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greenghost
Raw Newbie
Hi – a friend at work just shared this little tip for keeping cool in hot weather when you don’t have air-conditioning OR if you simply want to spare using as much electric energy.
You will need some electric though as this suggestion involves a fan.
Take a big bowl or a pot. Fill it with ice. Place the ice-filled bowl or pan in front of, but a bit lower than, the fan. Turn on the fan. The air blowing over the ice should spread cool air in the vicinity. Cheers!
PS: More Fan Fun - did you ever sit in front of a fan and use it to blow soap-bubbles?
You just dip the wand in the bubble container and hold the wand up to the fan. It blows many more than a person can make by themselves.
Little kids and cats love them – and since they are just made of water & plain soap they are pretty harmless.
Comments
It is really hot where I live and humid to boot. Today, it was over 100 degrees. I live in an older apartment and do not have central heating or air. I have an air conditioner in my bedroom and living room. I never run either air conditioner when I am gone because I can cool the area near where I will sit or lay very quickly. I only use the air conditioner in my bedroom occasionally when I am home or asleep. This is due to a trick I use.
When I am really hot, my skin always feels dry. I have a large, vertical fan near my bed which I turn on high. I take my socks and top sheet, which are both cotton, and spray them with water in the shower before I get into bed. As the fan blows on the slightly wet sheet, it keeps me very cool no matter what the temp is in the room. The socks also keep me cool and keep my feet from drying out. Sometimes, I do get up in the middle of the night and wet the sheet again.
Unfortunately, I have a gas water heater and haven’t figured out anything I can do to keep that cost down. I have the temperature turned down as low as it can go but due to the pilot light I can’t put a timer on it to turn it on or off. It costs me at least $38 monthly, which I think is outrageous given the degree of hot water I use. I would love to have a hot-water-on-demand heater, which would save a tremendous amount of energy monthly. However, a replacement gas water heater is about $250 and a hot-water-on-demand heater is $1500. Therein lies the problem with landlords going green. When the tenant saves the money and the landlord pays the initial expense they do not see any financial incentive and making money is the purpose of rental property.
My electric bill in the summer has been as low as $38.00, and I figure at least $20 of that is my fridge so I am doing well with electricity consumption. The guy next to me (I live in a duplex) tells me his electric bill is close to $200 for the summer months. He has the same size apartment that I do. I am happy to get up in the middle of the night and spray my sheets down for that.
When I lived in Puerto Rico as a kid most people were too poor to have AC (me included) and it was never a problem. I went back two summers ago and people have more money now than when I lived there, so everyone had AC. Whenever it broke down or they were outdoors everyone swooned and melted…it’s just a question of habit! An expensive habit at that! I personally can’t stand AC no matter how hot, it instantly gives me a headache.
I just wanted to say this is my second year AC free and I love it! I enjoy running, biking, going to the gym and doing strenious work just to go home to my warm house. I cannot stand to be cold or to hang out in AC for too long. Just thought I’d share. Peace.
you guys are amazing. The a/c at my office broke this week and it’s miserable. I think I could handle it at my house but here when we’re sitting in little offices with no windows and no air it’s incredibly muggy and unbearable. We’re pushing passed 90 degrees in here and no one is loving it. ha
Hey – I think it’s great to not use AC. I haven’t used mine much at all this summer either.
I only wished to offer a possible suggestion of a way to keep cool without AC.
And the second bit was just for fun. Honestly.
The posts here reveal something most of us in hot climates know. If you delay using AC or use it minimally, you better adapt to the natural climate. Once you become used to AC and then it goes out, you feel like you are going to die. The trick is to never turn it on or delay turning it on and keep the thermostat higher.
I use AC in my office (so my clients can tolerate it), I set the thermostat on 80 and I feel fine. It keeps the temperature and humidity down. Whenever a client comes in they ask me to turn the air on and I do. I can handle the temperature, but the humidity here sends my blood pressure up quickly.
I have read that the factor which initiated estranged neighbors was the use of AC. Prior to that, people sat on their porches regularly and talked to one another, which changed with AC because people opted to stay inside and were walled off from contact with neighbors.
lol, MY cat doesn’t like bubbles. she runs away from them. but she also runs away from gerbils, so she’s probably just a scaredy cat.
We use the AC very, very sparingly. The apartment has to be absolutely sweltering, and even then we only have it on a short while. The AC feels very unnatural to me, and of course I’m conscious of the energy waste and contribution to global warming. In most European countries, AC is not the norm. I find a good Casablanca ceiling fan works very well.
