How To Keep Your Home Cool On Hot Days

Over the past few weeks, we have already seen temperatures in the early to mid-twenties across the country. After a long winter, some people might be struggling with the heat.

The Met Office is predicting that 2024 could be the hottest year on record. Temperatures could breach the 1.5°C threshold, meaning global warming would've exceeded 1.5°C over the year.

British homes are typically built to keep homes warm which is why warm temperatures can cause big problems for occupants. This point is commonly debated on social media for why people suffer with the heat more in the UK than they do when holidaying abroad in hot countries like Spain, Greece or Portugal. 

With Summer just around the corner, you may need help with keeping your home as cool as possible, in order to stop yourself getting too hot. Below I have revealed seven tips to keep your home cool on warm days.

If your home has already succumbed to the heat, then encourage airflow by opening doors and windows. This will allow trapped hot air to escape, and bring in cooler air from the outside. Some rooms will keep heat in better than others so it is important to keep the doors inside of your home open. Doing this allows air to circulate inside your home, creating a cool draft which will be welcomed by those inside.

This can be a slow process if there isn’t much wind outside, so you can always add a catalyst to speed up the process. A fan is not only a great way of keeping yourself cool, but it also is good at moving on resilient heat in your property. 

During peak heat hours between 12 pm and 6 pm, it might be best to stay out of the areas of your home that are best at retaining heat. This includes kitchens due to ovens which can further increase the temperature, and large windows. Rooms outside of direct sunlight will be the coolest in a home and would be the best option to relax away. Keep the doors between the cooler and warmer prone rooms shut if the heat hasn’t taken over your home yet.

It might seem obvious when the sun comes out to open your blinds and curtains to allow the sunlight in. But when the day is at its hottest, leaving them shut will result in your home being cooler. 

Light-coloured curtains are ideal for warm weather as they are the best at blocking the heat from entering your home. The best times to open your blinds or curtains would be in the morning or the late evening. This is because this will be the coolest period of the day, and will have a positive effect on cooling down your home.

Using your hob or oven for cooking when it’s already hot outside, will only increase the temperature of your home. Instead, cook outside using a BBQ or have a cold dinner. It comes with the added benefit of more family or social time with friends, whilst also ensuring you make the most of the good weather.

It might sound surprising, as insulation is normally associated with keeping your home warm. But many aren’t aware that insulating your loft is an effective way to cool down a property on those hot days. 

Cool air in your home rises, and the highest point will naturally be in your loft. If your loft is properly insulated then the cold air should be trapped there, so you should notice a temperature difference between that space and the rest of your home. Loft insulation is also one of the cheapest insulations that you can purchase. The average cost to insulate the loft of a three-bedroom home is £930, this is a small amount compared to the £15,000 required to double-glaze your windows.

On a hot day, it’s important to reduce your physical activity, as physical activity will make you warmer and you may wrongly attribute that to your home. Take days with warmer temperatures as a sign to relax and rest, and avoid DIY tasks inside your property.

Try to not use appliances that generate heat, for example, washing machines and dishwashers. These can help increase the temperature of a room, instead wait for a cooler day to complete those tasks.

Anti-heat window film is attached to the windows and glass doors of your home to stop heat from entering via the glass panels. It does this by reflecting the heat away from the window, therefore the heat doesn’t get into your property. The cost of the film depends on the size of your windows and how many you want to be covered. A 45 cm by 200 cm sized film can be picked up for under £10, making it a very affordable option.