Learning how to cool down a room fast is essential when you don't have the luxury of whacking on the air conditioner as soon as the temperature starts to rise.
But worry not friends, I canvased the Real Homes team who have all lived (or still live) in small homes without AC, for their top tips of cooling down your room this summer. Our seven tips, hacks, cooling tricks and product recommendations will have you chilling nicely in no time.
Our guide on the best fans on the market are a great start, but there is so much more you can do to shift that sweltering summer heat out of your room.
7 smart ways to cool down a room
1. Close windows, blinds, shutters and curtains
It might sound counter-intuitive to close the windows when you're really gagging for some fresh air, but actually, keeping the hot outside air firmly outside is a smart way to keep the temperature indoors, down and stay cool, especially in a top floor room or apartment.
To keep your room cool, keep windows closed for as long as possible, but as a minimum, until the sunshine has passed that aspect of your home. Direct sunlight beaming down into your room will only send the thermometer soaring indoors so keep the bright sun out, and the cooler air indoors will do exactly that.
This includes pulling down the blinds, closing curtains, and keeping shutters closed. Once the beating sun has passed the room in question and the hottest part of the day is done, open it all up and let in the much cooler breeze. Many people assume high noon is the hottest time, but it's actually between 3-6pm.
Our social media editor Luisa Rossi shares an apartment and spends a lot of time in one room. She says, "As bleak as it is to close the curtains and windows when you want the sun streaming through on a nice warm day, it actually does do a fair bit of work towards keep your room a lot cooler, especially when it gets to nighttime."
If like me you live in a small two-story home, keep upstairs bedroom and bathroom doors closed too, as this will act as a further layer to keep the heat away from the heart of your home. If you're trying to cool down a dorm room, consider a portable black out blind that suctions onto your window. No damage, no fuss, but maximum heat prevention.
I used this portable travel black out blind from Amazon when my daughter was little and it was like magic, reflecting the heat right back out instead of letting it in.
Price: $23.99
Curtains with thermal protection work both ways: keeping the heat out in the summer, and packing the heat inside in the winter. Wizardry if you ask us, and very effective. These sweet and simple luxurious faux silk curtains in peony pink are the perfect way to add a soft elegance to your bedroom, whilst doubling up on thermal function year-round. Choose from four lengths. To make your small space look bigger, we recommend buying curtains that touch the floor, and moving your curtain rail up towards the ceiling to give an illusion of space.
Price: From $21.72
Power: Rechargeable USB
This small but mighty little fan has four speeds, adjustable tilt, nifty little hook to hang it up, a handy clip for attachment to just about any edge, and a USB charging wire. Cordless when in use (unless you're charging it, in which case it will still operate) and portable, move it around the room whenever you need. Blast it in your face, cool down your legs, or when the day has cooled, pop on a window sill and face inwards to suck in cooler air from outside. It's portable too, so you can stick it in your handbag and take it out, previous models have lasted on one charge for around 4.5 hours and customer reviews comment on how long it lasts. The built-in night-light is a great touch too.
Price: $40.99
Size (inches): 78L x 50W
This two-pack of suction cup black out blinds will do the job nicely in the day time to keep the beating heat of the sun out of your room. Don't worry if it's too big for your window: the edges have Velcro tabs to help you concertina down to size. It comes with a handy travel bag and is made of 100% polyester. To clean, wipe down with a damp cloth then leave to dry.
2. Open your attic
Does your home have an attic hatch? If so, ping it open to allow large amounts of hot air to rise up and bother the cobwebs up there instead of you down there.
If you have a ceiling window, open that up too. Think of like a teapot, when you're hot, open it up and let the heat rush up and away. Hurrah!
Emily Lambe, deputy editor here at Real Homes lives in a compact Victorian home with no AC. She adds to this tip, saying, "Make sure to angle your fan so the hot air is blown into your attic. That way, only cooler air will circulate around you."
3. Air cooling hacks
You can have the best fan out there on the go in your hot room, but unless it comes equipped with cooling technology, the most it can do is move warm air around, which is far from ideal.
There are some budget-friendly fan options with cooling tech out there including the Dreo Nomad One Tower Fan from Amazon. It has an average customer rating of 4.6/5 stars, over 26,000 reviews and is an Amazon bestseller purchased 50,000 times in the past month alone. I love that it has a remote as I personally find this feature very useful.
