Beating The Heat While Waiting For An AC Repair Appointment

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Once your air conditioning goes out you're left with few options other than waiting in the sweltering heat of the summer until the repair contractor arrives. To make the wait a little more bearable, there are a few things you can do to beat the heat while you wait. While you won't get the same results as from a central AC unit, you can definitely knock the temperature down a few degrees, and keep your own core body temperature down:

DIY Cooling Options

 The daylight hours, especially from late morning until mid-afternoon, are going to be the most unbearable without air conditioning, so it's a good idea to find effective alternatives. One of these requires only a fan and pouring ice into a large bowl. With the fan blowing over the melting ice, warm air is cooled when it comes in contact with the colder zone. That cold air can then be circulated through the house with additional fans, or multiplied with additional ice bowls and rotating fans.

For the greatest impact, make sure you open windows after the sun has set completely and turn on any fan you can to draw cooler air in and push warm air out. Open doors to bedrooms to maximize cross-ventilation and speed up the process.

Window-mounted fans or box fans set on window sills will also increase the effectiveness of this simple heat exchange. It'll take an hour or more to see a major change, but in dire situations this may be your only option.

Alternative Methods for Beating the Heat

Make sure that you're drinking plenty of fluids, and spending as little time as possible inside during the day while your AC is out. If you have pets or small children, get them outside for as much of the hottest part of the day as possible, and make sure plenty of cool water is available. Consider picking up a plastic or inflatable backyard pool that you can spend time cooling off in too, as much for your pets as for you.

If it's simply too hot outside, or you need to cool off more completely, take a lukewarm shower or bath to help drop your core temperature. You can also put a damp t-shirt in the freezer to help as well, and put it on when the heat starts to really climb. Of course, this is all temporary, and if you scheduled your repair for the first available opening you should only have to make use of these alternatives for a few days.

Make sure that you call for an AC repair as soon as possible, rather than putting it off until a more convenient time. If you rent your home, notify your property management agency immediately, or contact your landlord. If you have the option, ask about early morning or mid-afternoon appointments, so that when your AC does come back on it won't have to work as hard to reach the target temperature.

Contact a company like United Heating Cooling and Plumbing Inc. if you want to learn more.

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16 June 2015