Beat the Heat, Without Air Conditioning

by Sam Malone


Worried about heavy electric bills this summer because of the air conditioning your home requires? Well, there is a lot that you can do to keep your room cool, without being dependent on air conditioning. Cooling your room with an air conditioner may work really well, but it’s not the best method in terms of both energy efficiency and the environmental cost. An air conditioner may be a necessity in some parts of the world, but it isn’t something we can’t make do without. There are other methods of cooling as well, some that are more energy efficient and practical, and some that simply require a little effort on your part.

Evaporative Cooling

Evaporative cooling is a technology that uses water to cool the air through evaporation. This sets it apart from refrigerative air conditioning systems and makes it a lot more cost effective. This is particularly effective for cooling air in areas with a dry climate. In such conditions, it also helps to moisturize the air making living conditions a lot more comfortable. While it requires a steady supply of water to work it does not consume much electricity making it a lot more eco-friendly.

Turn on the Fans Switch off the AC

Fans cool the room by circulation the air that is present. In this way it helps keep the air fresh at all times. Breathing fresh air will help you stay calm, cool and also active through the day. Fans are also known to consume less energy as compared to most air cooling units and therefore are more efficient. Refrigerative air conditioners tend to use more energy and therefore are responsible for heating the outside air, making the summers hotter.

Fans don’t actually lower the temperature though; they simply ensure a steady flow of fresh air keeping you a lot more comfortable. In areas with an arid climate where the temperature of the air itself rises in summer, fans are unlikely to be of much help without additional cooling.

Check your Drapes

What color are your drapes and curtains? That’s an important factor that you need to keep in mind when finding ways to cool your room. Dark colored curtains will absorb more heat and therefore should be avoided. Decorate your home with some light colored curtains and bed covers. This will reflect much of the heat and light from your home and thus keep it bright and cool for most part of the day and night. Make sure that your curtains are not of heavy material; cotton is best.

Plants are the best natural coolers

Sitting in the shade of a tree is always a lot more comfortable than standing in the bright sun, but this only seems logical. Trees however don’t just offer shade; they actually do help keep the temperature down. Similarly, a few plants around your home, on your front porch, as also in your home will help to a great extent to maintain the right temperature to keep the air pleasant. Plants use the heat and light of the sun for their own sustenance and in turn grace the atmosphere with oxygen that is a necessity for our survival.

Cooking adds to the heat.

Cooking food can increase the temperature in the room, making you feel gloomy lot more irritable and gloomy. Though cooking is a regular feature in most houses there are different ways to keep the heat from affecting us. Fitting an exhaust fan in the kitchen will solve 90% of the problem as most of the heat will be thrown out of the room. Other tips like cooking food earlier in the day, avoiding foods that need too much cooking and so on will help in maintain a pleasant room temperature.

Other Small tips:

Besides all of this there are a few other things that you could do to maintain the coolness of your room. These include.
  • Check the humidity of your room. The more the humidity the higher the temperature in the room.
  • Avoid as much as possible the use of electric appliances like laptops computers, microwaves and so on.
  • Keep the house clean and keep things in order. It greatly helps in keeping the air clean and cool.
  • Avoid closing the windows completely. The drapes can help keep the heat out while good ventilation helps in air circulation.

All these tips date back to the times when electricity was not commonplace. With time however, we have resorted to technology to solve our cooling problems. However, these natural cooling tips are still an answer to cool a heating room.


Warning: The reader of this article should exercise all precautionary measures while following instructions on the home remedies from this article. Avoid using any of these products if you are allergic to it. The responsibility lies with the reader and not with the site or the writer.


Warning: The reader of this article should exercise all precautionary measures while following instructions on the home remedies from this article. Avoid using any of these products if you are allergic to it. The responsibility lies with the reader and not with the site or the writer.
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