With summer comes warmer weather! Warmer temperatures are always a good thing, but you may find you have a love/hate relationship with Spring and Summer if you don’t have an adequate cooling system in your home.
Drink Up.
Stay hydrated by sipping from a water bottle throughout the day. Aim for at least a half-gallon over the course of a day. If you sweat a lot, throw a sports drink or two into the mix to replace lost electrolytes. If you’re tired of water, natural fruit juices are a good alternative (and make great frozen drinks, too, for additional cooling benefits). Add a few mint leaves for a super-cooling treat. Just avoid excess caffeine or alcohol, which can dehydrate you.
Cool Your Neck.
Your body’s main temperature sensor is located on the back of your neck. If you have long hair, wear it up to let breezes reach this area. If you’re going to sit by a fan, make sure it blows onto the back of your neck. A cool compress over this area will also go a long way to helping you feel cooler.
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Peppermint is Key.
Rub on some peppermint lotion. The menthol will stimulate your nerves and trick your body into thinking you’re cooler than you are.
Sleep like an Egyptian
You know it's hot in Egypt, right? The so-called “Egyptian method” of sleeping involves dampening a sheet or towel in cool water and using it as a blanket. We recommend laying the damp sheets on top of a dry towel to avoid soaking the mattress.
As much as I love our family home, we don’t have central air conditioning so when the weather finally starts to pick up, it gets pretty uncomfortable, especially in my office space which is located in our attic.
The cost of central air conditioning is quite unattractive and we’ve tried a number of devices to help us cool the air in our home: fans, window units, oscillating towers, you name it! So we've some amazing devices that help keep you cool.
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Lightweight, with a powerful fan and cooling system that actually works while saving more energy and money compared to central air and other window units! Needless to say, I’m very impressed.
Again, this unit is super lightweight and I have no trouble carrying it throughout the house, but what I like most about it is its technology and functions. I don’t have to get out of my seat to change the settings because it comes with the cutest remote, which requires CR2032 coin type batteries for replacement.
It has three different speed settings and an awesome Sleep setting that allows the fan to run on High for one hour, Medium for the second hour and low for the third hour (the unit repeats this pattern until you decide to turn it off).
The unit is equipped with a timer and can be programmed to run up to 7.5 hours before switching to Standby mode. There is also a swing setting (similar to an oscillating fan) which controls the air flow. You can also decide whether you want the fan to run independently or with evaporative cooling.
To use the unit, you can simply plug in and keep it on the fan setting. You can also fill the water tank then plug in to use the Cool setting for cooler air. You’ll have to clean the Honeywell unit and depending on your home’s air and water conditions, the frequency can vary. Suggested cleaning frequency is every two months, however it could be much more frequent given the conditions.
The detachable parts make it easy to clean the carbon dust filter and cooling media inside the unit. All you have to do is drain the water tank and refill with fresh water at least once a week to help reduce mineral deposits and when the time comes, slide out the filter and media to be washed under fresh water.
I still can’t believe how impressive this unit is! It’s user-friendly, effective and although fairly large, it actually has a sleek look. I once dreaded the summer months approaching, but I am confident that they will be much more manageable with my new Honeywell Portable Evaporative Air Cooler.
Jasmine Danielle is the Associate Editor of BlackDoctor.org. She received her BFA in Dance Education & Performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and has since done work as a certified fitness & wellness educator, blogger, dancer, and designer.
