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Eight low-tech ways to keep cool in a heatwave (2013)

116 points by vanilla-almond 8y ago

f_allwein 8y ago
Interesting approach from Munich, my home town: district cooling, i.e. using cold water from inner city streams and distributing the cold to shops and offices, so they don't have to use air conditioning. "produces far fewer CO2 emissions and reduces primary energy costs by around half": https://www.swm.de/english/m-fernwaerme/m-fernkaelte.html https://www.swm.de/english/m-fernwaerme/m-fernkaelte.html
fmsf 8y ago
Not trying to sound salty, but just for general reference. A heatwave in the UK starts somewhere around 23C. At 20C they are already anouncing in the stations for people to carry water at all times.
- tomc1985 8y ago
  That's a normal day in SoCal... one of those things I can't help but chuckle at. 73 F (23 C) is like my ideal temperature!
  - stefan_ 8y ago
    The average SoCal american probably spends about 15 minutes outside temperature controlled environments on any given day.
  - barking 8y ago
    it's been over thirty yesterday and today, it's virtually record temperatures for us and almost no one has air conditioning or even much in the way of fans.
    - onetimemanytime 8y ago
      Fans...you buy them and they'll probably last you 40 yrs given a 2-3 day use a year :). Probably not worth doing many home renovations to deal with the heat, unless it happens yearly. Just suck it up, 30c is manageable, even if you're used to it. any humidity? That is the worst
      - freehunter 8y ago
        >Just suck it up, 30c is manageable You realize they put out the warnings for a reason, right? Like... people die when temperatures get that hot in northern regions. People actually die. But nah, just suck it up right? Suck it up granny, quit yer dying over there and just buy a fan!
  - Fukkaudeku 8y ago
    Your houses are also made of tracing paper, which don't retain any heat, and have air con. Our houses are made of brick and insulation and are practically giant heatsinks. Being 23-25C inside and outside and absolutely no way to cool off is hell.
    - barrkel 8y ago
      23C inside is comfy. Our office AC is set to 21 and I need to wear a hoodie indoors due to the AC draught. It starts getting unpleasant around 26C. At home, however, it's 31C on the second floor of our townhouse, and we're investigating installing AC.
    - tomc1985 8y ago
      Tracing paper? That's Japan, dude
    - csomar 8y ago
      > Being 23-25C inside and outside and absolutely no way to cool off is hell. You are discounting the personal factor. I'm 28C inside and 36C outside. Pretty comfy for me and not running Air conditioner yet. In fact I set the Aircon at 20-23 most of the time. A hot day would be 40+ outside.
  - freehunter 8y ago
    I always love the super Internet badasses from warm climates who laugh at notherners for complaining it's too hot at "normal" temps. I'm willing to bet SoCal doesn't hit -30. Your body is used to one small temperature range all year, our range swings wildly and we have to cope with both extremes. Nah, but go ahead and laugh when 80F is considered hot. We laugh in our tank tops and shorts when you guys say 50F is cold.
    - tomc1985 8y ago
      And if this were 'eight low-tech ways to keep warm during snowpocalypse' then you could be a super internet badass too and brag about how we're such big babies about -30
    - sundvor 8y ago
      I did a crit bike race in Melbourne in ~42c a few years back; it's amazing what you can get conditioned to. I did put electrolytes in my hydration though.. I went back to the Norwegian summer following the summer of Black Saturday in 2009, where we got a few 46c days. That was a shocking summer even by Australian standards. When I got to Norway it was around 35c - unusually hot for them; my family really couldn't handle it. I just found it mild and pleasant... they all looked at me weird. The reverse was true when I moved to Australia many years before that. Arriving in June, coming straight out of the Norway winter I couldn't understand why Melburnians were complaining so much .. to me the "winter" felt hot! Of course I also complained that they should close the windows in the office because of the road noise, only to discover that double glazed windows aren't standard everywhere. They really don't know how to build houses here. I've seen below freezing point temps riding to work now so they really ought to introduce some proper building codes ... it's just sad how much energy is wasted pumping heat through the metre wide gaps under the main doors. Really, Australian builders have NFI about energy.
    - s0rce 8y ago
      Gah, Chicago was fun with -30F in the winter and easily 90+ in the summer. I'll take my Bay Area weather now, 45-85 is nice. Although, I still go camping in the mountains and sleep outside down to 15F whenever I can.
  - jbattle 8y ago
    Humidity
- goda90 8y ago
  23C??? I keep my AC set to that temperature in the US Midwest.
  - etblg 8y ago
    Living around the great lakes builds character. Cold winters, hot summers, lots of construction
    - BenjiWiebe 8y ago
      Central Kansas is Midwest too, and not by the great lakes. Still has crazy temperatures though. Our AC is usually set to 23C also, but I find that too cold when I come inside from 38C weather...
- aghillo 8y ago
  Except it doesn’t of course https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/heat-health/#?tab=heatHealth https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/heat-health/#?ta...
  - ItsMe000001 8y ago
    It's 30 °C which is still ridiculous to be called a "heat wave" from the point of view of most humans on this planet. And 15 °C overnight is considered "too warm", really? > These thresholds vary by region, but an average threshold temperature is 30 °C by day and 15 °C overnight for at least two consecutive days. As a German, I would say anything over 38 °C during the day and over 20 °C overnight is a "heat wave", and I think a lot of people down south, maybe most humans on this planet, may not consider this too warm. I remember visiting the Emirates for a week during summer... or working in the kitchen of a summer camp for disabled people in Oakhurst, New Jersey during the summer, without an AC in my room. The camp's kitchen's giant refrigerator room was a favorite meeting place for anyone who had access. The only way to sleep was with a fan running at full speed blowing right at me. Maybe that experience shifted my view of what a "heat wave" is. Oh, and in the Emirates they have "cooled swimming pools". I thought it was just a joke, but no, they really artificially cool the water of their swimming pools. I went into the Gulf water - for half a minute, then I went straight into the cooled swimming pool that I had scoffed at. Having grown up in East Germany and only knowing the Baltic I never knew that the sea could ever be too warm even to enter for more than a minute. Yesterday or the day before, reading UK news (BBC or The Guardian) as I often do, I saw the announcement of the "heat wave" and the warning of temperatures over 30 °C(!) and thought exactly the same as OP, even if he got the exact number wrong.
    - ubernostrum 8y ago
      And 15 °C overnight is considered "too warm", really? In some places, buildings are designed on the assumption that temperatures at night will be significantly cooler, and give the building an opportunity to shed heat collected during the day. When that assumption is violated, the building remains hot and continues getting hotter each day, which is dangerous to people inside.
- ThePadawan 8y ago
  I recall there being unique reasons of a general lack of insulation and/or circulation built into UK housing, since that value seems ridiculously low. I even found https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/711503/Heatwave_plan_for_England_2018.pdf https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/... (p. 40/41) to corroborate the numbers somewhat.
projectramo 8y ago
Has no one seen Scorsese's Gatsby? You take ice, put it in front of the fan, and let the fan blow on you combining several of these low-tech ways to keep cool.
- ctrl-j 8y ago
  And then your freezer turns on and dumps a bunch more heat into your environment. Better only use store bought ice for this trick.
  - SketchySeaBeast 8y ago
    But then you're having THEM dump the heat into your environment, doubly so if you have to burn dinosaurs to get there and are expelling a bunch of green house gases. Think of your neighbourhood!
  - DoofusOfDeath 8y ago
