[ghostlykisses]

So when we lived in Vermont no one really had full house air conditioning. Most people who had a/c had a small one in the sleeping areas or maybe a small living room. I was used to that, no big deal. The really hot weather only lasts a short time right.<br><br>
But now I live in Florida and it is HOT. I am looking into an eco-village but I just realized they do not use air conditioning. I could handle it in the daytime but ughhhhhhhhhhh at night, I can't sleep when it is so hot. So if anyone here lives in a hot climate with out a/c how do you do it? How do you stay comfortable at night?

 

[tsfairy]

My quick answer is no way no how could I live without AC. I'm in Houston and it's too darn hot.<br><br>
Then I remember the apartment I rented years ago, in a 4-plex built sometime in the 1910-20's era. We had 1 window unit, which we ran very scarcely since it costs a ton to run. The house was built with thick, well insulated walls, deep window wells, high ceilings and big porches. Back then there wasn't any AC of course, so homes were built to maximize airflow and shade. Also, we just plain got used to the heat. My mom would come over and complain about the heat and I didn't even notice.<br><br>
So, it's doable but the type of structure you're living in can make a huge difference. Most modern homes in the south are built to use AC, so they don't allow any outside air in and even with the windows open don't often get much airflow through the house.<br><br>
Oh and ceiling fans can really help too.

 

[Arduinna]

Isn't that what sleeping porches are for LOL<br><br>
That is what we used when we visited the relatives when I was a kid.

 

[mama2annabelle]

It would be pretty miserable from May through October here in Florida (Tampa Bay area) with no A/C. I can't imagine doing that by choice.<br>
Now, going without heat would be totally do-able though.

 

[amandapearl]

I lived in Nicaragua for 2 years without AC in my house...<br>
It's about as muggy as S FL...where I grew up and currently live.<br>
How do you do it?? Lots of cool showers (sometimes upwards of 5 a day), fans at night, and going to the movies (with AC) on days that it's really hot! It's do-able, but i think now (with a husband and kids) i would just be grouchy in the heat.

 

[ParisApril]

The muggy Flordia heat is a lot like heat Southern Ontario in the summertime well springtime too because it is hot out there already! The humidity is awful. Today we are supposed to have a temp of 27C/81F but with humidity it will feel like 37C/99F.<br><br>
We don't use A/C and have found that the body adapts to the hot temperatures. At night (or during the day if we get too hot) we use the ceiling fan in the bedroom. A cold shower or a dip in the river help too.<br><br>
Sometimes during the hottest part of the day I will take a book and sit up on our back hill in the swing chair and read where it is super treed and shady and 10 degrees cooler! I can't wait for all the trees I've planted to get bigger!

 

[faithsstuff]

We live in Atlanta and I have to say that having an attic fan has saved us so far. We open all the windows at night, turn on the attic fan and close all the windows when we get up. It keeps the house cooler all day. We also have one portable fan that we use in whatever room we're in. The portable fan helps with the muggy wetness.

 

[Liquesce]

Now I live in relatively cool NJ, but I used to live in Egypt, close enough to the coast to be oppressively humid but not close enough to catch a break by way of sea breezes. I had one small fan I was splitting with up to five other people at times, so it was nice when I had it but otherwise you do adapt somewhat. Stay in during the heat of the day when possible, drink a lot of water, use fans when you have access to them, if you have access to the coast take advantage of that, sleep under open windows, and learn to dress light (as in light, loose materials, not really the same heavy materials just with cut off arms and legs ... denim shorts, I'm looking at you ...).<br><br>
The cool thing about the hot climate was it spawned a whole night culture ... with everyone doing what they could to stay comfortable during the day, night was the time to find everyone out enjoying themselves. Maybe your ecovillage has a small scale version of the same going on?

 

[marimara]

Most old Florida and other Southern houses have breezeways, jalouse windows, are made of brick or concrete block and are situated so that they maximize the breezes. Fans help. Getting wet helps. Going to bed w/wet hair and leave a fan on helps. You get used to it, you really do. Pretty soon, the grocery store is freezzzzzing <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/img/vbsmilies/smilies/cold.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Cold">

 

[omamasmama]

<p>we lived in a vw bus for a while in pensacola area....during the summer. it was hot, humid and nasty. everything in our van molded! but what saved us during the heat was drinking insane amounts of water, taking lots of showers, especially before bed, and lots of lazy days. i see this thread is older and i'm curious how your summer went? </p>

 

[CCJWGM]

<p>Paint your roof white.  Seriously - this is how I did without A/C in So Cal in a small house that was often 10-15 degrees hotter than outside.  We painted the roof white and the next day the interior temp of the house was 10 degrees cooler than outside.  Plus, it extended the life of the roof since it was nearing replacement.  Yes, elastomeric paint isn't that ecologically sound but I figure what we gained in not using a/c was worth it. </p>

 

[I Fly]

<p>We just built a house in central NC with no AC - very rare here.  We have high ceilings, no sunshine into windows during the summers, and fans.  This past summer was our hottest on record, and our family was camping out the entire summer while we built our house.  The nights were surprisingly easy in our tent.  We had a few sticky nights all summer, but even if the low was 75, it was fine by midnight.  My ritual was to take a cold shower around 9:00pm every night before bedtime.  We didn't even have a fan, and were fine.  The hot hot HOT afternoons were much harder to deal with as our tent wasn't in the shade until 3-4pm!!!!</p>