Should you keep your windows closed during a heatwave?
Met Office predicts that heatwave will continue in the UK but what difference does it make to close your windows?
It might sound counterintuitive to close your windows during a heatwave, but experts have suggested this is a good course of action if you want to keep cool.
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The UK is in the midst of one of its hottest ever summers, with another heatwave underway this week after what was a record June for high temperatures.
Mete Office Meteorologist Honor Criswick said: “For the time being, it looks like the heatwave is set to continue, but depending on where you are, there may be a brief respite in the heat to come.”
Areas in southern England and the Midlands have also been highlighted as being at the highest risk of wildfires, according to Natural England, as the hot weather continues.
A massive fire was seen in Walthamstow on a train line, which led to services being cancelled.
Here are some tips of how to keep your home cool during the hot weather.
Should you keep your windows closed during a heatwave?
Expert advice is to keep windows, and also curtains, closed in homes during the hottest part of the day when it is hotter outside than it is indoors.
The government has said you can open windows when the air feels cooler outside than inside, for example, at night, and try to get air flowing through your home.
"If the air is cooler than your skin temperature, it's going to cool you down even without sweating," Becci Taylor of engineering firm Arup told the BBC.
Other tips for keeping your home cool
If you have a powerful fan, putting it into the coolest room of the house and then angling the fan to direct cooler air to the rest of the house is an effective cooling mechanism.
It does not matter where in a room you place a smaller fan, but it can be useful overnight to open a window and put a fan near the opening to help colder air blast around.
And while it feels nice to point a fan at the face, it is more effective to try to cool down the whole room.
As for other, more general advice, the government states:
- Wear loose, light-coloured clothing made from breathable natural fabrics such as cotton or linen,
- Stay hydrated throughout the day, not only when thirsty. If sweating heavily, consider rehydration drinks to replace lost electrolytes,
- Limit alcohol and caffeine,
- Turn off non-essential electronics, which can generate excess heat,
- Avoid strenuous activity outside.