored window curtains. Even when the windows are closed, curtains can help reduce the amount of heat from the sun by about 40 – 50%.

Window curtains made of wooden or bamboo blinds hanging outside the windows can help reduce about 60% of the hot heat from the sunlight.

– Close the windows during the day and open them at night

Close the windows tightly during the day, especially the East and West directions of the house throughout the day to prevent the hot heat from outside blowing into the house.

Open the windows at night. If you keep the windows closed, they will retain the heat from the day and your house will not cool down quickly.

– Indoor plants

Planting green plants indoors also helps to cool the air by absorbing CO2 and releasing O2 during the day. The air purification effect of some indoor plants helps to remove harmful chemicals in the air emitted from daily activities, making you feel easier to breathe.

3. DIY “air conditioning”

– DIY ice fan

You need to prepare 1 fan, 2 bottles of purified water, salt. First, open the bottle cap and add about 2-3 tablespoons of salt. Table salt increases the activity of water, making the ice colder and longer-lasting. Next, tightly screw the bottle cap and put it in the refrigerator overnight. Before going to bed, take out the ice water bottle and place it in front of the fan. Turn on the fan and feel the cool and refreshing air.

– DIY air conditioner from foam box

A cheap air conditioner made from a plastic box is very easy to make and costs you less than an hour. You will need a plastic/foam box, a mini electric fan, a short L-shaped plastic pipe, ice, pen, glue, knife, and tape.

According to thoidaiplus

Frequently asked questions

If you struggle to sleep due to the heat, try using a fan to circulate air, and if you’re not a fan of direct airflow, opt for a wall-mounted fan. Water mattresses can also provide a cooling effect, but they may take some getting used to due to their instability. “Ice” pillows, made by freezing a small pillow, can offer temporary relief, and fabric choices like silk or satin pillowcases can make you feel cooler.

Minimize activities that generate heat, such as limiting TV and computer usage during the day. Switch to fluorescent or LED bulbs, as they emit less heat. Close curtains and windows during the day to block out the sun and open them at night to let cooler air in. Consider using insulated curtains or tinted glass for better protection against heat transfer. Pay attention to curtain colors and materials—white or light-colored curtains made from wooden or bamboo blinds can reduce heat from the sun by up to 60%.

Yes! You can create a DIY ice fan by adding salt to bottles of water and freezing them overnight. Place the frozen bottles in front of a fan for a cooling breeze. Alternatively, you can make a cheap air conditioner from a plastic/foam box, a mini electric fan, an L-shaped plastic pipe, ice, and a few household items.