Feeling hot? How to cope

[DuchessDandelion]

Some tips:

1. keep windows & curtains/blinds closed while it's hot. In a heatwave, they'll let more hot air in than out so indoors will heat up faster

1. blackout blinds/curtains are great for windows. You can buy temporary, reusable ones from amazon which you cut to size and stick to the window. They make a HUGE difference to internal temperatures during a heatwave

1. open doors & windows early morning and late evening/ through the night. Try to get a cross breeze through the house

1. when it's really hot, consider hanging wetted sheets in front of your open windows and doors, they do this in the hottest countries and the evaporation is cooling

1. fans are great. The ones with built in water/ice compartments are also good, or place a dish of cold water in front of the fan, as it evaporates it will cool the air (= cheap air conditioning)

1. fill a hot water bottle in the morning (about half full is fine) and stick it in the freezer. Voila - you'll sleep much better

(Use a separate hwb to the one you use for hot water in winter, to avoid the extremes of temperature causing the rubber to perish, leak & burn you. I have summer hwbs and winter hwbs)

1. plastic water bottles: half fill and place in the freezer the night before. The next morning top up from the tap and it'll keep your child's water cold all day - the ice will melt in time for their lunch so it's the perfect temperature

1. cold flannels / cooling cloths: dampen in water and place around your neck, rest on your chest etc.

1. spritz yourself with cool water & lie / sit in front of a fan for rapid cooling

1. ice lollies, ice lollies, ice lollies. Make your own for a more affordable summer addiction

1. drink little & often. Cool drinks. Preferably caffeine light & avoid alcohol

1. cool showers are great, especially before bed to help you sleep. Let yourself air dry.

1. carry a personal fan

1. natural fibres: avoid polyester at all costs, keep to cottons & linens for clothing & bedlinen. Bamboo fabric is also great. Sleep under a sheet, or kantha cotton bed spreads (a little weightier than a sheet) (If you need more weight to help you sleep, invest in a pure cotton or wool cellular blanket, you'll be amazed at how they'll regulate your temperature in most but the most extreme heatwaves we get)

1. consider modest clothing in natural fibres (loose, long sleeved, full legs) Not for reasons of modesty (unless you wish) but because these help keep you more comfortable than shorts & fitted tees

1. hats! Broad brimmed, baseball, pork pie, Panama, whatever. They provide portable, handsfree shade - use them

1. sun cream: buy new every year and lather up before dressing. Don't forget backs of knees and neck, or ears. Cream up beyond your clothing line.

1. small infants & children benefit from the above dressing advice too.

1. siesta. Sounds obvious, but keep out of the heat at least between 12-3pm, if not until evening. Stay indoors. When enjoying your gardens early morning & evening, be respectful of your neighbours (who might be tired, grumpy, headache-y or ill)

1. consider others: remember that while you might love the heat & thrive in it, even small temperature increases can seriously affect others. You'd be surprised how common is it (we tend to socialise with others like ourselves), and this is especially true of children, the elderly, the disabled and people with health conditions of all ages. They may struggle to function in the heat, may suffer migraines, become confused, be in pain or become ill (or bad tempered!)

Check on your neighbours, friends & families & be respectful of your neighbours.
Discourage children from screaming & shouting in gardens, inform your neighbours if you're having a party, and lower voices and music after 11pm. Avoid power tools first thing in the morning and don't play loud music during the day for hours on end.

1. think of your beloved pets. Please don't walk your pets during the day when it's hot - they struggle to cope with the heat (especially when older, or with health conditions) and the pavements burn their paws. Even if you don't see burns on their pads, it doesn't mean they're not hurting - remember, animals hide pain and dogs may let their excitement from being out override their painful paws. If the pavement feels hot to the back of your hand then it's too hot for them.