Yes Meditating & Mon46 I see what you mean – similarly I use the AC only when both the temperature is quite high and it’s also very humid – just to take the edge off. I can’t stand it to be on constantly – or for the room to be like a refrigerator.
rachel – your cat sounds cute. It’s funny/cute to think of her being afraid of a bubble! :)
I’m sure that there are other toys that she likes to play with or chase.
CHERIE03 – Originally I would take my top sheet out of the washer and use it straight away. I never wet the bottom sheet. The fan dries the sheet in a few hours, Since it is not wringing wet, I am not concerned about the mattress getting wet.
Now, I just spray the top sheet under my shower while moving it around a bit. The end result is more water but that is all good too. Initially, the fan can be quite cooling when the sheet is really damp. For me, the socks make all the difference. Whenever I feel hot my feet feel especially dried out. Wet socks resolve that problem. I hope this works for you. :)
Would a painter’s drop cloth (actually one made out of clear wrap material) or a vapor barrier used in gardening work to protect your mattress? If so, both would probably provide a savings over a specialized mattress pad. I use a misting bottle to cool myself off when it gets really hot. I spritz myself and my sheets.
Meditating~ Have you tried a spritz bottle to dampen your sheet and socks? That way you don’t need to get out of bed to “moisten up”. :)
BLUEDOLPHIN – Thanks for the suggestion. At this point, I am comfortable with my top sheet being as wet as if I just took it out the dryer and even wetter than that in some spots. I think I am accustomed to more water than a spritzer could give me. When I first put the sheet over me, that amount of water makes it quite cool with the fan blowing over it so that I take a small throw blanket and cover my upper arms to keep from feeling chilled. The damp socks keep my feet moist and cool yet my feet don’t get cold because the fan is close to my head.
My friend’s AC was out for almost a week and she was complaining about being unable to sleep. I told her about my wet sheet and fan combo and she thought I was nuts. A few days later she called me and said it worked and she was finally able to sleep through the night since her AC went out. Necessity is the mother of invention.
Meditating~ Don’tcha just love it when someone calls you nuts and then sees the sanity? I just want to get all 5 yo and jump around with a nasty face saying “told ya so!”. Be we be adult and smile with grace. lol
Another idea… I’m stuck on not getting out of bed in the middle of the night… might be because when I do that, I tend to have a bit of a time getting back to sleep… What about wetting down a second sheet at the start of the night and keeping it near your bed in a bowl/bucket all crumpled so it won’t dry out… then presto chango… you have another wet sheet without much effort… You could also have a second pair of socks there also. I recently realized how cooling it is to spritz my feet… feels sooooo good. I also spritz my shoulders and damp down my hair… coolness!
BLUEDOLPHIN – Now that idea is a keeper. I have lots of commercial stainless steel bowls I use in my kitchen and one of the larger ones would hold a damp top sheet. I will try that,
You know what is even better than having someone say you’re nuts and then admit you were right? When you think someone else is nuts, think it over, and then realize they were right. That is such a revelation.
Bluedolphin,
“In an insane society the sane man appears insane” – Spock, Star Trek
grin! :)
PS: Thanks BTW! I hope the ice bins work for you!
But if not, maybe blowing bubbles will relax you enough to not even notice the heat!
greenghost~ ,\\ // I say “Those that say they are sane are more insane then the rest of us.” ;)
Meditating~ Way cool! Hmmm… is there a way to add lavender or something else soothing or lovely to the mix? Maybe put that in a spritz bottle and add when you put the damp sheet on the bed… making paradise where there is a challenge… :) Oh, I also like to dampen my pillow case… :)
Alright, I’ll admit it… I LOVE AC. I couldn’t live without it. I love being cold and hate being hot ( freak of nature ). I’ve always been this way. I would prefer to do without heat than without AC. Oh-well it takes all types.
I use two spritzer bottles (big utility size one seem to work better). Fill both with water and add a peppermint or green tea herbal tea bag (or both). Let sit in fridge until chilled. Take the tea bags out before the water gets TOO “herbalized”, heheh. Sit in front of fan and spritz liberally especially on face, back of neck, ears, wrists, ankles, back of knees, feet. When the first one is warm I refill it, put it in the fridge and then get out the second bottle, etc.
I suppose you could use essential oils too? I’ll try that next time. Green tea is a great antioxidant even for skin, and the peppermint makes it feel a bunch cooler!