Sometimes the AC breaks down. It always seems to happen during the hottest weekend or before a holiday or right before your family from out of state plans a trip to visit, in the middle of the longest, hottest summer ever and it can take some time to get it fixed. While waiting for a repair or an entire new unit, use these tips to avoid being miserable and stay cool:
1: Plan. Find out the weather report for the next few days to help you plan how to keep cool. Plan to avoid using the oven and use the microwave instead. Always run the hood fan when cooking on the stove.
2: Keep you and your family well hydrated. Drink plenty of water or fruit juice. Avoid coffee, tea, and alcohol as these beverages are diuretics that remove moisture from your body. Wear lightweight, light colored, loose-fitting clothing.
3: Lower the Shades. Windows have a huge impact on the temperature of your home – in both the winter and the summer. The sun can really heat up the house when the shades are open. To help keep the house cool, lower the shades during the hottest part of the day, when the sun is up. It will keep the cool air inside, and block the sun from baking the inside of your house (and you!).
4: Cool Air. When the temperature starts to drop after the sun sets, it can be a great time to open the windows and let some of the cooler outside air in. It will cool the house down and keep it cool the next morning. However, you have to make sure to shut the windows before it heats up the next day! When the sun comes up, the outside air will heat right back up..
5: Fans. Both box fans and ceiling fans can help make a room feel cooler and create a lovely breeze throughout your home. Keep in mind, though, that they don’t actually cool off the air. Therefore, you don’t want to leave the fans on while no one is home because that will waste electricity and needlessly jack up the electric bill.
6: Cool Down. Use ice packs or cold, damp towels to cool, down body temperatures when the heat gets to be too much. Putting damp, cold towels on pressure points is a very effective way to cool down.
7: Sleep with Less Blankets. Use fewer covers and blankets on your bed and take a cool shower before bedtime. This can help keep you cool and relax you as you fall asleep.
If you absolutely can’t take the heat…
If your home becomes too hot, go cool off at a swimming pool or take your family to the mall, go see a movie, or go eat out. Basically, get into some air conditioning until both your family and your home can cool down.
Hopefully, you won’t have to use any of these suggestions for keeping cool for what’s left of this summer, since no one should have to suffer through a busted air conditioner. Want to make sure that your system is in top working condition before the real summer heat arrives? Call Mora’s Heating and Cooling today!