Keep water available for them. Iced water is great.
If you have cats, especially elderly ones or ones with kidney disease, consider adding a teaspoon of water to their wet food or mixing a little water with lik e lix. Cat soups, food with jelly etc all help to get their fluids up.
Cooling mats & shirts are great. Good luck getting your cat into a shirt, though

1. remember car sun shades? They might be retro but they still make a big difference, especially if you don't have air con

1. eat salads & cold foods. Or tapas-style. Fruits & veg are great. Chilled soups. Frozen fruit & yoghurt is a great snack. Tinned fruit is reallt affordable. Little & often. Digestion generates heat.

1. baby powder - there's a reason our grannies always had it in the bathroom! Dusting yourself with a little before bed (or before your commute to work) will help keep your dry & cool

1. Paddling pools- for all members of the family, will help you to cool down during the day. Try to keep shaded. Or sit with your feet in a bowl of cool water in front of the TV

1. learn the signs of heat exhaustion & heat stroke (which are different conditions) in humans & animals and how to treat:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/heat-exhaustion-heatstroke/

https://www.preventivevet.com/pets/how-to-treat-heatstroke-heat-exhaustion-in-dogs-and-cats

Heat proofing your home
Hot new build? If you're looking to make changes to your home to protect against summer heat then consider the following (these also help to keep it warm in the winter):

1. External shutters - better than indoor ones because they stop the windows heating up. Work best with sash or internal-opening windows, but if you use them during the day when your windows are closed anyway it doesn't really matter

1. ceiling fans: these are so much better at cooling a room than pedestal fans

1. Ivy & climbers: these provide natural external insulation keeping buildings cooler in summer & warmer in winter. Studies by English heritage and proven this & also shown that contrary to popular belief, ivy doesn't damage masonry

1. invest in loft insulation

1. grow leafy plants and trees in your garden. These are scientifically proven to lower the temperature of the area & of nearby buildings, pavements & roads. Also, if you have a cat (or dog) then the coolest place for them is going to be under a leafy shrub or fern (stick your arm in and see for yourself)

1. avoid plastic grass. It heats up, will hurt the feet of your children & pets & increase ambient temperature. Real grass will cope better in dry spells if you mow it less, a bit of extra length means it shades itself and keeps cooler. Or consider lawn alternatives like clover, chamomile or creeping thyme

1. shade your garden with sails & parasols where you lack trees. Break up hard landacaping with plant pots growing flowers & ferns to reduce reflected heat, bring in shade & reduce ambient temperature. Consider a pond.

1. window awnings: traditional stripey ones, Mediterranean ones, fixed louvre ones...they all shield your windows from the summer sun at the hottest times of the day & are a good alternative to external shutters. You could also make simple DIY ones with sheets of bamboo, a couple of rods and some hooks&eyes which you can easily store the rest of the year

1. plant trees near windows. Obviously check for ones with appropriate root growth, but a deciduous tree with shade windows in the summer while allowing light in the winter.

1. consider solar glass for conservatories or windows which are very exposed to the sun. Or look at solar film which can applied to both,they block uv light which reduces the temperature

1. hang vertical blinds between conservatories & the house. These make a big difference to the internal temperature of your house when you close them during the day. I moved into a house where they have the old fashioned vertical strip blinds, ugly, but pulled back 99% of the time I don't notice them & they're worth it for keeping the place cool during summer days

1. switch out memory foam & latex mattresses & pillows for natural fibres, or at least pocket sprung mattresses.

I think that's it for now, I'll add any any that I've missed & feel free to add your own, and please share any recipies for cold drinks & meals!

Cheap as chips and much more effective than curtains: cover your windows with emergency rescue blankets, with the silver side facing out on the outside of the window. Highly effective at stopping heat transmission yet thin enough to get plenty of light and have the windows close tightly.

Rather than standard ventilators, get North Americzn-style high velocity fans at 100 or 120 Watts and put them right in the window mornings and evenings. They're noisy at hell but will actually draw in cool air from the outside, especially if you create a draft.

Thanks chatGPT

@longdistanceclaraclara if you look at my post history, you'll see I've posted some of this advice before

Here's another one: if you're not used to travelling in London, avoid the tube and if you do use it, take a personal fan and bottle of water per person

Put some towels on a rinse through the washer and lay them over you.