    I wonder how much we'd benefit from having seasonal control over where electrical appliances send their waste heat: For example: - ovens: vent outside on hot days, inside on cold days. - clothes driers: vent outside on hot days, and on warm days either (a) vent inside through a filter or (b) send the exhaust through an indoor heat-exchanger before venting. - refrigerators: cooling coils cooled with indoor air on cold days, outdoor air on hot days.
    - simonblack 8y ago
      "- clothes driers: vent outside on hot days, and on warm days ... send the exhaust through an indoor heat-exchanger before venting." We live in the tropics and do not have anywhere to hang clothing to dry. We use a heat-pump dryer which heats the air on the 'hot' side then through the clothes and then circulates the now-moist air through the 'cold' side which removes the excess heat and condenses the water vapour. The same air then goes through the cycle all over again. That means no huge amount of hot, wet air escaping into an already hot house which needs to be either vented or cooled. And because the energy used in heating the air is not thrown away by venting it, but is recaptured by the 'cold' side, the dryer is cheaper to run.
RcouF1uZ4gsC 8y ago
The solution to keeping cool indoors is air-conditioning. Given the way we are (not) curtailing our carbon emissions, the world of the future is going to be warmer than it is now with more frequent heat waves. Air conditioning will literally save lives. We need to get the infrastructure and economy in large portions of the world to the point where the vast majority of the population will be able to afford air conditioning and the infrastructure supports air conditioners running all the time.
- oldcynic 8y ago
  Even on the equator traditional approaches are nicer than air con - not least because AC dries the air so uncomfortably. I'm the one who turns the hotel air con off, opens a window and turns the fan on. :) If we really get the vast majority of the world using air con we may as well get them to power their homes by diesel generators 24/7 too and be done with the planet, environment and any claims to care for it.
  - DoofusOfDeath 8y ago
    > Even on the equator traditional approaches are nicer than air con - not least because AC dries the air so uncomfortably. Where I live, the summers are muggy. Having ACs double as dehumidifiers is usually a blessing. OTOH, when I'm at hotels in the SF Bay area, the AC dries the air out so much that I often shut it off at night, choosing the lesser of two evils.
  - sumedh 8y ago
    > If we really get the vast majority of the world using air con Let me guess you are not from a region where its hot and humid. That is a deadly combination, your overall efficiency drops with such a combination.
- madengr 8y ago
  Sure, but AC will just cause more carbon emissions.
- syntaxing 8y ago
  Not sure how AC is the solution to climate change...Forgetting about the economical barriers (more than 30% of this world doesn't even have running water, let alone AC), you have to pay a price to nature whenever you try to reverse entropy. For every 1kW of energy you remove from your isolated system, you put at least 1.3kW into the global system. This energy has to come from some where like fuel which creates even more carbon emissions. AC will only increase the effects of the heatwave.
781 8y ago
I'll add another one: put solar control film on you sun facing windows. I was surprised by how it turned a greenhouse like room in an acceptable one - it prevents solar heat getting into the room and making it hotter than outside.
- rconti 8y ago
  Heh, I did this to our south-facing windows, only to realize in the peak of summer the sun is too high and hits the roof anyway. During lower sun angle times of year, it does help reject heat though.
barking 8y ago
“If you are cold, tea will warm you; if you are too heated, it will cool you; If you are depressed, it will cheer you; If you are excited, it will calm you.” --Gladstone
MrBuddyCasino 8y ago
Or you could be cool like whitequark and install an industrial AC for ~100$ with All The Watts: https://twitter.com/whitequark/status/1010824530145759232?s=21 https://twitter.com/whitequark/status/1010824530145759232?s=...
- chrismartin 8y ago
  "All the watts"? Just because a fancoil can dissipate 45 kW doesn't mean there aren't limitations elsewhere in the system (e.g. the compressor can only pump that much coolant around). The Twitter thread mentions nothing about the compressor..
Panino 8y ago
> Lukewarm showers I think this is personal. Ice cold showers help me immensely and consistently in multiple climates. My wife (originally from another country) prefers to take hot showers. Although that sounds awful, if I feel her skin afterward, it's cool to the touch, so I know it works for her. So I of course tried it and it was a nightmare. Never again. Where I live it was 40C/105F yesterday and we don't have air conditioning. It's actually not bad when you have a strategy in place. In college I lived on the 10th floor of concrete building that also lacked air conditioning. I think the list in this article is good mainly for short term relief. It's also optimized for situations that aren't very applicable to most of its readers. In France, it's standard for windows to have white exterior shutters that both repel sunlight and prevent it from entering a home through the window. They are controlled easily from a handle indoors next to the window. This should be standard in homes and buildings worldwide. If you prevent heat from entering in the first place then you can greatly reduce the "need" to use air conditioning. I can personally attest to how effective they are. Simply opening the windows at night helps a lot since where we live it gets cool enough. Whole house fans (run in the early morning or late evening), ceiling fans, and cool drinks are enough to keep me comfortable indoors no matter the temperature.
- davidw 8y ago
  > In France, it's standard for windows to have white exterior shutters that both repel sunlight and prevent it from entering a home through the window. Italy too, although in most newer places, they have the roll-down ones -they're fantastic! On the other hand, the idea of mosquito netting hasn't caught on, which is bizarre. https://blog.therealitaly.com/2007/08/09/window-technology/ https://blog.therealitaly.com/2007/08/09/window-technology/
  - Panino 8y ago
    Yes, that's the kind France has, rolling shutters. And like the article says, they're awesome for blocking out light and helping you sleep. I'd bet they also at least slightly reduce noise. Unfortunately I can't install rolling shutters on my windows because the gap between the top of the window and the roof outcrop is too short, and existing products are just way overpriced anyway since it's such a niche product. Maybe we'll make something ourselves that produces the same effect. I think exterior rolling shutters and white rooftops are the two most effective changes we can make.
ProfessorLayton 8y ago
Also: Add attic insulation, which is surprisingly uncommon in older Bay Area houses! Adding insulation is particularly cheap compared to the actual cost of the house, and is something one doesn’t necessarily need to hire a contractor for.
- rconti 8y ago
  Our bay area home has tremendous southern exposure. Thankfully the attic is insulated, but I really wish we had gables so it would be easier to install a whole house fan. The house itself rarely breaks 80 but I have to use fans in the windows to cool it off at night; I can only imagine how much cooler the house would be if it wasn't (say) 120f in the attic.
  - blacksmith_tb 8y ago
    Solar-powered attic fans might help (the southern exposure would let them generate plenty of power). Light-blocking shades on the outside of the south-facing / west-facing windows likely would help, too.
tiatia123 8y ago
"Wear wet clothes" Oh Man, when it is hot I love go sleep and use a wet towel as a blanket. Girls hate it.
izzydata 8y ago
It's been about 95f-100f in Kansas lately and my AC unit has been dead. I've resorted to keeping my tub full and taking a dip every half hour and letting myself air dry. I also haven't worn clothes at home for awhile.
goda90 8y ago
A lot of these techniques lose effectiveness at higher humidity. Eventually water and sweat evaporation can't keep up and you're just moist and hot instead of hot.
- tootie 8y ago
  NYC was pretty brutal today. 35C/99F and high humidity. Shade has no effect. The thing that works for me is to walk slow and think cool thoughts.
crishoj 8y ago
Being bare-footed (as opposed to wearing socks) also makes a huge difference. Source: Living in South East Asia for years.
scotty79 8y ago
