Every summer, the UK collectively realises the same thing: our homes are simply not built for heat. By day three of a heatwave, the bedrooms feel stuffy, everyone’s sleeping badly, and even the animals of the house looks personally offended by the temperature.
As a family with teen twins, I’ve learnt that surviving summer comfortably is less about expensive gadgets and more about small intentional changes that genuinely make the house feel calmer and cooler.
So if you’re trying to stay comfortable during the warmer months – without installing air conditioning – here are a few things that are genuinely helping us this summer.
1. Keeping Curtains & Shutters Closed During the Day
This sounds obvious, but it makes a huge difference.
As tempting as it is to throw open every window the second the sun appears, we’ve found the coolest rooms are always the ones where we:
- keep curtains closed,
- shut blinds or shutters early,
- and block direct sunlight before the house heats up.
British homes trap warmth incredibly well – which is wonderful in January and absolutely unforgiving in July.
Then in the evening, once the air cools slightly, we open windows upstairs and downstairs to create airflow through the house.
It’s simple, free, and honestly one of the most effective things we do.
2. Freezing Hot Water Bottles (An Unexpected Summer Essential)
Hot water bottles aren’t just for winter anymore.
Filling an old one with water and placing it in the freezer has become one of our favourite summer hacks – especially on those humid nights when nobody can sleep properly.
We use them:
- at the bottom of beds,
- behind our backs when working,
- or just held against our feet to cool down quickly.
Top tip: don’t overfill it before freezing and don’t reuse in the winter – use old bottles for this trick
3. The Fan That’s Actually Worth It
We’ve gone through a lot of fans over the years, but the Shark FlexBreeze genuinely lives up to the hype.
What I love most is that it doesn’t feel industrial or ridiculously loud like some traditional fans. It works beautifully indoors, but we’ve also used it outside – perfect for alfresco dining!
A few reasons we’ve loved it:
- quiet enough for bedrooms
- portable
- cordless option
- great airflow
- and ideal during sticky UK nights
Make the most of the misting feature – so lovely on the face!
4. Switching to Proper Hydration (Without Sugary Drinks)
When it’s hot, everyone automatically reaches for fizzy drinks and ice lollies – but they rarely help for long.
This summer we’ve been keeping big jugs of:
- iced lemon water
- cucumber water
- sparkling water with frozen berries
- and homemade iced herbal teas in the fridge
It feels fresher, lighter, and honestly helps with energy levels during hot afternoons.
A small thing that’s made a difference: if having an ice maker machine! Saves room in the freezer and keeps us with a constant siupply of ice
5. Creating a Cooler Evening Routine
The evenings are always the hardest part of a UK heatwave.
By bedtime the whole house seems to hold onto the day’s warmth, so we’ve started simplifying our evenings to help everyone sleep better.
A few things helping us:
- lightweight cotton bedding
- cooler showers before bed
- avoiding the oven late in the evening
- dim lighting
- and unplugging unnecessary electronics
A Few Other Summer Cooling Ideas We’re Loving
- Lighter meals and picnic-style dinners
- Keeping lights low in the evening
- Creating shaded corners in the garden
- Linen bedding over synthetic fabrics
I think there’s something quite lovely about finding slower, simpler ways to adapt to the seasons instead of constantly fighting them.
British summers may only last a few weeks, but creating a cooler, calmer home during the hotter days really does make such a difference – especially with teenagers who somehow radiate heat like small portable radiators.
If you’ve found any genuinely effective heatwave hacks this year, I’d love to hear them.
