How to Keep House Cool in Summer

As Summer approaches, you face that dreaded feeling of wondering how on earth you’re going to stay cool in your own house.

Keeping your house cool can be tricky, especially when the vast majority of houses across Leicestershire aren’t built for high temperatures.

But over the years, we have learnt a thing or two about keeping a house cool in the Summer – and some of it might surprise you.

To open or not to open windows?

When it gets hot in your house, your natural instinct is likely to open all of the windows, safe in the knowledge that this circulates air and should cool your home down.

In reality, that’s not quite how it works.

To keep your house cool, the hot air needs to be kept outside the home, not inside.

By opening the windows, you might actually be doing more harm than good, as you’re letting the hot air in. This is especially true for south-facing windows, where the sun is beaming for longer throughout the day.

Instead, keep the windows closed, but also close the curtains or blinds to help reflect the heat.

The only time opening the windows will help is when the air inside the home is warmer than the air outside. This most often occurs at night, so feel free to throw open the windows before bed.

Do you have sash windows?

If you have sash windows, and believe in what the Victorians had to say, you can try opening the top and the bottom at equal amounts. The idea is that cool air will come in via the lower opening, whilst the warm air is pushed out through the top.

Is your home insulated?

Often touted as a way of preserving heat inside a home, insulation can also have the opposite effect.

It can keep the heat out – assuming you don’t let it in, in the first place.

If your home lacks roof or wall insulation, it’s recommended to look at having it installed. You may be eligible for the UK Government’s new Green Homes Grant Scheme to help cover the costs of this.

Turning electricals off

If, like most, you have a habit of leaving electricals switched on or on standby, they could be generating unnecessary amounts of heat.

Do you have a gaming console, such as an Xbox, or a TV in your house? Go feel around the back and top of them. If they’re left on or on standby, you’re likely to feel some warmth – over time, that amount of warmth adds up and can significantly increase the temperature of a room in your house.

Turn them off, and not only will you hopefully see your room temperature decrease, you could even save some money on your energy bill too.

Reflect the heat

When things get extreme, it calls for extreme action.

With Leicestershire and the wider East Midlands area peaking at just above the 30°C mark just before, during, and just after Summer time, it can get pretty warm in our homes.

To help combat this in the most immediate and effective way possible, you can look at reflecting the heat.

From time to time, you may see cars along the street with heat reflecting materials fitted to the windscreen. This same material can be applied to conservatory windows, or even bedroom windows, to help keep the heat at bay.

All you’ll need to do is find some window heat reflecting foil online or in a local store and affix it to the window(s) of your choice, often using suction cups.

Using the above tips to help keep your house cool in the Summer will hopefully allow you to enjoy the warm weather in a more comfortable environment – especially for any of us that are to be working from home during the warmer months.