I think fan on the face helps not only with feeling cooler but with actually removing heat from the body. I read somewhere that there is a quirk in human circulatory system that makes blood that go to the brain go through face first to cool it down. This is probably some adaptation to long distance running. I imagine that there might be some additional adaptation that increase efficiency of face as a radiator.
- barking 8y ago
  I don't think this is true. Blood to the face is supplied by branches of the carotid arteries but all blood that goes to the face will return to the heart then the lungs and then the heart again before going anywhere else.
  - scotty79 8y ago
    I can't find the original article but there's something about brain cooling by the veins of the face: https://biology.stackexchange.com/questions/31566/how-does-the-brain-cool-itself https://biology.stackexchange.com/questions/31566/how-does-t... Also there is some theoretical danger associated with the setup of how blood is supplied to the brain: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face
    - barking 8y ago
      I'd never heard of this before. I had read that it is possible for infection from the face and upper jaw to track to the the brain, so maybe there is some venous return from the face via the brain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face
cmarschner 8y ago
Missing: green tea with nana mint, as used in Morocco. Opens the blood vessels.
hansthehorse 8y ago
Fishing offshore in the summer here in Florida a wet hat is traditional, at least in my circle.
bungie4 8y ago
It was my undertanding that the Bedouin wore full body clothes to SLOW evaporation. In the desert, your sweat evaporates to fast (because of the near 0 ambient humidity) not giving it enough time to pull heat out of your body. Thus, making you even hotter. I've experienced this very thing riding a motorcycle through Arizona. Man, it takes some real willpower, but gearing up is what is required when the temps go over about 85F. Just don't stop! Tip. On a motorcycle, wet your shirt. Zip up your coat. Unzip your wrist cuffs. This slows down the airflow giving time for the water to evaporate and cool you, while providing an intake and exhaust. You will be amazed at how well this works. You can actually regulate the temperature (air flow) by opening or closing the zipper by your neck. This will not work in areas with high humidity like the deep south.
- cfadvan 8y ago
  I think they wear it to protect their skin from the sun first and foremost, and the choice of fabric is then designed to alllow for good air circulation and evaporation. At least, that’s the point during the day, but it’s worth remembering that it can and does get damned cold at night, and the same garment works well then too. From a purely physical standpoint, If the sweat is evaporating from your skin, it is that action which moves heat, not the length of time the liquid stays on your skin. It’s a matter of the enthalpy of evaporation, so a high rate of evaporation can only be a good thing. A good light fabric to protect you from sunstroke and dust, breathable to allow for (ideally moderate) perspiration to evaporate rather than drench the fabric, and then the whole thing works to keep you warm at night. If you’re constantly on the move, it’s pretty efficient!
- dharmab 8y ago
  I have a Cordura AFT riding jacket that is fully armored but feels like wearing a T-shirt in terms of airflow. Worth every penny.
- s0rce 8y ago
  Yes, while hiking in dry hot climates I wear long sleeves and long pants, partly to keep the sun off but it also improves your water economy. Less water will be lost and you don't need to drink as much.
onychomys 8y ago
That is a super cute orangutan in the article.
AdmiralAsshat 8y ago
Can anyone speak to the advice I received years ago (on move-in day at a college dorm with no AC) that two box fans--one pointed outward and one pointed inward--would be more effective than having them both aimed inward? Supposedly helps create circulation, but, I'm not sure I buy it.
- JCFalkenberg 8y ago
  Anecdotally, it absolutely does - I had chalked it up to increased airflow, similar to optimizing airflow in a computer case - the exit fan position optimized to remove hotter air, the inlet pumping in cooler air wherever I'm sitting.
- freehunter 8y ago
  Yes. One box fan pointed in is just pushing against a wall of air that has nowhere to go. It's completely possible for a fan to be spinning but move essentially no air. One pointed in and one pointed out gives that wall of air somewhere to go, which means the fan pointed in is able to push more air in.
- lozaning 8y ago
  If you think of your room like a rack mount server it totally makes sense. I've never seen a server with fans pulling air in from the front AND the back, only only ever in one side and out the other. You want to get air in, have it absorb heat, and then get rid of it. Having positive pressure in your room or server just results in high pressure warm air, not a cooling effect.
  - schiffern 8y ago
    >If you think of your room like a rack mount server it totally makes sense. I'm not sure how good that analogy is. Generally a box fan is loosely fit in the window and has an open interior with no shroud, as opposed to server fans which are tightly mounted to a fan-sized hole and have a close-fitting shroud around the blades. This has a big effect on the optimum configuration, because the box fan's suboptimal design happens to be more suboptimal at sucking than blowing (while a server fan is good at both, being closer to an ideal actuator disk) I have observed that, in general, a box fans work better at blowing out a window than sucking in. At first this confused me. Why should this be the case, given time reversal symmetry? Here's my hypothesis. The fan produces a high velocity jet of outlet air, but sucks in any air nearby (that's why you can blow paper across the room, but you can't suck paper across the room, another seeming violation of time symmetry). Since the fan is located nearer to the interior of the window, it can either A) blow an outward jet that maintains its momentum through the window, or B) attempt to suck an inward jet of air through the window. That doesn't work, so it mainly intakes warm interior air, resulting in mostly in-room recirculation with very little flow through the window and very little static pressure created to drive whole-house airflow. Think I'm full of shit? Good, then your skepticism is working! Don't take my word for it. Anyone can test this using a phone with a barometer. Put the phone on a table (for constant altitude) in the room with the fan. Compare the pressure drop (exhaust fan on vs. off) with the pressure rise (intake fan on vs. off). If I'm right, the absolute magnitude of the pressure drop should be greater than the pressure rise, indicating greater airflow in an exhausting configuration. If you only have one fan, definitely have it pointed out, not in. The moving column of cold air cools the entire place, not just a single room. Also this arrangement keeps the noisy fan in a separate room, while you enjoy the cool air quietly wafting through a nearby open window. I've transformed many friend's apartments from sweltering to comfortable by implementing this tip. TL;DR blow out, not in.
oftenwrong 8y ago
>Standing under a freezing shower might sound like the quickest way to bring your temperature down. >But your body will react to a dramatic change like this by trying to preserve heat. >"If I'm hot and I go under a cold shower, I'll shut down the blood flow to the skin and trap the heat inside me rather than let it escape," says Tipton. >As a result, he says, it's better to use water that is in the 20s Celsius than water that is in the 10s. >"It's better to have a warmer shower that is cool enough to lower the deep body temperature but is warm enough to allow the blood to the surface of the skin." Is there any proof of this? Even if the body makes adjustments in an attempt to mitigate heat loss, I have doubts that these adjustments manage to make lukewarm water more effective at cooling than near-freezing water. That seems backwards, but maybe it is just contrary to my intuition. If 20 degree water is more effective at cooling than 10 degree water, how does 5 degree water compare? What if you shower in -10 degree liquid? Is 25 degree water even more cooling than 20 degree water because it is even closer to normal body temperature? I would like to see an experiment.
- trhway 8y ago
