primitives discuss handling the heat without air conditioning

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/11471412

Oh my.

hedgehog (30,460 posts)    Sat Jun 1, 2013, 01:34 PM

Simple ways to handle the heat without air conditioning

I can't tolerate strong sunlight, so i am indoors from 10 Am to at least 3 or 4PM.
 
I had real problems in the heat yesterday because I don't sweat - at all!

Today i remembered one quick fix - a damp bandanna rolled up and tied around my neck.

<<<sweats like a pig every time the temperature gets above a sweltering 60 degrees.

Ugly's the first one to butt in:

Warpy (69,348 posts)    Sat Jun 1, 2013, 01:42 PM

1. I found a great gadget at a crafts fair here years ago

It's a bandana/headband full of water absorbing beads of some description. You soak it and tie it around your head or neck and it keeps you cool as the water evaporates. I wish I knew what the hell they were, I'd go into business making them, myself, since so many people have AC but can't afford to turn it on unless the temperature is in triple digits.
 
Another thing that does a good job is a spray bottle and a fan. You spray into the wind stream and cooled air and a little water hit your skin and cool you down fast.
 
Soaking your head also helps, wet hair cooling you off for a while. I used that a lot back in Boston. It doesn't work as well out here in the desert, stuff dries out too fast.
 
Heavy drapes that are closed in advance of the sun help to keep the house a bit cooler. Living in the dark gets depressing, but it's easier to cope with than living in a 95 degree house.
 
I still haven't set up the cooler here, even though temperatures have been in the low 90s. It's still comfy in the morning and until about 4 PM, only ugly from then until about 8. I suppose I'll have to do it soon, though. I use an evaporative cooler that works really well in an arid climate and adds only about $15 a month to the electric bill.

Viva_La_Revolution (27,100 posts)    Sat Jun 1, 2013, 02:00 PM

3. My Mom was making and selling those in Colorado before she passed away in April.

It would be so cosmically cool if you owned one of hers.

I keep them in the freezer, with extras so you can swap them out as they warm up.

I can dig up the directions if you want.

We use our cool basement air to cool the upstairs by using a hurricane fan to blow it up the stairs, and a small rotating fan at the top to boost it.
 
Wrapping your naked self in a wet sheet or Moo-moo helps too.

<<<actually, doesn't bother wrapping self in anything when sleeping.

Warpy (69,348 posts)    Sat Jun 1, 2013, 02:07 PM

4. I'm in NM, so it's entirely possible

The cloth gave up the ghost years ago, so I remade it using some Japanese fabric left over from a haori jacket I'd made. It's hanging together nicely and is 100% cotton, a rarity these days.
 
There are no basements here, just a crawl space that gets as hot as the house does. When I lived in Dixie, we used attic fans to blow the hot air into the attic and bring cool night air in through the windows. That worked, too, and closing heavy drapes kept the place cool until evening.
 
All I need to know is what those beads are. Once I know what to call them, I can find a supplier. I'm thinking a sleeveless shirt using them might be really nice. Or maybe a ventilated hat.

Viva_La_Revolution (27,100 posts)   Sat Jun 1, 2013, 03:36 PM

5. craft stores carry them

they're 'water absorbing polymer beads' sold under various name brands, usually used in vases of flowers. The trick is to remember how big they get, don't put too many in each section.

I find they work better when the hit the base of your brain stem, on the neck they sit too low. ohhh, maybe a 'turban' style with a patch at the back of the skull, and a few on the forehead.

Get sewing!

It's starting to heat up here now, so I dug them out of storage to get them hydrated and frozen. thanks for reminding me

OffWithTheirHeads (9,044 posts)    Sat Jun 1, 2013, 02:00 PM

2. Back in my construction days, I would soak a t shirt in water and just put it on wet

as the water evaporates you stay cool as a cuke. Rinse and repeat as necessary.

[GOBUCKS]

I just press a button and set the thermostat to 71.

Works like magic and you don't have to tie anything wet around your head.

It does tend to get a little chilly in the evening, though.

[Chris_]

Wrapping your naked self in a wet sheet or Moo-moo helps too.

Classy.

[Chris_]

Did someone say "air conditioning"?

[Skul]

The stupid quill-pig ought to just go to a fern bar.
Problem solved.

[Evil_Conservative]

Suck it up and grow a pair.  Damn.

[GOBUCKS]

Did someone say "air conditioning"?

I'll bet the people inside that car were two wild and crazy guys.

[Undies]

I just press a button and set the thermostat to 71.

Works like magic and you don't have to tie anything wet around your head.

It does tend to get a little chilly in the evening, though.

I keep mine at 70.  We have skylights to compete with.

Hey, DUmmy goons-  Another sure fire cooling technique is to put a plunger handle in the freezer for about and hour - take it out and shove it up your evil faggy-loving communist anus opening.

[NHSparky]

C'mon, Warpy--it's a dry heat where you're at.  And at that altitude, it cools off fast in the evenings.

[Tucker]

Another thing that does a good job is a spray bottle and a fan. You spray into the wind stream and cooled air and a little water hit your skin and cool you down fast.

There's a better way.

