Summer can be a ton of fun with all of the BBQs, strawberries, fun vacation plans, and the beautiful weather. But, while the hot summer days can be a challenge without air conditioning, sleeping during those humid nights can be an absolute nightmare. Personally, I tend to sleep much better when I’m cool, and I am sure I’m not alone.
Earlier this month, we posted some ideas for staying cool without AC, but what about sleeping without AC? Well, here are some of my favorite tips for surviving those hot summer nights:
Use cotton sheets
As nice as those satin or jersey sheets might feel, cotton breathes and is therefore going to be way cooler than other types of fabric. Just be prepared to change your sheets frequently, as you’ll likely sweat a bit more in the summer.
Take a cold shower
Right before bed, take a quick cold shower to wash off all of the sweat and lower your body temperature. You don’t have to take a freezing shower–even something room temperature will make a huge difference.
Use your ceiling fan or other fan
If you have a ceiling fan, switch it to spin counterclockwise and suck the hot air up and away from the bed. Alternatively, try placing it in the window and blow some of that hot air out of the room. If you can’t do either of those, having a fan blowing air around the room can make quite the difference.
Switch to incandescent lights
This is one of those win/lose scenarios. Incandescent lights aren’t as energy efficient as LEDs, but will give off way less heat. However, either way, turning on only the lights you absolutely need will really help your rooms from getting really warm in the evenings.
Don’t use the oven
This is probably a ‘duh’ statement, but on those super hot days try and stay away from using your oven. Your homemade bread can wait a couple of days and instead make something either on the stovetop or try a simple salad for a light meal that will also cool you off, as your body won’t have to work as hard to digest it.
Drink a cold glass of water
When it’s hot outside, you are going to sweat more often, so it’s a good idea to drink a glass of cold water before going to bed to help make up for it. A small glass is more than enough though–no more than 8 ounces or you’ll have to get up in the middle of the night!
Use a cooling pad
There are plenty of options for a cooling pad that you can place at the foot of your bed to cool down. My favorite is a bag of beans—the same kind like you would use to heat in the winter. Throw it in the freezer for a couple of hours before bed then slip it between the sheets to stay cool all night.
Sleep on the lower floors
Heat rises, so if it’s really hot try moving from the upper floors to the lower floors or even the basement. You’ll be amazed at how much cooler it is!
Your turn! Do you have any tips or suggestions for sleeping well without AC?
It is interesting that our culture has forgotten a very efficient way to cool a house,especially at night. Namely, either whole house attic fans or window fans. By sucking air in through an open window, across the bed, down the hall and up and out through the attic,you gain several benefits. First a fresh breeze, then steadily falling temps through the night, and a cooler attic ready for the next day. A window fan uses the same principle but of course does not cool the attic. This really works I remember as a child waking up summer nights searching for something to cover up with because the breeze was too cool. One fan cools several bedrooms since all but the bedroom windows are closed and air is pulled through the house to the fan.
That’s a really good point. I feel like a lot of houses aren’t designed like that anymore, which is just a shame. Thanks for commenting!