  there are a lot of proof and research on this, just google and pick for your taste. In general you want to (step 1.) transfer heat from inside the body to the skin/lungs and (step 2.) reject it from the skin/lungs into environment. While definitely improving step 2. the very cold water may cause blood vessels constriction and thus significantly worsen the step 1. The same machinery is behind the frostbites - cold environment causing blood vessels constriction and thus lower heat delivery to the skin, toes, fingers. On related note - reading recommendations for when for example a dog gets a heat stroke, you will find that ice or very cold water straight onto the belly may worsen the situation for exactly that reason. Also recommendations to in particular cool the head - pretty straight, not that much depending on blood vessels state, heat transfer from the brain preventing/slowing the damage. > What if you shower in -10 degree liquid? that takes blood flow mechanics play even further - you can get a heart attack by quick changes in blood flow caused by the blood vessels constriction (or quick expansion after that if you quickly get back into the warm environment - there was that story about a ship crew rescued from cold ocean water only to all drop dead from heart attack when they were immediately walked into a warm room on the rescue ship). On the good note - being a Russian i like and frequently do hot sauna until my heart can't take it anymore and jump into the cold water (or into the snow or river ice hole back then in Russia) straight after that - great fun enjoyed responsibly :) - the key here is having hot sauna to really expand your vessels so they wouldn't get immediately shut down by the cold water/ice and staying open they provide for efficient heat transfer.
dba7dba 8y ago
I grew up with no AC in a location that got very warm/humid in summer. A fan was it. Now I have a family member who grew up in Hawaii and consequently with AC turned on alot. When it gets a little warm/humid and no AC is available, it's absolutely miserable for her. But I'm just fine. I mean it's miserable but I can pretty much function normally. She can't.
vanderZwan 8y ago
If you prevent heat from entering your house, you don't have to get rid of it either. The last two days I hung up two wet towels as "curtains" on the outside of (open, curtainless) window in the living room, which face the sun during the day. They blocked the sun, and air coming into the house through the window was notably colder. They dried out so quickly that I had to soak them again twice during the day. Given how much energy it takes to evaporate all that water I think that little hack got rid of a lot of heat.
- jaggederest 8y ago
  This is commonly used in the southwestern deserts. It's called a swamp cooler. It simply evaporates water and the heat of vaporization causes the air to cool to the dew point.
  - vanderZwan 8y ago
    > the southwestern deserts. I live in a place with abundant water, but I would expect this approach to be kind of "frowned upon" in a desert. Isn't saving water a high priority in those environments?
- nategri 8y ago
  It looks terrible-slash-suspicious but I've found covering windows with aluminum foil to be an effective technique. It's cheap, reflective, and optically thick.
  - vanderZwan 8y ago
    Yeah, that would work even better at deflecting heat - there's a reason chemists and physicists use simple aluminium foil as make-shift insulators (might also block some the neighbour's WiFi signal, boosting the reception of your own, but that's a bit of a tin-foil hypothesis :P). You'd miss on the evaporation cooling though. Maybe a two-layer approach would work best of all low-tech hacks! :) In the past, when I was living in an apartment with a wider windowsill, I used to put a reflector made from cardboard covered with aluminium foil on the inside and sun-hungry plants inbetween, creating a miniature greenhouse. Open windows were a requirement of course, because it would still trap heat otherwise.
wizardforhire 8y ago
If the air is dry enough, swamps coolers are cheap and easy to build. I haven’t had the chance to build a liquid desiccant system yet but it seems the tech has advanced considerably since I last surveyed 15 years ago. http://www.ailr.com/liquid-desiccant/ld-tutorial/ http://www.ailr.com/liquid-desiccant/ld-tutorial/ http://ashraemadison.org/downloads/Meeting_Presentations/jan_2014_tech_presentation.pdf http://ashraemadison.org/downloads/Meeting_Presentations/jan... https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/24688.pdf https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/24688.pdf https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/56437-1.pdf https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/56437-1.pdf
timwaagh 8y ago
number 9: eat less and dont be fat. your internal heater is your worst enemy. if you eat little, your body starts to lower its internal temperature and this will help you cool down. fat acts as an insulator so it is helpful to not be fat. i've been on a diet since christmas and my only problem is staying warm right now. i want it to be over 30 otherwise i have to layer up.
thatfrenchguy 8y ago
They forgot « put your feet in ice », it works super well.
analog31 8y ago
I suppose one idea is to adjust your work hours, so your employer is keeping you cool during the hottest part of the day. They're cooling the place anyway, so I doubt it costs them much to have you there. And maybe cooling a bunch of people in one place is cheaper than cooling a bunch of nearly empty houses. In contrast, I ride my bike to work, so I start super early in the summer in order to avoid getting drenched in sweat. The problem here in the Midwest is that it gets cool at night, but with virtually no wind, so we use some window fans to bring the cooler air into the house.
DenisM 8y ago
I always wear a bandana when tourusting about in hot weather. Make it wet from a water bottle and put it on my neck for a bit of instant continuous cooling. Put it on the head, spreading around the forehead for even more cooling. Put it on my wrist and then occasionally wipe the forehead for occasional / no cooling. Another “trick” is cardiovascular health. I was miserable in heat for some time but thing got a lot better after I picked up cycling - 32 c humid heat produced no discomfort (apart from sweat).
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golemiprague 8y ago
The problem in the UK is that they build their houses to preserve heat for the cold and rain so even a mild hot day is horrible if you stay inside. The worst thing is that in Australia they copied the UK style of building in old houses, like windows that only open at the bottom or where half of it can't open at all and no balconies.
johnwatson11218 8y ago
Phoenix resident here. I find that in summer I need to limit my caffeine and get plenty of sleep. I buy Nuun electrolyte tables for runners and drink them all day in my water while just sitting in the office. Get your AC looked at, make sure your duct work is not leaking any air. It is kind of expensive but I installed a mini-split AC just for my bedroom and it is incredible. I highly recommend a mini-split (or ductless ) AC for the room you sleep in.
malloryerik 8y ago
In humid heat a simple towel to remove sweat works surprisingly well.
virmundi 8y ago
I live in Florida. My AC unit in my office is out. That’s on the second floor of my home. A beach towel sarong and no underwear. Modesty and cool.
b1daly 8y ago
I’m always annoyed by the waste of cooling (or heating) a whole building when what we really need is just our body temperature to regulated. My thoughts drift towards clothing that has cooling built in, but become my usual muddle of 1/1000th baked ideas. But try putting a reusable cooling pack right on your body, it’s pretty great when you’re overheating. Back mounted compressor that runs cooling pipes to your underwear, that could be amazing!
- nbsd4life 8y ago
  look up 'cooling vest'
mabbo 8y ago
I was in Phoenix Arizona this week for work and was amazed at the effectiveness of evaporation cooling. Bars and restaurants spray water mist into the air near their front door. The air is so dry that the water evaporates near-instantly (the ground doesn't even get wet under it!). Evaporating water pulls heat from the air, and suddenly 42C turns into 28C. It's simple, low-tech, and effective.
- nerdwaller 8y ago
  Isn’t it amazing disembarking the plane into AZ? Instantly it’s 98F+ on the jetway, and the plane absorbs a large portion of that as they ask you to close the window shades on landing. I don’t quite understand how one can live there if they like being outside at all. Perhaps enough months of the year make it worth it? It is, however, a nice place to visit from a cultural standpoint.
- cup-of-tea 8y ago
  Yeah, evaporating air conditioning units are simple and cheap to buy and run as well. It doesn't work if the air is already humid, though.
YeGoblynQueenne 8y ago
And don't forget: if you have an air-conditioning unit, either close the windows, or turn the unit off (and keep the windows open). Unless you're trying to chill the universe, that is.

