How to cool a home without AC

While it's true that no matter where you live, be it urban, suburban or rural, the hottest days and nights of summer may have you dreaming of coolers climates. However, those living in dense urban areas will feel it the most, where ambient temperatures can be 5 to 9 degrees Celcius higher. 

This marked difference is the result of a combination of factors, specifically the lack of vegetation in cities, heat emanating from countless vehicles and other machinery and huge concentrations of asphalt to absorb the sun's rays. Ironically, the heat extracted from buildings by air conditioners is blown into the street making air conditioning units another big player in pushing up urban temperatures.

If you either want to (or have to) get through heat spells without relying on AC for relief, or if you don't want to fill your home with fine particulates if it's smokey outside, consider the following:

6 easy tips for keeping a house cool in summer

  • Anywhere cold air comes in during the winter, hot, humid air will come in during the summer. Inspect around windows, electrical and plumbing openings, and seal any cracks.
  • Close all your windows during the heat of the day, and get your fresh air at night. Pay attention to the temperatures inside and out, and wait until it's actually cooler outside to open up the windows.
  • Block out the sun during the day with opaque curtains or blinds, this reduces the amount of heat that enters the house.
  • Fans: they don't actually cool the air, but it sure feels like it. At night though, one of the best places for a fan in an upstairs window blowing out. This draws in cool air from all the other open windows. Center of room light fixtures can also be swapped out for a quiet and efficient ceiling fan to help you sleep.
  • Keep a cold bathtub ready for a plunge. On those hot days and nights, we generally aren't elaborately dressed, so going for a quick dunk in an existing tub of water to being dried and dressed again can take as little as a couple of minutes, and will drastically bring down your body temperature. 
  • Creeping plants on outside walls such as vines for example, can prevent some heat from being  absorbed by your walls. And the phenomenon of evapotranspiration that plants use to regulate their internal temperature helps to refresh the air. Read more here about vertical gardens and living green walls inside homes.
  • Heat pump water heaters help cool a home as they extract heat from the air to generate hot water. Rather than shooting hot air at your neighbours house, a heat pump water heater converts heat in the air into hot water, and the result is that it expels cool air. We think this is a very cool idea (no pun intended) for cooling a home and saving energy! 

Choosing energy efficient lighting and appliances:

All electrical appliances and lights generate heat, everything down to your laptop and TV. But first set your sights on the big offenders:  

When you add it all up, the amount of heat generated by appliances and lighting can be like running a baseboard heater all summer long. It all boils down to one thing - the less heat you bring in, the less heat you have to either endure or extract. Pretty simple right?

Read more here about how to choose energy efficient and Energy Star appliances.

Stay cool and hydrate

It's our hope that the tips above will help to noticeably lower your indoor (and body) temperature, potentially turning an otherwise sleepless night into a restful one. The less heat we bring into our homes, the less heat we need to eject towards our neighbours house, so we all benefit in the end. Remember to keep hydrated, sip some water and wipe some down bare arms and foreheads reduces body temperature as it evaporates, and as always, if you have any refreshing tips of your own, please share below!

Now you know what simple and affordable choices we can make to live sustainably along with finding inspiration for beautiful and energy efficient home design year round. 

Find more pages about sustainable construction and how to reduce emissions on the pages below and in the EcoHome Green Building Guide pages.

Find more about green home construction and reap the benefits of a free Ecohome Network membership here.