6 Simple & Efficient Ways To Keep Your House Cool In The Summer

Learning how to keep your house cool in the summer will save you time and money, but will also make you feel better during those hot summer days (and nights). I know for myself that some areas can get super hot and humid, and after a while, it becomes extremely uncomfortable to sit in high temperatures.

When it comes to cooling methods and things, you don’t need a lot of gadgets or expensive tools to keep your house cool in the summer. 

Yes, ideally you should have AC installed, but not all people have or can afford to get it done. Or want to spend that much money on electricity. So most people have to find new and innovative ways to keep a home cool during summer. Like me (and probably you, since you’re reading this)

Now, personally, I do have AC, but I’ve also recently had an issue with it, so I can speak from both perspectives. That week of no AC was pretty hard, especially on my partner, so we both tried to find ways to cool ourselves when the AC was broken. And we did, so I want to share with you the tips & tricks to cool down a house during summer. 

Below you can find 6 simple & efficient ways to keep your house cool in the summer. 5 out of 6 don’t include the use of AC, so you don’t actually need it. Let’s dive in:

1. Keep the blinds down during the day

It might not be obvious for some, but heat can come from the windows. If it’s sunny outside and the sun is shining through the windows, it can create heat in the house. 

That’s why most people recommend closing the blinds during the day. Less light, less heat, cooler temperatures inside. 

I usually close the blinds as soon as I wake up, especially the bigger ones in the living room, the office and the bedroom. I suggest you do the same for the rooms you usually sit in more (like the living room) and/or in the ones you sleep in. 

Or you can wake up, open the windows (if they weren’t open during the night), let the rooms freshen up for 15-20 minutes, then close the blinds (and possibly even the windows themselves). 

Best and most efficient tip on how to keep your house cool in the summer, in my opinion!

2. Open the windows and doors in the night 

If you’ve kept the blinds down during the day, well, during the night is when you should open the windows and doors. Since the temperature usually drops a little at night, it’s the perfect time to let the cooler night air in. 

It’s also great because it gets the house (and its occupants) ready for sleepy time. According to Healthline, people sleep better with cooler temperatures. Or better said, people sleep worse if it’s too hot. 

3. Change ceiling fans rotation

This is something I had no idea about until recently. 

If you have a ceiling fan, make sure it rotates counter-clockwise in the summer. That helps push air straight down, so it can create a cooling effect. Similarly, make it go clockwise in the winter to pull cool air up. 

The first time I tried it I was shocked, I didn’t know I should do this. This helps tremendously at night, especially, in the bedroom, to cool off the air. And it’s a better and cheaper alternative to air conditioning. 

4. Avoid using the oven or stove

This is a weird trick, and you might think it doesn’t have a big impact, but it does. 

Try to limit your use of the oven and/or stove. When you use them, they bring unnecessary heat to your kitchen, so it will automatically make the room hotter. And if you have an open kitchen, you can expect the heat to go to the sitting area, as well.

I suggest using them sparingly (once every two-three days) and for a short time. And make sure the kitchen hood vent is working perfectly, so it can draw the smell and a bit of the heat. 

5. Use the AC in sessions

If you do have AC in the house, first of all, lucky you! You’ve kind of already solved the issue of how to keep your house cool in the summer. 

But if you want to save money, and you don’t like being in an air conditioning environment all the time, there are ways to go about it.

I recommend the following tactic: turn it on for an hour in the morning, with the blinds down, so you create a cool atmosphere, then turn it off. This should help keep the air cool until mid afternoon (at one o’clock, or two or three), and that’s when you do the same thing again. One hour of AC and then stop. By the time the third wave of heat should come in, it’s night and the temperatures are more bearable, so you don’t have to use it again.

If the AC is too strong to be on for one hour, you could do 15 or 30 minutes sessions, every two to three hours. Your choice, just test it out!

6. Cool yourself, not the house

Here’s a different way of looking at things. Don’t keep your house cool in the summer. Instead, cool yourself. It might work.

You can survive warm temperatures by cooling yourself, not specifically the room. Some of my favorite tips when it comes to cooling off are:

• Drink cold liquids. Ice water, ice coffee, cold Coke bottles, all of these will have to be your friends during the warmer months. 
• Apply cold cloth on your forehead or neck. It will cool you off instantly and it will make you feel better. 
• Choose cotton, light clothes. This is something I should actually apply more myself. I wear too many pairs of tight jeans in the summer, and they’re really not comfortable. I suggest we all go for dresses, skirts and/or loose pants. 

So there we are. 6 tips & tricks on how to keep your house cool in the summer! What helps you most during summer months?

p.s. If you’re looking for other home hacks, check out this article on 7 Kitchen Cleaning Hacks For Things You Aren’t Cleaning Often Enough!