Interesting approach from Munich, my home town: district cooling, i.e. using cold water from inner city streams and distributing the cold to shops and offices, so they don't have to use air conditioning. "produces far fewer CO2 emissions and reduces primary energy costs by around half": https://www.swm.de/english/m-fernwaerme/m-fernkaelte.html https://www.swm.de/english/m-fernwaerme/m-fernkaelte.html

fmsf 8y ago

Not trying to sound salty, but just for general reference. A heatwave in the UK starts somewhere around 23C. At 20C they are already anouncing in the stations for people to carry water at all times.

tomc1985 8y ago
That's a normal day in SoCal... one of those things I can't help but chuckle at. 73 F (23 C) is like my ideal temperature!
- stefan_ 8y ago
  The average SoCal american probably spends about 15 minutes outside temperature controlled environments on any given day.
- barking 8y ago
  it's been over thirty yesterday and today, it's virtually record temperatures for us and almost no one has air conditioning or even much in the way of fans.
  - onetimemanytime 8y ago
    Fans...you buy them and they'll probably last you 40 yrs given a 2-3 day use a year :). Probably not worth doing many home renovations to deal with the heat, unless it happens yearly. Just suck it up, 30c is manageable, even if you're used to it. any humidity? That is the worst
    - freehunter 8y ago
      >Just suck it up, 30c is manageable You realize they put out the warnings for a reason, right? Like... people die when temperatures get that hot in northern regions. People actually die. But nah, just suck it up right? Suck it up granny, quit yer dying over there and just buy a fan!
- Fukkaudeku 8y ago
  Your houses are also made of tracing paper, which don't retain any heat, and have air con. Our houses are made of brick and insulation and are practically giant heatsinks. Being 23-25C inside and outside and absolutely no way to cool off is hell.
  - barrkel 8y ago
    23C inside is comfy. Our office AC is set to 21 and I need to wear a hoodie indoors due to the AC draught. It starts getting unpleasant around 26C. At home, however, it's 31C on the second floor of our townhouse, and we're investigating installing AC.
  - tomc1985 8y ago
    Tracing paper? That's Japan, dude
  - csomar 8y ago
    > Being 23-25C inside and outside and absolutely no way to cool off is hell. You are discounting the personal factor. I'm 28C inside and 36C outside. Pretty comfy for me and not running Air conditioner yet. In fact I set the Aircon at 20-23 most of the time. A hot day would be 40+ outside.
- freehunter 8y ago
  I always love the super Internet badasses from warm climates who laugh at notherners for complaining it's too hot at "normal" temps. I'm willing to bet SoCal doesn't hit -30. Your body is used to one small temperature range all year, our range swings wildly and we have to cope with both extremes. Nah, but go ahead and laugh when 80F is considered hot. We laugh in our tank tops and shorts when you guys say 50F is cold.
  - tomc1985 8y ago
    And if this were 'eight low-tech ways to keep warm during snowpocalypse' then you could be a super internet badass too and brag about how we're such big babies about -30
  - sundvor 8y ago
    I did a crit bike race in Melbourne in ~42c a few years back; it's amazing what you can get conditioned to. I did put electrolytes in my hydration though.. I went back to the Norwegian summer following the summer of Black Saturday in 2009, where we got a few 46c days. That was a shocking summer even by Australian standards. When I got to Norway it was around 35c - unusually hot for them; my family really couldn't handle it. I just found it mild and pleasant... they all looked at me weird. The reverse was true when I moved to Australia many years before that. Arriving in June, coming straight out of the Norway winter I couldn't understand why Melburnians were complaining so much .. to me the "winter" felt hot! Of course I also complained that they should close the windows in the office because of the road noise, only to discover that double glazed windows aren't standard everywhere. They really don't know how to build houses here. I've seen below freezing point temps riding to work now so they really ought to introduce some proper building codes ... it's just sad how much energy is wasted pumping heat through the metre wide gaps under the main doors. Really, Australian builders have NFI about energy.
  - s0rce 8y ago
    Gah, Chicago was fun with -30F in the winter and easily 90+ in the summer. I'll take my Bay Area weather now, 45-85 is nice. Although, I still go camping in the mountains and sleep outside down to 15F whenever I can.
- jbattle 8y ago
  Humidity
goda90 8y ago
23C??? I keep my AC set to that temperature in the US Midwest.
- etblg 8y ago
  Living around the great lakes builds character. Cold winters, hot summers, lots of construction
  - BenjiWiebe 8y ago
    Central Kansas is Midwest too, and not by the great lakes. Still has crazy temperatures though. Our AC is usually set to 23C also, but I find that too cold when I come inside from 38C weather...
aghillo 8y ago
Except it doesn’t of course https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/heat-health/#?tab=heatHealth https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/heat-health/#?ta...
- ItsMe000001 8y ago
  It's 30 °C which is still ridiculous to be called a "heat wave" from the point of view of most humans on this planet. And 15 °C overnight is considered "too warm", really? > These thresholds vary by region, but an average threshold temperature is 30 °C by day and 15 °C overnight for at least two consecutive days. As a German, I would say anything over 38 °C during the day and over 20 °C overnight is a "heat wave", and I think a lot of people down south, maybe most humans on this planet, may not consider this too warm. I remember visiting the Emirates for a week during summer... or working in the kitchen of a summer camp for disabled people in Oakhurst, New Jersey during the summer, without an AC in my room. The camp's kitchen's giant refrigerator room was a favorite meeting place for anyone who had access. The only way to sleep was with a fan running at full speed blowing right at me. Maybe that experience shifted my view of what a "heat wave" is. Oh, and in the Emirates they have "cooled swimming pools". I thought it was just a joke, but no, they really artificially cool the water of their swimming pools. I went into the Gulf water - for half a minute, then I went straight into the cooled swimming pool that I had scoffed at. Having grown up in East Germany and only knowing the Baltic I never knew that the sea could ever be too warm even to enter for more than a minute. Yesterday or the day before, reading UK news (BBC or The Guardian) as I often do, I saw the announcement of the "heat wave" and the warning of temperatures over 30 °C(!) and thought exactly the same as OP, even if he got the exact number wrong.
  - ubernostrum 8y ago
    And 15 °C overnight is considered "too warm", really? In some places, buildings are designed on the assumption that temperatures at night will be significantly cooler, and give the building an opportunity to shed heat collected during the day. When that assumption is violated, the building remains hot and continues getting hotter each day, which is dangerous to people inside.
ThePadawan 8y ago
I recall there being unique reasons of a general lack of insulation and/or circulation built into UK housing, since that value seems ridiculously low. I even found https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/711503/Heatwave_plan_for_England_2018.pdf https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/... (p. 40/41) to corroborate the numbers somewhat.

projectramo 8y ago

Has no one seen Scorsese's Gatsby? You take ice, put it in front of the fan, and let the fan blow on you combining several of these low-tech ways to keep cool.

ctrl-j 8y ago
And then your freezer turns on and dumps a bunch more heat into your environment. Better only use store bought ice for this trick.
- SketchySeaBeast 8y ago
  But then you're having THEM dump the heat into your environment, doubly so if you have to burn dinosaurs to get there and are expelling a bunch of green house gases. Think of your neighbourhood!
- DoofusOfDeath 8y ago
  I wonder how much we'd benefit from having seasonal control over where electrical appliances send their waste heat: For example: - ovens: vent outside on hot days, inside on cold days. - clothes driers: vent outside on hot days, and on warm days either (a) vent inside through a filter or (b) send the exhaust through an indoor heat-exchanger before venting. - refrigerators: cooling coils cooled with indoor air on cold days, outdoor air on hot days.
  - simonblack 8y ago
    "- clothes driers: vent outside on hot days, and on warm days ... send the exhaust through an indoor heat-exchanger before venting." We live in the tropics and do not have anywhere to hang clothing to dry. We use a heat-pump dryer which heats the air on the 'hot' side then through the clothes and then circulates the now-moist air through the 'cold' side which removes the excess heat and condenses the water vapour. The same air then goes through the cycle all over again. That means no huge amount of hot, wet air escaping into an already hot house which needs to be either vented or cooled. And because the energy used in heating the air is not thrown away by venting it, but is recaptured by the 'cold' side, the dryer is cheaper to run.

