7 Smart Ways to Keep Your Home Cool During a Heatwave

When a heatwave hits, your home can turn into an oven fast. The good news: most overheating is preventable with a few smart habits. Here are seven things that actually work — no gimmicks.

1. Close blinds and curtains before it gets hot

Up to 30% of unwanted heat comes in through your windows. The trick is timing: close blinds, curtains or shutters in the morning, before the sun hits the glass. Once the heat is inside, blocking the window barely helps. South- and west-facing windows are the priority.

2. Ventilate at night, seal up by day

Open windows wide in the evening and early morning when outside air is cooler than inside. Create a cross-breeze by opening windows on opposite sides of your home. Then — and this is the part most people skip — close everything by mid-morning. Opening windows during the hottest hours just lets hot air pour in.

3. Turn off heat-producing appliances

Ovens, dryers, dishwashers and even gaming PCs pump serious heat into your rooms. During a heatwave, cook cold meals or use an air fryer outside the kitchen's peak-heat hours, and run the dishwasher at night. Every appliance you don't run is heat you don't have to fight.

4. Use fans the right way

A fan doesn't cool air — it cools you by moving air across your skin. Two upgrades: place a shallow bowl of ice water in front of the fan for a cheap cold breeze, and at night, point a fan out of the window to push hot air outside while cooler air gets pulled in elsewhere.

5. Swap your bedding

Ditch the duvet for a thin cotton or linen sheet. Natural fibres breathe and wick moisture; synthetic fabrics trap heat. A lukewarm (not cold) shower before bed also helps your body dump heat and fall asleep faster.

6. Deal with humidity

Muggy air feels several degrees hotter than dry air at the same temperature, because sweat can't evaporate. Avoid drying laundry indoors during a heatwave, keep the bathroom door closed after showering, and if your home stays clammy, a dehumidifier function does more for comfort than you'd expect.

7. Know when tricks aren't enough

Habits and fans go a long way — up to a point. When it's 35°C outside for days in a row, the only thing that genuinely lowers the temperature in a room is an air conditioner. A portable unit needs no installation: roll it in, hang the exhaust hose out of a window, plug it in, done. Cool the room you're actually in (the bedroom at night, the office by day) instead of the whole house, and running costs stay perfectly reasonable.

Quick recap

• Block sun in the morning, before it enters
• Ventilate at night, seal up by day
• Cut indoor heat sources
• Use fans to move air — out at night, across you by day
• Sleep under breathable fabrics
• Keep humidity down
• For real cooling: a portable air conditioner in the room you use most