Tips for Staying Cool at Home

August is the hottest month of the year for many states across the country — with some places even reaching triple digits on a consistent basis! Beat the heat with these tried-and-true tips for staying cool at home, including both practical advice and some more fun ideas involving frozen treats and inflatable pools.

Keep interior doors open so air can flow freely through your home. This eliminates hot spots and regulates the overall temperature.

Use the grill more instead of the oven, to keep hot air out of your home as much as possible. This is an excellent excuse for more backyard barbecues!

Open windows at night to allow cooler air to enter as long as it dips down to a reasonable temperature! If not, keep the windows closed.

Head to a local ice cream shop and grab a scoop of your favorite flavor. Or make your own frozen treat with fresh juice and whole fruits. Here are a few recipes to try!

Stay hydrated by drinking water all day long. It is recommended that you drink at least half your body weight in ounces of water per day.

Reverse the direction of your ceiling fans to rotate counterclockwise so they pull warm air up and push cool air down.

Apply a cold, wet washcloth to your skin to experience instant relief on those sweltering days. Place it in the fridge or freezer to re-cool it throughout the day.

Set up an inflatable pool in the backyard to let the little ones splash around in — or the adults dip their legs in. No one is too old for an inflatable pool!

Place a bowl of ice in front of a fan to create your very own miniature A/C system. As the ice melts, the fan will blow cooler air.

Refrigerate or freeze your bed sheets 30 minutes before bed to stay cool at night. Take the comforter off the bed and replace it with a lighter-weight blanket (or skip the blanket altogether).

Stay cool out there!