RcouF1uZ4gsC 8y ago

The solution to keeping cool indoors is air-conditioning. Given the way we are (not) curtailing our carbon emissions, the world of the future is going to be warmer than it is now with more frequent heat waves. Air conditioning will literally save lives. We need to get the infrastructure and economy in large portions of the world to the point where the vast majority of the population will be able to afford air conditioning and the infrastructure supports air conditioners running all the time.

oldcynic 8y ago
Even on the equator traditional approaches are nicer than air con - not least because AC dries the air so uncomfortably. I'm the one who turns the hotel air con off, opens a window and turns the fan on. :) If we really get the vast majority of the world using air con we may as well get them to power their homes by diesel generators 24/7 too and be done with the planet, environment and any claims to care for it.
- DoofusOfDeath 8y ago
  > Even on the equator traditional approaches are nicer than air con - not least because AC dries the air so uncomfortably. Where I live, the summers are muggy. Having ACs double as dehumidifiers is usually a blessing. OTOH, when I'm at hotels in the SF Bay area, the AC dries the air out so much that I often shut it off at night, choosing the lesser of two evils.
- sumedh 8y ago
  > If we really get the vast majority of the world using air con Let me guess you are not from a region where its hot and humid. That is a deadly combination, your overall efficiency drops with such a combination.
madengr 8y ago
Sure, but AC will just cause more carbon emissions.
syntaxing 8y ago
Not sure how AC is the solution to climate change...Forgetting about the economical barriers (more than 30% of this world doesn't even have running water, let alone AC), you have to pay a price to nature whenever you try to reverse entropy. For every 1kW of energy you remove from your isolated system, you put at least 1.3kW into the global system. This energy has to come from some where like fuel which creates even more carbon emissions. AC will only increase the effects of the heatwave.

781 8y ago

I'll add another one: put solar control film on you sun facing windows. I was surprised by how it turned a greenhouse like room in an acceptable one - it prevents solar heat getting into the room and making it hotter than outside.

rconti 8y ago
Heh, I did this to our south-facing windows, only to realize in the peak of summer the sun is too high and hits the roof anyway. During lower sun angle times of year, it does help reject heat though.

barking 8y ago

“If you are cold, tea will warm you; if you are too heated, it will cool you; If you are depressed, it will cheer you; If you are excited, it will calm you.” --Gladstone

MrBuddyCasino 8y ago

Or you could be cool like whitequark and install an industrial AC for ~100$ with All The Watts: https://twitter.com/whitequark/status/1010824530145759232?s=21 https://twitter.com/whitequark/status/1010824530145759232?s=...

chrismartin 8y ago
"All the watts"? Just because a fancoil can dissipate 45 kW doesn't mean there aren't limitations elsewhere in the system (e.g. the compressor can only pump that much coolant around). The Twitter thread mentions nothing about the compressor..

Panino 8y ago

> Lukewarm showers I think this is personal. Ice cold showers help me immensely and consistently in multiple climates. My wife (originally from another country) prefers to take hot showers. Although that sounds awful, if I feel her skin afterward, it's cool to the touch, so I know it works for her. So I of course tried it and it was a nightmare. Never again. Where I live it was 40C/105F yesterday and we don't have air conditioning. It's actually not bad when you have a strategy in place. In college I lived on the 10th floor of concrete building that also lacked air conditioning. I think the list in this article is good mainly for short term relief. It's also optimized for situations that aren't very applicable to most of its readers. In France, it's standard for windows to have white exterior shutters that both repel sunlight and prevent it from entering a home through the window. They are controlled easily from a handle indoors next to the window. This should be standard in homes and buildings worldwide. If you prevent heat from entering in the first place then you can greatly reduce the "need" to use air conditioning. I can personally attest to how effective they are. Simply opening the windows at night helps a lot since where we live it gets cool enough. Whole house fans (run in the early morning or late evening), ceiling fans, and cool drinks are enough to keep me comfortable indoors no matter the temperature.

davidw 8y ago
> In France, it's standard for windows to have white exterior shutters that both repel sunlight and prevent it from entering a home through the window. Italy too, although in most newer places, they have the roll-down ones -they're fantastic! On the other hand, the idea of mosquito netting hasn't caught on, which is bizarre. https://blog.therealitaly.com/2007/08/09/window-technology/ https://blog.therealitaly.com/2007/08/09/window-technology/
- Panino 8y ago
  Yes, that's the kind France has, rolling shutters. And like the article says, they're awesome for blocking out light and helping you sleep. I'd bet they also at least slightly reduce noise. Unfortunately I can't install rolling shutters on my windows because the gap between the top of the window and the roof outcrop is too short, and existing products are just way overpriced anyway since it's such a niche product. Maybe we'll make something ourselves that produces the same effect. I think exterior rolling shutters and white rooftops are the two most effective changes we can make.

ProfessorLayton 8y ago

Also: Add attic insulation, which is surprisingly uncommon in older Bay Area houses! Adding insulation is particularly cheap compared to the actual cost of the house, and is something one doesn’t necessarily need to hire a contractor for.

rconti 8y ago
Our bay area home has tremendous southern exposure. Thankfully the attic is insulated, but I really wish we had gables so it would be easier to install a whole house fan. The house itself rarely breaks 80 but I have to use fans in the windows to cool it off at night; I can only imagine how much cooler the house would be if it wasn't (say) 120f in the attic.
- blacksmith_tb 8y ago
  Solar-powered attic fans might help (the southern exposure would let them generate plenty of power). Light-blocking shades on the outside of the south-facing / west-facing windows likely would help, too.

tiatia123 8y ago

"Wear wet clothes" Oh Man, when it is hot I love go sleep and use a wet towel as a blanket. Girls hate it.

izzydata 8y ago

It's been about 95f-100f in Kansas lately and my AC unit has been dead. I've resorted to keeping my tub full and taking a dip every half hour and letting myself air dry. I also haven't worn clothes at home for awhile.

goda90 8y ago

A lot of these techniques lose effectiveness at higher humidity. Eventually water and sweat evaporation can't keep up and you're just moist and hot instead of hot.

tootie 8y ago
NYC was pretty brutal today. 35C/99F and high humidity. Shade has no effect. The thing that works for me is to walk slow and think cool thoughts.

crishoj 8y ago

Being bare-footed (as opposed to wearing socks) also makes a huge difference. Source: Living in South East Asia for years.

