cooling question
Jul. 21st, 2011 10:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
So I've been looking around Google for this, and it seems like I'm just phrasing things wrong (and that there's too many other things "fan" describes), so I figure that this could be a question that might help others a little too.
My air conditioning recently went out, and while insurance is covering the cost of replacing the unit, it's going to be a few days, and it's Las Vegas in the summer. I have a few fans on my hands, and I was wondering if anyone can recommend placement of them for maximum cooling efficency. I have a big box fan, a mini desk fan, and one on a stand. I've already got the rooms I don't use and don't need to cool all closed up. I also have west-facing windows covered, and since it's a condo in a building, the rest of the windows are pretty well-protected.
Any other general tips for keeping cool in the summer with or without ac?
My air conditioning recently went out, and while insurance is covering the cost of replacing the unit, it's going to be a few days, and it's Las Vegas in the summer. I have a few fans on my hands, and I was wondering if anyone can recommend placement of them for maximum cooling efficency. I have a big box fan, a mini desk fan, and one on a stand. I've already got the rooms I don't use and don't need to cool all closed up. I also have west-facing windows covered, and since it's a condo in a building, the rest of the windows are pretty well-protected.
Any other general tips for keeping cool in the summer with or without ac?
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 05:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 05:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:04 pm (UTC)Try to keep lights off, don't use the oven, etc. I've heard that you can kinda make an AC with a fan and a bucket of ice water, but I've never done that myself.
(And I think the best placement would be "all pointing directly at you" but I can happily deal with higher temperatures as long as I have airflow so ymmv.)
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:09 pm (UTC)My mom had mentioned that, but I didn't ask her to elaborate - I'll have to try it!
(Well, yes XD But I do need to make sure that things are livable for my kitties as well. I have one that is very "fluffy," so all of this heat wouldn't be comfortable or healthy for her at all)
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:16 pm (UTC)This kept me alive in college. I was in a dorm with no A/C in southwestern Arkansas, and the best way to keep cool overnight was to position the fan pointing right at the bed, and put a bucket of ice in a bowl directly in front of the fan, so the air blows sort of into and over it. By morning the ice is water, but it really helped a lot. With the kitties in play, you could try one in front of each fan, let the fans oscillate, and the kitties will probably flop out in front of the breeze.
Unless they're like my cat, who, on the hottest days, always found the hottest place in the house for napping. :)
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:23 pm (UTC)I guess just make sure you've brushed them well, and help them find tiles to sleep on.
Ours will quite happily sleep in the sunlight when it's above 40°C though, so.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:39 pm (UTC)Bunches of tips there.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:04 pm (UTC)Check the indoor vs outdoor temperature before you open windows in the morning. If the outdoor temperature is higher than the indoor temperature, then keep your windows shut.
If the outdoor temperature is cooler, put the big box fan in the window itself.
That's all I can think of for now!
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:37 pm (UTC)When we lived in Texas (and had AC but couldn't afford the electricity to run it), we found that putting a big fan in a window facing *out*, and opening another window as far away as possible, cooled the apartment down faster than the fan blowing in. I bet you could put a bowl of ice on the windowsill of the "in" flow and introduce some moisture that way, though less efficiently than if it's in front of the fan.
Another thing I did was, when going to bed, just get a t-shirt wet in tap-cold water, squeeze it out, and wear that to bed. You might want a towel under you so less water ends up on the mattress, but it seemed like it dried right out of mine during the day.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:42 pm (UTC)I'll have to see about that wet tee idea. It might work, though with my sleeping habits as of late, it might be too distracting to let my mind rest.
Tonight I'll definitely be trying all of these fans-in-windows tricks!
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 11:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:27 pm (UTC)http://sparkymonster.dreamwidth.org/410540.html
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:28 pm (UTC)Thanks!
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:50 pm (UTC)Also, if I run a fan during the day, when the house is shut up tight (a very rare occurrence) I arrange it to blow past me but not directly at me. That way, I don't feel like I'm suffocating if I have to walk away from the fan for whatever reason. *g*
Oh, and I do all my cooking at night with an exhaust fan in the kitchen window, and package up the meals in plastic containers or dishes. Then during the day, I can just microwave things and which doesn't heat up the kitchen the way the stove would.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-21 06:53 pm (UTC)Though the other key is to make sure that in the morning, you make sure you shut off the intake before it gets too hot. (While shuttering up entirely probably does keep the temp down better, I find it's easier for me to just leave the exhaust on even if it's hot outside, so there's some airflow, but ymmv?)
no subject
Date: 2011-07-22 02:07 pm (UTC)Make sure it's one with tight enough structure that the cats can't get into it (have never seen one that WASN'T that well made, but...), and DO NOT leave anything that a good wind can blow around near it on either side.
Yeah, we won't mention my stack of papers. We can't; it ceased to be a stack.
This is not about fans, but about keeping the house cool.
Date: 2011-07-22 02:51 pm (UTC)If you have any windows that are up high, you could open those up, but just a crack, during the day, to let the hot air out.