You can take control of your health and comfort this summer. Prepare for heatwaves in Australia by learning how to cool your home efficiently.
This article was written in collaboration with experts from Griffith University's Ethos Project.
Since older people are more vulnerable to heat stress, it's important to have somewhere cool to be on hot days.
Here are some cheap ways to keep your house cool in summer.
Start with insulation
The first step in cooling your home is to reduce heat buildup with proper insulation:
- Create heat-reflective windows. You can use car sunshades, aluminium foil, or window film to block out heat.
- Combine blackout curtains with exterior window shades for additional insulation.
Optimise your AC use
Air-conditioning (AC) is essential in extreme heat. Research suggests fans aren’t always enough when the temperature is past 35°C. But AC can be costly, so here are ways to use it more efficiently:
- Set your AC to 27°C and use with fans. This combination can be as effective as setting your AC to 24°C. You can optimise this further by wetting your skin, so you can cool down through evaporation.
- Consider a window AC unit. These are usually the cheapest to buy and run, though they only cool one room at a time.
Manage ventilation and airflow
Effective airflow management helps reduce indoor heat buildup:
- Keep your curtains and windows closed during the day and open them when it’s cooler at night for ventilation. Use fans at night to push hot air out of the house.
- Draught-seal your home to prevent hot air from seeping in. You could do this with draught stoppers around doors, windows, and vents.
Make the most of fans
Fans can enhance cooling and are cost-effective when used properly.
- Put a frozen water bottle in front of your fan. The fan blows air over ice, creating a cooling mist. It's a DIY AC!
- If you have ceiling fans, use them in conjunction with pedestal fans.
- If you have multiple fans, create crosswinds by facing one out the window and facing another one inwards.