scotty79 8y ago

I think fan on the face helps not only with feeling cooler but with actually removing heat from the body. I read somewhere that there is a quirk in human circulatory system that makes blood that go to the brain go through face first to cool it down. This is probably some adaptation to long distance running. I imagine that there might be some additional adaptation that increase efficiency of face as a radiator.

barking 8y ago
I don't think this is true. Blood to the face is supplied by branches of the carotid arteries but all blood that goes to the face will return to the heart then the lungs and then the heart again before going anywhere else.
- scotty79 8y ago
  I can't find the original article but there's something about brain cooling by the veins of the face: https://biology.stackexchange.com/questions/31566/how-does-the-brain-cool-itself https://biology.stackexchange.com/questions/31566/how-does-t... Also there is some theoretical danger associated with the setup of how blood is supplied to the brain: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face
  - barking 8y ago
    I'd never heard of this before. I had read that it is possible for infection from the face and upper jaw to track to the the brain, so maybe there is some venous return from the face via the brain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_triangle_of_the_face

cmarschner 8y ago

Missing: green tea with nana mint, as used in Morocco. Opens the blood vessels.

hansthehorse 8y ago

Fishing offshore in the summer here in Florida a wet hat is traditional, at least in my circle.

bungie4 8y ago

It was my undertanding that the Bedouin wore full body clothes to SLOW evaporation. In the desert, your sweat evaporates to fast (because of the near 0 ambient humidity) not giving it enough time to pull heat out of your body. Thus, making you even hotter. I've experienced this very thing riding a motorcycle through Arizona. Man, it takes some real willpower, but gearing up is what is required when the temps go over about 85F. Just don't stop! Tip. On a motorcycle, wet your shirt. Zip up your coat. Unzip your wrist cuffs. This slows down the airflow giving time for the water to evaporate and cool you, while providing an intake and exhaust. You will be amazed at how well this works. You can actually regulate the temperature (air flow) by opening or closing the zipper by your neck. This will not work in areas with high humidity like the deep south.

cfadvan 8y ago
I think they wear it to protect their skin from the sun first and foremost, and the choice of fabric is then designed to alllow for good air circulation and evaporation. At least, that’s the point during the day, but it’s worth remembering that it can and does get damned cold at night, and the same garment works well then too. From a purely physical standpoint, If the sweat is evaporating from your skin, it is that action which moves heat, not the length of time the liquid stays on your skin. It’s a matter of the enthalpy of evaporation, so a high rate of evaporation can only be a good thing. A good light fabric to protect you from sunstroke and dust, breathable to allow for (ideally moderate) perspiration to evaporate rather than drench the fabric, and then the whole thing works to keep you warm at night. If you’re constantly on the move, it’s pretty efficient!
dharmab 8y ago
I have a Cordura AFT riding jacket that is fully armored but feels like wearing a T-shirt in terms of airflow. Worth every penny.
s0rce 8y ago
Yes, while hiking in dry hot climates I wear long sleeves and long pants, partly to keep the sun off but it also improves your water economy. Less water will be lost and you don't need to drink as much.

onychomys 8y ago

That is a super cute orangutan in the article.

AdmiralAsshat 8y ago

Can anyone speak to the advice I received years ago (on move-in day at a college dorm with no AC) that two box fans--one pointed outward and one pointed inward--would be more effective than having them both aimed inward? Supposedly helps create circulation, but, I'm not sure I buy it.

JCFalkenberg 8y ago
Anecdotally, it absolutely does - I had chalked it up to increased airflow, similar to optimizing airflow in a computer case - the exit fan position optimized to remove hotter air, the inlet pumping in cooler air wherever I'm sitting.
freehunter 8y ago
Yes. One box fan pointed in is just pushing against a wall of air that has nowhere to go. It's completely possible for a fan to be spinning but move essentially no air. One pointed in and one pointed out gives that wall of air somewhere to go, which means the fan pointed in is able to push more air in.
lozaning 8y ago
If you think of your room like a rack mount server it totally makes sense. I've never seen a server with fans pulling air in from the front AND the back, only only ever in one side and out the other. You want to get air in, have it absorb heat, and then get rid of it. Having positive pressure in your room or server just results in high pressure warm air, not a cooling effect.
- schiffern 8y ago
  >If you think of your room like a rack mount server it totally makes sense. I'm not sure how good that analogy is. Generally a box fan is loosely fit in the window and has an open interior with no shroud, as opposed to server fans which are tightly mounted to a fan-sized hole and have a close-fitting shroud around the blades. This has a big effect on the optimum configuration, because the box fan's suboptimal design happens to be more suboptimal at sucking than blowing (while a server fan is good at both, being closer to an ideal actuator disk) I have observed that, in general, a box fans work better at blowing out a window than sucking in. At first this confused me. Why should this be the case, given time reversal symmetry? Here's my hypothesis. The fan produces a high velocity jet of outlet air, but sucks in any air nearby (that's why you can blow paper across the room, but you can't suck paper across the room, another seeming violation of time symmetry). Since the fan is located nearer to the interior of the window, it can either A) blow an outward jet that maintains its momentum through the window, or B) attempt to suck an inward jet of air through the window. That doesn't work, so it mainly intakes warm interior air, resulting in mostly in-room recirculation with very little flow through the window and very little static pressure created to drive whole-house airflow. Think I'm full of shit? Good, then your skepticism is working! Don't take my word for it. Anyone can test this using a phone with a barometer. Put the phone on a table (for constant altitude) in the room with the fan. Compare the pressure drop (exhaust fan on vs. off) with the pressure rise (intake fan on vs. off). If I'm right, the absolute magnitude of the pressure drop should be greater than the pressure rise, indicating greater airflow in an exhausting configuration. If you only have one fan, definitely have it pointed out, not in. The moving column of cold air cools the entire place, not just a single room. Also this arrangement keeps the noisy fan in a separate room, while you enjoy the cool air quietly wafting through a nearby open window. I've transformed many friend's apartments from sweltering to comfortable by implementing this tip. TL;DR blow out, not in.

oftenwrong 8y ago

>Standing under a freezing shower might sound like the quickest way to bring your temperature down. >But your body will react to a dramatic change like this by trying to preserve heat. >"If I'm hot and I go under a cold shower, I'll shut down the blood flow to the skin and trap the heat inside me rather than let it escape," says Tipton. >As a result, he says, it's better to use water that is in the 20s Celsius than water that is in the 10s. >"It's better to have a warmer shower that is cool enough to lower the deep body temperature but is warm enough to allow the blood to the surface of the skin." Is there any proof of this? Even if the body makes adjustments in an attempt to mitigate heat loss, I have doubts that these adjustments manage to make lukewarm water more effective at cooling than near-freezing water. That seems backwards, but maybe it is just contrary to my intuition. If 20 degree water is more effective at cooling than 10 degree water, how does 5 degree water compare? What if you shower in -10 degree liquid? Is 25 degree water even more cooling than 20 degree water because it is even closer to normal body temperature? I would like to see an experiment.

