Summer-Proof Your Home: Hot Weather, Cool Tips

The summers are here, and the mercury is already rising above undesirable degrees. Indian summers are a prolonged heat wave that goes on from the month of April till July, and during these times average temperatures range from 28 degrees Celsius to as high as 50 degrees Celsius. While most people prefer to stay indoors in the comfort of their air-conditioned homes as the scorching heat creates havoc outside, frequent power cuts only add on to their troubles of having to deal with summers.

Here, we have put together a few of the important tips to summer-proof your home. Use these tips and gear up your home to deal with the sweltering heat:

1. Keep the heat outside: The first thing to do is to block the heat from percolating into your home. In order to do this, carefully observe all the doors, windows or any other areas from where hot air from outside can seep into your home. Blocking the heat will help you keep indoors cool for a longer period of time, even during power cuts. Another good idea is to insulate your walls and ceilings so as to minimize passage of heat through them.

2. Film your window panes: Although curtains do help in keeping the sun's rays from entering your home, a significant amount of heat still manages to enter the home through the gaps between curtains and windows. The best way to avoid heat from entering window panes is by covering them with tinted glass films which reflect the sun's rays and also block harmful UV rays from entering the home. Windows facing east and west witness more sunlight than others, so these must be properly covered.

3. Enable natural cooling, when possible: Natural ventilation can help keep your home cool especially during those torturous summer nights when power cuts extend to several hours. The air is relatively cooler during the night, and having a proper ventilation system can help keep the temperatures low.

4. Greenery: Planting a few trees and shrubs around your home not only enhances its aesthetic appeal, it also keeps the air around your home clean and cool. What's more, a few tall trees along the walls of your home will also lend ample amount of shade to your home, thus keeping it cool.

5. Avoid heat-emitting lighting: Certain types of electrical lighting, including equipment like bulbs not only consume a lot of energy but also emit a lot of heat to their surroundings. In order to keep the indoor temperatures low during summers, it is a good idea to equip your home with CFL or LED lighting, which are energy-efficient and do not emit as much heat as traditional lighting methods.

So, follow these simple tips and keep cool this summer!

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