Want to keep the temp (and bills) down this summer? Try these strategies to beat the heat.
If you have a tip to stay cool, don’t keep it a secret - share it with the Community below.
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Thanks Brendan
These reminders are serving us very well today in Adelaide, 39 degrees today, 40 yesterday.
It is always good to check up that we are using every possible strategy to keep cool in Adelaide, especially as we are paying the highest rate for our electricity at the moment.
Thank you for posting the tips!
Cheers Natalie 
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Phew, 40? So hot out there!
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My solution is to wear as little as possible…another words, wear appropriate clothing and fabrics for the season.
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@BrendanMays, can only score 7 out of 10 which is better than zero. It’s great to know we have hit the 7 though.
With the dishwasher the alternate advice if you have solar is to run these during the day. If you have aircon for summer the COP of a modern aircon of around 3 times suggests this is still the better option?
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That makes sense to me.
This is probably a ridiculously simple approach, but on top of everything else, I tend to have a lot of ice-filled drinks on hand at all times. It’s a small thing but keeps me a lot more comfortable.
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I’m currently braving this summer in an upstairs apartment without air conditioning so another really simple thing I’ve been doing is to place a damp washcloth in the freezer for about 30 mins, then apply to the forehead or neck - or anywhere you like. Combined with my trusty pedestal fan, it’s such a welcome relief from the heat. I’m also getting pretty into cold showers at the end of the day!
In terms of sleeping, I find that my linen bed sheets help to keep things a bit cooler than regular cotton.
Am keen to hear any other cooling tips you have
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We’re in the middle of a cold snap here, but thankfully it looks like it will be over 40 for the next week from tomorrow …
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We have all of these items, most of which were already done when we bought our current home, including sisalation under the roofing iron and Rudd’s bats on the ceiling.
However, we will change to running the dishwasher during daytime instead of bedtime as soon as our new solar and battery system is installed.
Our electricity bills are around half what we used to pay at our previous home, and I expect that they will shortly be almost non-existent.
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We use the high speed fans when not using AC. These generally are not 40 cm or less diameter blades but are 45 cm or bigger. They are noisier than the smaller blade varieties but move significantly more air. Also avoid plastic blades on fans and try to get metal blades, they tend to not vibrate as much as the plastic ones and so waste less energy in sending the air in the direction you want. In the high speed fans you can get pedestal or floor types, if trying to move air say in a lounge area a pedestal may provide better outcomes but in a long hallway the on floor variety can act as a good ventilator.
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We’ve updated our home cooling tips, just in time for the summer heat:
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