To ask how are people not dying in new builds with the heat?

[icantbreathehelp]

Our new build is a fu..ing joke!! We are actually going to have to sell our house before next year or live downstairs because it is so hot upstairs at night that a newborn baby would over heat and end up in hospital without a doubt!

How the hell are people coping with the heat in new builds? We live in a redrow house, we have to shut all the blackout blinds at the back and open all the windows at the front and even with 2 metal fans on its still like sitting in a sauna! I don't want to go to sleep because I am scared DC is going to over heat.

I cant cope 🥵🥵🥵

I have two words for you. Air. Conditioning.

We endured 2 miserable summers in our modern single-aspect flat before inquiring about air conditioning. Although we own the flat, we weren't given permission by the block management to put in proper air con.
So we bought an Amcor mobile air conditioning unit, and it has been great!

It has a big vent tube which looks a bit like an elephant's trunk, so it's not exactly elegant but it really works. I was a bit doubtful when i bought it as our windows are not sash windows, so the window conversion kit can't be used. But we just hang the vent tube out of the window, and our flat has been delightfully cool. It used to feel like a tropical swamp in summer...

300 year old Georgian house moved in in the winter and it was f*ing FREEZING until we were allowed to turn the underfloor heating on... then spent a fortune on oil.

So I am quite enjoying the fact it’s cool here at night as last summer we were renting a south facing new-ish build and I was heavily pregnant during that bastard heat wave and i was so bloody hot and uncomfortable I hardly slept!!! Had to have the fans on pointed directly at us all night long!

Used to live in the states where the houses have hot/cold air systems... actually much better solution! Although the temperature extremes where we lived were bigger -20C in winter to +32C in summer!

Our new build gets very hot too, I really struggled in the heatwave last year while pregnant! I ended up having regular short cold showers to coo down and we have a fan in our room, it was so hot I can remember feeling cool for only 5 minutes though. Currently on holiday and heading back tomorrow... now we have a baby I am a bit worried about her room being too hot :(

Our new build (2014) is actually ok... it tends to stay warm in winter and cool(er tha n outside at least) in summer.

We have a townhouse and I always have the window in one of the top bedrooms open. The other room on top floor is ds1year so I leave blinds shut in the day and velux open...I have got some reflective film to put on the windows soon. groegg says its 21 in there currently. Theres not much cloud cover at the moment so nights are.cool at least.

I hate this weather though.

In the summer I am very glad to live in a draughty 18th century cottage. Not so much in the winter.......

New build here too, I just have all windows and doors open that arent a safety risk to do so and as little clothing as I can get away with

We have a large Edwardian semi, it's ot at the back and garden has hardly any shade, but the front rooms are lovely and cool. With windows open until about 11pm there's a beautiful breeze going through the house. It costs a fuckin fortune to heat in winter though.

We also live in a red row home. It’s hot but what we’ve found is to close the blinds and curtains in the side of the house the sun is until it’s down and keep the windows open all the time whilst in when it’s hot. Otherwise we have a fan if need be.

icantbreathehelp Can you say roughly where you are as its not that hot in the UK at the moment, will be tomorow but it seems not excessivly so.

The real problem is INSULATION and the standardss that houses were built to and that will get more important wth climate change as Air con will just use more power and more fossil fuels to be burnt !

I am shocked to read the suggestions of air conditioning.

It is a heat wave. It will not be a long term ongoing situation.

Humans have lived through heat waves in this country many times before.

Encouraging people to install air conditioning is not helping the climate change/environmental situation.

You should keeps blinds/curtains and windows closed for as long as possible during the day.

This. You open your windows at night and shut them in the morning.
Well-insulated houses are good! People don't seem to understand the concept of insulation.

Just install an aircon unit, it will cool the place quickly. Though leaving your upstairs windows open would be cheaper.

I live in a three story (plus attic) 110 year house in the U.S. Down stairs has high ceilings and because the house stands alone there are windows on all four sides.

Our climate is very hot and dry during the days time and cool at night. (Mostly in the 90's F during the day, sometimes up to 110+F and down into the 50's F at night). We put our central air conditioning on during the day and open all windows at night. No matter where the breeze is coming from we can catch it. Our attic is permanently well ventilated and also has thick insulation.

One quick tip I can give you that helps me on our rare warm nights and that is standing under a cool shower right before bed. I will do it until my teeth chatter and then falling asleep is easy. My husband would rather just keep the AC on all night or put a box fan in the hallway window though.

I hate the heat with a passion - even this dry heat. It got down to 43F (6C) last night and I was in heaven. I love being cold and tucked in.

Long term solution for many people could be planting shade trees and putting up retractable awnings. Trees really help.

Re people moaning about aircon - aircon is a necessity in warmer countries. Try visiting countries like Hong Kong and you'll see every home has one. As the UK gets warmer more people will have them.

It makes sense to have them in modem insulated houses as there's not a constant leakage of heat/cool air - once the house is at the desired temperature it will stay at that temperature longer. It's much cheaper to use aircon in an insulated house than in an old non-insulated one.

It's almost unbearable in mine, I guess you could only just class it new build build being that it was built 8 years ago.
I've taken to having the bedroom windows wide open at front and back with all doors open to create a breeze and sleeping in a vest top and knickers.
The thermostat at the bottom of the stairs is reading 25 degrees, that's just my hallway, so I'm guestimating upstairs is closer to 30 degrees as it's always a couple warmer than downstairs.
I'm 37 weeks pg so that doesn't help either 🥵

Mine stays so cool in the summer and warm in the winter. It's a miracle house.

Yes, just sit in the dark all day with no appliances, or waste a ton of money and electricity, that's a reasonable solution to crappy house design.

I used to live in a Georgian house. Super thick walls. On a hot day you'd step into a gloriously cool house.

*Sorry - I think a physics lesson is needed here!!

The problem is not insulation - the whole point of insulation is that it keeps heat in and out!

If the house is very hot it probably means it’s been badly designed and it might be lacking the right sort of insulation in the roof.*

I agree with this. I live in an old house with a modern extension. The extension is properly insulated so stays at a comfortable temperature all year round. The old, essentially uninsulated, part needs extra heaters in winter and fans in summer. Insulation also keeps heat out.

My tips - Open your windows all day and keep blinds and curtains shut all day. Set up fans with towels soaked in and squeezed out of cold water in front so the air blows through. Use minimal bedding and only sheets as covers.

As someone said earlier, sleep under a damp sheet. I keep a plant spray by bed and if wake during night, respray the sheet with water. It really works and uses a lot less water than a cold shower!

I live near the sea in Scotland so it’s fairly cool, have my furry throw on the bed and my electric blanket.

Yesterday 22:38 icantbreathehelp

@ofred all of the insulation iv been told (we also have solar panels)

*Apparently some people take some insulation out of the attic...

In winter we don't even have the heating on through the night upstairs.*

Why would you have the heating on at night anyway?

If it's an ongoing problem, ceiling fans are definitely a good investment and much cheaper than air conditioning. They're commonplace here in the US and generally have an inbuilt ceiling light as well. Just keeping the air moving really helps.

Completely agree with PP''s advising to keep windows and blinds closed during the day until it cools off. Letting more hot air inside won't help.

I'm shocked. I live on the south coast, post war ex- council house. The temperature in the house is comfortable. I had a lovely hot bath tonight. A thin duvet is on the bed. Where do you all live??

We bought a portable air conditioning unit second hand from gumtree. I think it’s a Delonghi one. It’s handy as we have rooms in the attic and they are unbearable in the summer. We switch it on for an hour before bedtime and it sucks out the stifling warmth and blasts the room with icy air.