I have two tower fans similar in specification to this and they work so well and honestly, feel almost as effective as air con. It definitely takes the edge off the heat and will help you sleep easier in a heatwave.
But if you aren't able to buy a new fan, you can make any fan blow cold air. Simply fill a bowl with cold water (add ice cubes if you have them) and it'll blow cooler air out.
You can also fill a large dish with water and freeze it, creating one giant ice cube to place in a bucket or tub and fill with water. The air above the water will be cooler by default. Even placing bowls of cold water around your room will help bring the temperature down.
Genius! You can easily work out the cost of running a fan to help you stay on track with your monthly energy budget during heatwaves.
4. Use energy efficient bulbs
It's easy to forget light-bulbs can give off heat, particularly older incandescent bulbs. It might seem a non-issue, but in small spaces, the energy given off will add to the room's heat.
Switch to energy-efficient bulbs to nix the heat, and they'll last so much longer. The Sylvania Eco LED bulbs are Amazon's choice, have an average customer rating of 4.7 and have clocked up more than 46,500 reviews.
5. Hang damp sheets
My personal favorite is hanging up a damp sheet in front of an open window. When I was little, I lived in Iran and summers there are unbearably hot, easily getting up to 120°F — yes, really! This sheet trick was one my grandmother taught me and so effective. So much so, we'd even take sheets with us to picnics, wet them down and hang from a tree for a cooler breeze whilst out in the heat of the day.
Sounds like a myth, but trust this Middle Eastern girl: it really works.
6. Limit oven use
Using your oven is not like using a microwave, as it generates heat that will permeate the air around it and heat up the room. Cut down use by firing up your air fryer instead.
If you don't already have one, run, don't walk to snap one up as this item is a kitchen must-have and will not only transform the way you cook, but stop your kitchen or diner becoming a sweltering sweat box you dread making your meals in.
We bought our air fryer eight months ago and haven't turned our oven on once. It's far superior for 99 per cent of your cooking needs, especially if you snap up one of our tried and tested best air fryers.
Content editor Eve Smallman also lives in a compact Victorian apartment without air conditioning. She says, "I don't use any other cooking tools except my air fryer in the summer. It's perfect for making nibbly food, but doesn't require the whole oven going on. My Victorian home is wonderfully cool during warmer months, and limiting my big appliance use is one of my favorite ways to keep it like that!"
A multi-cooker (such as this Ninja one from Amazon) is also an awesome investment as you can prepare multiple food items at once. Winner, winner, it's time for a (cool girl) dinner.
$59.99
Quite often, air fryers have too many cooking functions for specific foods we'll never heat. So it's nice to have a small air fryer that keeps things simple. This one is quiet and compact, and only weighs 5lbs if you want to pop it away somewhere out of site when it's not in use to claim back your counter space.
$59.99
This two-quart air fryer comes in four fun colors and is great if you rely on your oven for most jobs but want to speed up the process of cooking sides. It has fast preheating, and you can stick the non-stick cooking basket interior in the dishwasher. Nobody wants to be standing around washing dishes on a hot day so we love this feature for summer cooking.
$59.39
If you're looking for an easy-to-use air fryer to reheat and air fry smaller batches of food, then this is for you. It's great for frozen food such as appetizers, fish, and chicken.
7. Apply heat-reducing films to windows
If the idea of keeping your windows and curtains shut all day paves the way to a little spark of panic or claustrophobia, don't fret.
Applying a reflective, heat-reducing window film will help regulate the temperature instead. These films are super easy to apply (and are ideal for renters as they can be removed without causing damage) and are highly effective.
They won't zap light, and many add privacy during the daytime (don't walk around in the buff at night with the lights on though as they usually because see-through when there is light on inside!
Keen to try this cooling hack out? Kespen's 11 color offerings on Amazon will mean a heat-reducing film to suit everyone's tastes. Rated 4.1/5 stars and with more than 23,000 customer ratings, many comment on its effectiveness. They offer tips for applying it yourself, including using a window squeegee to apply it and push out bubbles.
Now you're equipped to cool your room down, take the plunge with an above ground pool in the backyard for a cooling summer splash (why should kids have all the fun!).