trhway 8y ago
there are a lot of proof and research on this, just google and pick for your taste. In general you want to (step 1.) transfer heat from inside the body to the skin/lungs and (step 2.) reject it from the skin/lungs into environment. While definitely improving step 2. the very cold water may cause blood vessels constriction and thus significantly worsen the step 1. The same machinery is behind the frostbites - cold environment causing blood vessels constriction and thus lower heat delivery to the skin, toes, fingers. On related note - reading recommendations for when for example a dog gets a heat stroke, you will find that ice or very cold water straight onto the belly may worsen the situation for exactly that reason. Also recommendations to in particular cool the head - pretty straight, not that much depending on blood vessels state, heat transfer from the brain preventing/slowing the damage. > What if you shower in -10 degree liquid? that takes blood flow mechanics play even further - you can get a heart attack by quick changes in blood flow caused by the blood vessels constriction (or quick expansion after that if you quickly get back into the warm environment - there was that story about a ship crew rescued from cold ocean water only to all drop dead from heart attack when they were immediately walked into a warm room on the rescue ship). On the good note - being a Russian i like and frequently do hot sauna until my heart can't take it anymore and jump into the cold water (or into the snow or river ice hole back then in Russia) straight after that - great fun enjoyed responsibly :) - the key here is having hot sauna to really expand your vessels so they wouldn't get immediately shut down by the cold water/ice and staying open they provide for efficient heat transfer.

dba7dba 8y ago

I grew up with no AC in a location that got very warm/humid in summer. A fan was it. Now I have a family member who grew up in Hawaii and consequently with AC turned on alot. When it gets a little warm/humid and no AC is available, it's absolutely miserable for her. But I'm just fine. I mean it's miserable but I can pretty much function normally. She can't.

vanderZwan 8y ago

If you prevent heat from entering your house, you don't have to get rid of it either. The last two days I hung up two wet towels as "curtains" on the outside of (open, curtainless) window in the living room, which face the sun during the day. They blocked the sun, and air coming into the house through the window was notably colder. They dried out so quickly that I had to soak them again twice during the day. Given how much energy it takes to evaporate all that water I think that little hack got rid of a lot of heat.

jaggederest 8y ago
This is commonly used in the southwestern deserts. It's called a swamp cooler. It simply evaporates water and the heat of vaporization causes the air to cool to the dew point.
- vanderZwan 8y ago
  > the southwestern deserts. I live in a place with abundant water, but I would expect this approach to be kind of "frowned upon" in a desert. Isn't saving water a high priority in those environments?
nategri 8y ago
It looks terrible-slash-suspicious but I've found covering windows with aluminum foil to be an effective technique. It's cheap, reflective, and optically thick.
- vanderZwan 8y ago
  Yeah, that would work even better at deflecting heat - there's a reason chemists and physicists use simple aluminium foil as make-shift insulators (might also block some the neighbour's WiFi signal, boosting the reception of your own, but that's a bit of a tin-foil hypothesis :P). You'd miss on the evaporation cooling though. Maybe a two-layer approach would work best of all low-tech hacks! :) In the past, when I was living in an apartment with a wider windowsill, I used to put a reflector made from cardboard covered with aluminium foil on the inside and sun-hungry plants inbetween, creating a miniature greenhouse. Open windows were a requirement of course, because it would still trap heat otherwise.

wizardforhire 8y ago

If the air is dry enough, swamps coolers are cheap and easy to build. I haven’t had the chance to build a liquid desiccant system yet but it seems the tech has advanced considerably since I last surveyed 15 years ago. http://www.ailr.com/liquid-desiccant/ld-tutorial/ http://www.ailr.com/liquid-desiccant/ld-tutorial/ http://ashraemadison.org/downloads/Meeting_Presentations/jan_2014_tech_presentation.pdf http://ashraemadison.org/downloads/Meeting_Presentations/jan... https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/24688.pdf https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/24688.pdf https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/56437-1.pdf https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/56437-1.pdf

timwaagh 8y ago

number 9: eat less and dont be fat. your internal heater is your worst enemy. if you eat little, your body starts to lower its internal temperature and this will help you cool down. fat acts as an insulator so it is helpful to not be fat. i've been on a diet since christmas and my only problem is staying warm right now. i want it to be over 30 otherwise i have to layer up.

thatfrenchguy 8y ago

They forgot « put your feet in ice », it works super well.

analog31 8y ago

I suppose one idea is to adjust your work hours, so your employer is keeping you cool during the hottest part of the day. They're cooling the place anyway, so I doubt it costs them much to have you there. And maybe cooling a bunch of people in one place is cheaper than cooling a bunch of nearly empty houses. In contrast, I ride my bike to work, so I start super early in the summer in order to avoid getting drenched in sweat. The problem here in the Midwest is that it gets cool at night, but with virtually no wind, so we use some window fans to bring the cooler air into the house.

DenisM 8y ago

I always wear a bandana when tourusting about in hot weather. Make it wet from a water bottle and put it on my neck for a bit of instant continuous cooling. Put it on the head, spreading around the forehead for even more cooling. Put it on my wrist and then occasionally wipe the forehead for occasional / no cooling. Another “trick” is cardiovascular health. I was miserable in heat for some time but thing got a lot better after I picked up cycling - 32 c humid heat produced no discomfort (apart from sweat).

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golemiprague 8y ago

The problem in the UK is that they build their houses to preserve heat for the cold and rain so even a mild hot day is horrible if you stay inside. The worst thing is that in Australia they copied the UK style of building in old houses, like windows that only open at the bottom or where half of it can't open at all and no balconies.

johnwatson11218 8y ago

Phoenix resident here. I find that in summer I need to limit my caffeine and get plenty of sleep. I buy Nuun electrolyte tables for runners and drink them all day in my water while just sitting in the office. Get your AC looked at, make sure your duct work is not leaking any air. It is kind of expensive but I installed a mini-split AC just for my bedroom and it is incredible. I highly recommend a mini-split (or ductless ) AC for the room you sleep in.

malloryerik 8y ago

In humid heat a simple towel to remove sweat works surprisingly well.

virmundi 8y ago

I live in Florida. My AC unit in my office is out. That’s on the second floor of my home. A beach towel sarong and no underwear. Modesty and cool.

b1daly 8y ago

I’m always annoyed by the waste of cooling (or heating) a whole building when what we really need is just our body temperature to regulated. My thoughts drift towards clothing that has cooling built in, but become my usual muddle of 1/1000th baked ideas. But try putting a reusable cooling pack right on your body, it’s pretty great when you’re overheating. Back mounted compressor that runs cooling pipes to your underwear, that could be amazing!

nbsd4life 8y ago
look up 'cooling vest'

mabbo 8y ago

I was in Phoenix Arizona this week for work and was amazed at the effectiveness of evaporation cooling. Bars and restaurants spray water mist into the air near their front door. The air is so dry that the water evaporates near-instantly (the ground doesn't even get wet under it!). Evaporating water pulls heat from the air, and suddenly 42C turns into 28C. It's simple, low-tech, and effective.

nerdwaller 8y ago
Isn’t it amazing disembarking the plane into AZ? Instantly it’s 98F+ on the jetway, and the plane absorbs a large portion of that as they ask you to close the window shades on landing. I don’t quite understand how one can live there if they like being outside at all. Perhaps enough months of the year make it worth it? It is, however, a nice place to visit from a cultural standpoint.
cup-of-tea 8y ago
Yeah, evaporating air conditioning units are simple and cheap to buy and run as well. It doesn't work if the air is already humid, though.

YeGoblynQueenne 8y ago

And don't forget: if you have an air-conditioning unit, either close the windows, or turn the unit off (and keep the windows open). Unless you're trying to chill the universe, that is.