To think that heatwaves are a big deal?

[MrsSlocombesCat]

I'm in my bedroom with the fan full blast but it's just blowing warm air. I live in an 'eco' house so it is always hotter inside than outside. It's 19c outside but 30c in my bedroom. The house is HA. I think they should provide air conditioning whether a small unit or the whole house. I have never been this hot before.

Myasthenia (there are different types). Heat makes it extra hard to get signals through to my muscles so I feel very weak

OP, it is cooler outside so you need to use that.

In the morning, leave east-facing curtains closed to block the sun, but open all upstairs windows to create a through-draught. Downstairs too if safe.

At noon, open those curtains and close the west-facing curtains. Leave the windows open.

At night, turn out the lights and then open some windows to create that through-draught.

For yourself, drink lots of water, no alcohol. Wear shorts and a light top in linen or cotton. Avoid synthetic fabrics. Move slowly. Avoid eating carbs - lots of salads instead. Sleep without covers. You'll soon be cooler.

Not RTFT but our houses are well insulated to keep the heat in in winter but that also helps them stay cooler in summer. I've found it manageable by doing the following:

• Open all windows and set up fans near the window facing into the room (helping to pull cool air into the building) only when the temperature outside is lower than the temperature inside - Try and get it as cool as you can in the morning and enough time at night before bed. If you have a loft hatch, open it when outside is cooler.
• As soon as the temperature outside is the same as temperature inside, close everything, all doors, windows, curtains, etc - and keep it closed.
• Keep fans running and try to keep the air in the house circulating - put a bowl with ice in front if it's v warm or just mist in front of fan (or on yourself!) with water from a spray bottle.
• Properly insulated blinds/curtains make a difference (and good for winter too). You can also put reflective film on your windows (it just adheres with water).

If it's 30 degrees in the sun outside, my new build house will stay at least 4 or 5 degrees cooler all day. It may also help that I have tiled or laminate flooring for almost all of my downstairs (cosy rugs in winter!).

Spent a large amount of my youth on the Mediterranean, including during some proper heatwaves, and none of us had aircon - just kept the windows and shutters closed and had a lot of fans! Many a night I'd spray myself down and lie on top of the covers under a fan (probably with a damp flannel for good measure). If it got too hot, they'd round up all the old and/or vulnerable people and cool them down in a local sports hall. Running your wrists under a cold tap or sticking your feet/ankles in a washing up bowl of cold water cools you down pretty fast too.

Aircon units are expensive to install, require maintenance and will go against any organisations drive to meet their environmental targets.

Put some ice cold water in a hot water bottle. That will cool you down.

Also running cold water on your wrists helps you cool down quicker.

Buy an air con unit if it’s that bad. Yes, they’re not great for the environment, but right now there are hundreds of thousands of towns around the world where air con is completely standard in houses and businesses. We’ve almost reached peak puritan in the UK.

have to laugh at those saying 30+ degrees is not hot.

We are all different in how we feel in a heatwave, there was another thread on here talking about how strange that people think it's normal to heat up a house but not to cool it down, I'm with them, looking at getting aircon installed before next summer, even if it's only used for a handful of days each year.

If climate change gives the UK more extreme hot weather events then the price of air con will rocket, hence why I'm investigating it now.

There are lots of short-term cooling down tactics suggested here, but ultimately, the only solution to unbearable heat is lowering humidity, and that's where a dehumidifier or AC unit comes in.

If neither of those fixes is possible, you can shut your windows during the day, and draw your curtains/ close your blinds. At night, open all of your upstairs windows and leave all bedroom and bathroom doors open, and create a cross breeze with fans. You can also draw the air through your home by placing a fan in your window blowing air out.

It's also a good idea to avoid cooking on a normal stove or using the oven. Buy cold cuts and salad ingredients, eat sandwiches, etc, or reheat food in the microwave.

Heat rises, so consider sleeping downstairs if opening downstairs windows is an option, and also leaving your attic entrance open.

In the long term, both for your own comfort and for climate and environmental reasons, consider planting shade trees on your southern and western exposures. Creepers are another green option. The priority accorded to lawns and sunny gardens should be questioned.