When I first moved into my house last fall, it was the worst of the hot summer heat. In South Dakota, there’s no water to moderate the temperatures, so we frequently see temperatures well above 100 degrees. It was just my luck that the very first night I was there, the air conditioner went out, and it filled my house up with smoke. Fortunately I woke up before there was any serious amount of smoke build up. I aired out the house, and everything was just fine, except it was really hot! I was without air-conditioning for an entire week! Here’s how I kept cool without air conditioning, and how you can too.

The first thing to do is let the house cool down over night. Open up all the windows before you go to bed, and let the nice cool evening air fill up your house. The second you wake up in the morning, close all of your doors and windows and close your blinds. This will enable to trap a lot of the cool evening air in from the night before, and not have to deal with the beating of the hot summer sun.

You’ll also want to drink as much cold water and lemonade during the summer to keep you plenty hydrated, and to decrease your overall body temperature. Eating some cold fruit is another great way to accomplish this same goal. Anything frozen is just fine.

You can make a bit of your own home-made air conditioner by freezing some water over night and putting it in front of a fan. It won’t cool your entire house, but it’ll make a room’s temperature very reasonable.

If it’s getting really hot, grab a spray bottle, fill it full of water, and put it in the fridge. After the water cools down plenty, spray your self down a bit. Your skin has an amazing ability to regulate body temperatures, and by cooling off your skin with a gentle mist of cool water, you’ll be able to cool off your body.

If you can’t stay cool at home, consider going out into the world. The major box stores are all plenty air-conditioned, consider going to one of them for an hour. You could also hit up the air-conditioned local library, and read a good book. If all else fails, head out to the local swimming pool!

It might just be starting to get warm now, but in a couple of months you’ll be facing the hot summer sun. If your air-conditioner goes out, or just don’t have an air-conditioner, be prepared.