Hold the fan up between the spray bottle and your face. Spray the mist through the fan. The motor doesn't overheat this way.

[BlueStateSaint]

Hey, DUmmy goons-  Another sure fire cooling technique is to put a plunger handle in the freezer for about and hour - take it out and shove it up your evil faggy-loving communist anus opening.

Do I want to know how you know this?

 

[ColonelCarrots]

I just sit in my room naked. I just have to butter up my chair since it's leather, and I don't want to stick.

[Undies]

I just sit in my room naked. I just have to butter up my chair since it's leather, and I don't want to stick.

We'll call you Butterballs from now on.

[ColonelCarrots]

We'll call you Butterballs from now on.

That is great.

[catsmtrods]

How about just man up and take it! I work on 180 degree boilers every day. I get back in a van that has no AC and go to the next job. WTF? Pussies!!

[longview]

I work outside (after my regular job) all summer.  It gets over 100 here.  I let myself acclimate to the heat and don't use AC in the house or car.  I think it's good for you.

[diesel driver]

It's that damned globull warming!

It's gonna KILL US ALL!!!

[/DUmode]

Surprised none of the DUmbasses said anything about it. 

[Doc Savage]

All the public assistance offices have refrigeration.   

[miskie]

Damn Global Warming !

Making the outside all hot during summer months and junk !!1!

How about this novel idea - take a cool bath or shower ?

It washes the salt and dirt off of your skin, allowing you to keep yourself cooler more efficiently. It has the added bonus of making you smell better too.

[diesel driver]

Damn Global Warming !

Making the outside all hot during summer months and junk !!1!

How about this novel idea - take a cool bath or shower ?

It washes the salt and dirt off of your skin, allowing you to keep yourself cooler more efficiently. It has the added bonus of making you smell better too.

Apparently, none of these Dumbasses ever rode in a LLV/FFV delivering the mail in the summertime. 

(Some routes that I've worked, I welcomed having to get out and walk a few blocks!)   

[vesta111]

Apparently, none of these Dumbasses ever rode in a LLV/FFV delivering the mail in the summertime. 

(Some routes that I've worked, I welcomed having to get out and walk a few blocks!)   

My favorite method at work was to get a worker in the freezer section to bring me a zip lock bag full of ice shavings.  This I would put under my hard hat to melt.

Then there are the medic patches that when thrown on the floor  and stomped on give off a cold for sprains etc.   Wrap one around the neck and hope it lasts an hour or two.

We have no Air at home so I use the thin wraps one gets at the drugstore to bandage whatever, soak them in ice water, freeze and hang them at the top the fans.   Works well when the Temp. climbs into the high 80's to low 90's.   

We Yankees on the coast need Air only about 6 weeks a year, today, it is off and on,  this is not the south where I needed Air every day 6+ months of the year.

Air quality is a big problem worse then the heat.    For the last week we have been alerted to stay indoors from 11 am. to 11 pm for those with anyone respiratory problems, the young and the old.

[Undies]

Do I want to know how you know this?

 

I read about it on the internet. 

[Delmar]

Response to hedgehog (Original post)Sat Jun 1, 2013, 01:42 PM
 Warpy (69,370 posts)
1. I found a great gadget at a crafts fair here years ago

It's a bandana/headband full of water absorbing beads of some description. You soak it and tie it around your head or neck and it keeps you cool as the water evaporates. I wish I knew what the hell they were, I'd go into business making them, myself, since so many people have AC but can't afford to turn it on unless the temperature is in triple digits.

Response to Warpy (Reply #1)Sat Jun 1, 2013, 02:00 PM
Viva_La_Revolution (27,100 posts)
3. My Mom was making and selling those in Colorado before she passed away in April.

It would be so cosmically cool if you owned one of hers.

Response to Viva_La_Revolution (Reply #3)Sat Jun 1, 2013, 02:07 PM
 Warpy (69,370 posts)
4. I'm in NM, so it's entirely possible

The cloth gave up the ghost years ago, so I remade it using some Japanese fabric left over from a haori jacket I'd made. It's hanging together nicely and is 100% cotton, a rarity these days.

DUmmy Warpy, you can buy Miracool bandanas for less than $2.00 a pop.  There is no need to go to a craft store looking for beads or cutting up a jacket to sew the beads into--You can buy one that is all put together for only $2.00 you buffoon.

http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=miracool+bandana+shopping&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

[miskie]

Apparently, none of these Dumbasses ever rode in a LLV/FFV delivering the mail in the summertime. 

(Some routes that I've worked, I welcomed having to get out and walk a few blocks!)   

On hot days, Ill stop at the nearby convenience store and buy a gallon jug of store brand water before heading out.

It will be empty upon my return- And because of the heat, I won't need to use a bathroom anywhere along the route either. I just sweat it all out. I've learned the best thing to do with an LLV is to close the door leading to the back, open both windows all the way up and set the fan so that it blows across the cab. Sure, the mail in the back gets pretty warm, but being the evil fascist rethug that I am, I'm really not that concerned about how comfortable the bills and catalogs are.

[jtyangel]

Thermostats at 71?  Talk about some folks who truly need to suck it up. 

78 is the lowest it goes here.