I have no air conditioner! How do I stay cool for cheap?

Question

Does anyone have any tips on how to stay cool in an un-air conditioned apartment? We have a downstairs and three bed rooms upstairs. We have plenty of fans but is there something relatively cheap that we can do as well? We have two ceiling fans downstairs, plus a couple of box fans. Upstairs, we have a swamp cooler that sometimes works (in our room), a small fan, and two box fans. If we put something over the windows, would a blanket or sheet work better? TIPS, please!!

Answer 1

try putting a box fan in window facing backwards. it will suck some of the warm air out.

Answer 2

Your feet + bucket of cold water == bliss.

Answer 3

HELLO, try the obvious, like.... um.... well

OPENING ALL THE WINDOWS.

Answer 4

if it's cool at night blow out the warm air from the upper rooms. if you have a nice, tightly constructed house, close the windows in the morning to stay cool as long as possible. If your house is drafty you're SOL, spend as much time downstairs as possible.

the swamp cooler is a good thing, but only works if the windows are closed

Answer 5

hmmmm....i think you should buy a cheap air conditioner and the you can earn more money to buy a better one.

Answer 6

Install a ceiling fan. They also cost much less to operate than air conditioning.

If you have any doubt about your ability to wire the fan, hire a licensed electrician to do the job.

Answer 7

Get a wet towel rub it all over yourself get one of your fans and blow it on yourself, it cools you down really fast!

Answer 8

One tip is to open up all the windows at night when it is cooler and to close them in the morning to trap the cooler air inside.  

Insulated curtains help to block sunlight and heat from coming in as well.

What I honestly recommend is buying a cheap air conditioner for one room.  I use my air during the day and I keep it relatively high to where I can tolerate the temp.  I turn it off at night to conserve energy and open the windows. Sometimes I may need a fan at night to help circulate the air.

Answer 9

Well if I was you I would either build my own air conditioner, or go to a pawn shop and pick up a window unit for cheap, just make sure they turn it no before you buy it.  

PS the building your own may not work for you.

Answer 10

Open one window, from the top if possible, and put a box fan in it facing out. Open another window, preferably on the other side of the room, and put another box fan facing in. This will keep the air circulating constantly.

Keep your hair as short as possible and put it up if it's long. Go barefoot. Wear loose-fitting cotton clothing. If you get really hot and a fan doesn't help, try putting ice on your wrists and the tops of your feet - these are places where there are plenty of prominent veins, so the ice cools your blood directly and lowers your body temperature.

Make sure to spent a little bit of time in an air-conditioned building every couple of days - the longer you're exposed to heat without any kind of break, the more susceptible you are to heat-related illnesses, even if it's not boiling hot outside.

Answer 11

kick someone out to conseve fresh air... u know every human is 98.5 degrees, that pretty hot. normall ythe more people the hotter it gets