Tips for Keeping Cool

Yesterday was a scorcher with temperatures reaching 100 degrees. It was one of those days when you do everything you can to find a little relief from the heat.  Unfortunately, many people in my area were met instead with a power outage caused by a severe thunderstorm. On the day that they wanted to cool off the most, air conditioning was not an option. This has inspired me to write these tips on how to stay cool.

(1) Plan ahead.

Over the years, I have begun to tune in to the forecasts to plan ahead. I don’t know if it is a maturing thing on my part or if it just comes from the fact that the military sent us to a place that had weather I was not used to. Either way, I started to glance at the 10 day forecast to know if there was any big weather coming up that I needed to take into account as I planned my week. If there was any unusual weather, then I watch the daily and sometimes even hourly weather. I am a huge fan of The Weather Channel‘s website. I especially like that I can sign up for free text message alerts (standard text messaging rates apply) that allow me to get severe weather alerts wherever I am…even on the go.

In the aspect of keeping cool and planning ahead, the military base that I live on gets frequent power outages…although in defense for them, the surrounding area also frequently gets those same power outages. I know that if we get thunderstorms in the Summer or snow in the Winter that there is a good chance we will lose power. It is definitely better to plan as if we will lose power and be happily surprised if we don’t. If we are at home, then I make sure that the temperature in the house is at an ideal level the day of the storm…if it is a little warmer than you prefer before you even lose power, then it will be very warm if you lose power. Once we do get an alert for severe weather, then I adjust my thermostat by a couple of degrees…if you make your house feel nice and cool in the Summer or toasty in the Winter, then it will help the house retain that coolness or heat longer when you lose power. I’m not telling anyone to blow their electricity budget, but a few degrees for a short period of time can help later if you lose power.

(2) Do it the old fashioned way.

When I was a child, I would spend my summers visiting my grandparent’s farm. Back then, they only had one box style air conditioner that went in one of the downstairs windows. On summer nights, the upstairs was an oven. When it was time for bed, my grandma would cool us down with wet washcloths. Then as my grandma sat upstairs reading my sister and I bedtime stories, she would mist us with a spray bottle.

The fond memories from my grandmother have turned into a tradition of things that I do with my own children. Whether it is for hot weather or a fever, I use wet washcloths to cool down my girls. Gently sponging over your child’s whole body can cool him/her down. We also see on television people placing washcloths on foreheads to cool down, but don’t forget that your body has other “hot spots.” Areas that can also bring great relief are the back of the neck, behind the knees, and the bottom of the feet. We even had one especially hot night, during a power outage, during which my older daughter asked for full towel to be dampened and placed over her body as she slept.

(3) Mother Nature’s air conditioner

This is another tip that I learned from my grandma…although in reality it is pure common sense. Temperatures vary throughout the day. Many of us with air conditioners get in the rut of using the thermostat to control our house’s temperature. Open up the windows and give your home a little fresh air. As the sun goes down, chances are the temperature outside will drop lower than it is inside of your house (unless you had your air conditioner cranked up to ice box level beforehand). In an effort to save electricity, my grandmother runs the air conditioner during the hottest part of the day, but opens up the windows in the evening when it is starting to cool down or in the early mornings before it heats up. The one catch is to remember to close the windows back up before the temperatures start rising again.

**A bonus tip within this section is that if you are trying to keep your house cooler during the day, close the blinds on the sunny side of the house to help the house from naturally heating up.

(4) A tip from our Disney trips.

Our very first trip to Walt Disney World was in the month of July and included a 5 month old baby. Staying cool was of definite importance to us. When it comes to going someplace fun, we are willing to endure heat and buy things like personal size Mickey Mouse fans in attempt to keep cool. Bring that same thought-line back home with you. We have hand warming packets and blankets in our emergency supplies for Winter power outages, why not pick up some small battery operated fans to have on hand for hot weather power outages? Buy one fan per person and keep them located near your emergency supplies so that you know where to find them. Many stores also sell battery operated fans that are specifically designed for small children.

(5) Drink water.

This sounds obvious; however, we hear how important it is to drink water on a daily basis that we do not think about it in the essence of cooling off. Our bodies need water in order to run their natural cooling system. Drinking water keeps you hydrated in order for your body to regulate body temperature as well as a quick glass of nice cold water can give the sensation of refreshment.

(6) Dress for the heat.

Alright, this one seems pretty obvious; however, I cannot count the number of times that either my husband or daughter have complained they are hot but they are wearing pants or something else that has a cooler version. I make sure that my family own at least some clothes or jammies that allow them to reach maximum coolness…for my tween daughter that means allowing her to own some booty shorts that I would never allow her to leave the house wearing.

(7) Cool off with water.

Nope, I am not telling you that you have to go play in the sprinkler. If you are stuck in a power outage and the storm has passed, or it is because of a brown-out, then cool off with water. Take a nice refreshing cold shower or let your kids have play time in a cool bathtub. If you don’t want to take a full shower, get long hair wet and pull it into a pony tail or simply wash your feet…two of the main places that heat escapes your body (and in turn you can help cool off your body) are the feet and the head. If you are out and about, simply running your hands under cool water can feel refreshing.

(8)Keep ice cold treats in the freezer.

Keep ice cold treats such as frozen fruit chunks in your freezer. If there is a power outage, the frozen fruit can be taken out of the freezer and placed in a cooler to alleviate opening up the freezer more than needed in order to keep the rest of the food in your freezer fresh. Several companies make real fruit purees in cups or tubes that can be frozen for a refreshingly cool treat.

(9) Camp downstairs.

Heat rises, which in the Winter can be great since most bedrooms in two story houses are located upstairs. However, in the Summer it can make for smoldering nights. For a cooler night, create a cozy location downstairs for a family slumber party.  If you don’t have things to sleep on like air mattresses, then bring every blanket, sleeping bag, and pillow downstairs to make a cozy spot. Make it a fun adventure for the family.

(10) Stay positive.

As with any situation, it is all what you make of it. The brain is one of the hardest working organs in the human  body. If you tell yourself that you are hot and miserable, then you will be hot and miserable. Be a good roll model to your children because if you have a pessimistic attitude about the situation then they likely will too. Instead, try to make the best of the situation.

There is also the theory of trying to get your mind off of the heat by thinking of cool things. I cannot guarantee that this one will work, but when all else runs out it is worth a try. Make a game of it…see who can think of the coldest thing or ask your children about their ideal day of playing in the snow.

All in all, I am wishing everyone well in the heat. Not all of these suggestions will work for every person…take the ideas that work for you. If anyone has other ideas for staying cool without electricity, then please feel free to add them in the comments section. If all else has failed, find some place cool…heat can be a dangerous thing; so, if you really cannot find a way to cool down at home or a friend’s place that is cooler, then head to a public place–even if that means a 24 hour grocery store. Please also make sure to keep an eye out for others around you such as the elderly or families with young children.