How To Cool Down A Room Without A Ceiling Fan Fast
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Whether you're trying to conserve energy or an unseasonably warm day snuck up on you before you had the chance to install your A/C units, sometimes you need alternative solutions to cool down a room fast. While many homes have ceiling fans, some are opting to leave them out, since many people now consider the mainstream styles outdated.
But the good news is that there are actually quite a few tips and tricks out there that can help you keep your home feeling cool and breezy even during the dog days of summer. Many are also cost effective, save you energy, and don't require purchasing anything new. Whether creating a cross breeze, getting out your box fan, or keeping the cooking to a minimum, there are tons of options to exhaust before you start researching the true cost of adding central air to your home or installing a complicated ceiling fan to each room.
With so many cheap and easy ways to keep cool without air conditioning or a ceiling fan, you'll want to hone in on the options that actually work. These tips are backed by factual evidence, so you won't be wasting your precious time on wives' tales. So cool off and keep reading — no ceiling fan required.
Use sun-blocking curtains
You may think that sun shining through your windows is really only effective at adding light, but according to the U.S Department of Energy, about 76% of the sunlight that comes through a standard window is converted into heat. This can lead to a significant raise in temperature, and fast. If you want to cool a room facing the sun, putting blackout curtains in your windows can help to keep the heat down without relying on electricity. If you don't want to totally block the sun, blinds give you a bit more wiggle room.
Open windows at night, and close them during the day
In general, temperature cool down at night, so it's a great time to take advantage of getting some fresh air into each room and allow it to quickly cool down your space naturally. If you live anywhere near nature, you may also be able to enjoy the nightly chorus of soothing bug sounds. When you wake up, however, you will want to shut your windows and draw the blinds to keep the lasting effects of the night air and prevent new warmth from re-entering.
Seal gaps in doors and windows
Sealing your windows and doors may come to mind as more of a solution to keep out cold air and drafts in the winter. But just as it can help to keep the rooms in your home warm when the weather gets colder, it can do the opposite and keep your whole house cooler in the summer. This prevents warm air from sneaking in through tiny crevices, and helps to maintain a cool temperature in your home without having to resort to A/C or ceiling fans.
Put an outward-facing box fan in your window
If you are already dealing with significant heat in your room, you want a method that will move it out rather than pushing it around. While you may think that having a fan blow out of your window is counterintuitive, it can actually help the heat dissipate quicker by forcing it out of the room. If you want to cool your whole house, place fans in upstairs windows that blow the hot air out while placing fans in shadier downstairs windows that blow cooler air in.
Get a tower fan for a cool and calming breeze
To keep your room feeling cool at night, you want a fan that will provide a light breeze but won't keep you awake with loud sounds or overly powerful airflow. One of the best options is a tower fan. This Dreo Nomad One tower fan has over 34,000 reviews with four different modes and speeds to choose from. It also oscillates to help the air circulate more effectively, and has a remote control so you won't have to get up to change the settings.
Open multiple windows to create a cross breeze
While opening a single window may give you some airflow, you can maximize the effect fast by opening both an upwind and downwind window. This creates a difference in pressure: high pressure on the windy side and low pressure on the calm side, which allows air to flow more freely through the home. This will only be effective at cooling your home if the outside air is cooler than your inside air. If it gets too chilly, simply close the windows and doors, and wait for the space to gradually warm again.
Avoid using your oven
If your goal is to keep your home cool, one of the most integral things is not adding more heat to it. Using the oven can make your home warmer by a couple of degrees. The longer time that the oven door is spent open, the hotter it will get. Your stovetop can also create excess heat, especially if you're boiling liquids without a lid. If you're replacing your stove, consider an induction model as opposed to gas — these models give off significantly less heat while cooking.
Change light bulbs to LED
You may think that your lights just help you see better, but if you have incandescent light bulbs in your home, they may be heating up your home as well. Other than just keeping your lights off, you can switch your light bulbs to LED models. These are not only more efficient, but also give off less heat. Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) also give off less heat than incandescents, but they still run at double the heat as an LED version.
Use a dehumidifier to feel cooler
Using a dehumidifier won't technically cool down your room in terms of lowering degrees, but it could make it feel cooler — which, for all intents and purposes, is basically the same thing. Humidity can significantly affect the feel of a room, making it seem hotter and stickier than it actually is. Reducing the humidity can also help you to better regulate your own body temperature, as dry air will evaporate sweat from your skin much easier than humid air, helping to relieve that muggy, sweaty feeling.
For the bedroom — get cooling sheets and sleep low to the ground
When it comes to sleepy time, your bedding is just as — if not more important than — your ventilation. You want to choose breathable fabrics that are cool to the touch and ideally moisture wicking. These Pure Bamboo Store bamboo sheets are super soft to the touch, made of organic bamboo-derived viscose, and both naturally moisture-wicking and thermo-regulating. If you like a crisper feel, you can go with a percale cotton that is also cool to the touch and very breathable. However, it won't wick away sweat.
For instant relief, keep some ice packs on hand
There are a number of ways to cool down a room without a ceiling fan, but if you are looking for something to take the edge off while you wait for the temperature to drop, you want to focus on your body. Placing ice packs on your wrists and back of the neck can help you regulate your body temperature quickly, as these are the areas where the blood runs closely to the surface of your skin.