
Heat: When heat tips turn out to be potentially deadly myths!
We don't have to kid ourselves: last June set quite a few records when it came to heat. And summer has just begun. That's why we're currently receiving heat tips everywhere. But: Many of them turn out to be nonsense or even deadly traps! Many supposed heat tips have been passed down within families for years, repeated like a prayer wheel by the media or passed on without reflection. But are they actually effective? Let’s dispel some myths.
When it's hot in the apartment, put cold towels over the heaters or clothes horse because they have a cooling effect afterwards? Seal the windows tightly so that the heat “stays out”? In the evening, blow the heat out of the apartment with a fan? Remove pillows, blankets and upholstery because they store heat and release it again at night? It's tips like these (and more!) that we read regularly. But what good are they anyway?
We can, indeed must, assume that the heat in summer will continue to increase in the coming years. The Earth's atmosphere is continually warming. The temperature fluctuations have also increased, the so-called amplitudes have become significantly larger ( compare ). This means that the extreme temperatures are diverging further and further from one another.
Therefore, it is of course always a topic of discussion how one can optimally design one's own apartment in the summer when it is very hot without suffering health problems. The sentence now sounds a little strange because I deliberately avoided using the term “temperature”. Because the deadly player in the game is humidity. And these must be avoided!
Heat: Pay attention to the humidity!
Have you ever been to a sauna? For those who have never been in a sauna, here's a quick case study: You're sitting in the sauna, sizzling away at just over 80 degrees. Basically, it's not a problem at first, especially at 80 degrees and low humidity you can enjoy it for a few minutes (of course, be careful in a sauna in general if you have existing health problems).
You then come up with the great idea of simply making an infusion. This is where a common misconception comes into play: the infusion itself doesn't make the sauna hotter! The infusion even cools down (very slightly). This has to do with the specific heat capacity and the different temperature prevailing at that moment between the water (infusion) and the air in the sauna. Nevertheless, the temperature feels hotter to you after the infusion. This is because the humidity was increased by the infusion.
With this knowledge, let's now take a look at the so-called "heat tips" that we are given again and again year in and year out. These supposed heat tips can even be dangerous for older people or people with cardiovascular diseases. Some of these tips like to use damp cloths or bowls of ice water.
Think again about the sauna effect! Tips like “wet towels” or “bowls of ice water” are therefore disastrous. Although they can cool you down in certain areas, they provide tropical air (bad!) and prevent the important sweating. If you spend several hours in your own home at high temperatures, you should definitely keep the humidity low ! That's the be-all and end-all! So no damp cloths, laundry to dry or bowls of ice water.
Just a few days ago we showed how nonsensical the tip with the self-made air conditioning system made of a towel, water, fan and a chair is ( see here ). In the long run, there is no way to do more than increase the humidity. And that is exactly what should be avoided.
Avoid stagnant air!
Circulating air is good! Therefore, the advice with constantly closed windows is not necessarily effective if you stay IN the rooms permanently. On the other hand, darkening a room is generally good, but air has to get through. Anyone who has ever been to Italy will probably know the ideal solution: folding blackouts! The windows can be opened, but the sun does not shine into the apartment.

Perhaps homeowners in northern latitudes should consider adding such (really simple, by the way) installations to their homes in the next few years. Unfortunately, the problem with many windows is that “closing” and “darkening” go hand in hand. At least within the apartment, the doors should definitely remain open.
Hence the recommendation for fans in hot weather! Fans keep air moving and moving air removes heat from the skin. Because if sweating no longer leads to cooling down because the air in the room is stagnant, then the room atmosphere becomes uncomfortable.
Remove cushions, blankets and pillows from the apartment when it's hot?
At this point a question: Where does the idea come from that pillows, blankets and upholstery would store heat and should be removed from living spaces when it is hot? As already explained, the humidity of a room is crucial. In addition, pillows and blankets would have to have a latent heat storage capacity (yes, who doesn't know them, the good old sofa cushion heat storage capacity). We therefore remember: Tips such as “remove pillows from the apartment” because they could be “heat accumulators” are rather nonsense, because they are not. Unless there are specific grain pillows...
Unfortunately, we can only guess where this misconception comes from. This incorrect tip probably comes from the assumption that we cover ourselves in winter and then a blanket keeps us warm. But the mistake is that a blanket would keep you warm. But it doesn't do that, it just isolates. The heat comes from our bodies. A blanket or a cushion is generally not a heat store.
To make it clear: Anyone who surrounds themselves with wet towels or bowls of ice water in a permanently unventilated apartment in the heat and stagnant air is creating their own tropical sauna infusion. Unhealthy! It's also embarrassing if you've thrown all the pillows, blankets and upholstery out the window beforehand.
So what do you do in the heat?
Let's come to the conclusion: The temperature is important, but the humidity is the essential element that needs to be taken into account! It would therefore make perfect sense to install hygrometers as well (not just thermometers). Excessive indoor humidity is not only problematic for the building structure, but ultimately also for health. High indoor humidity is particularly problematic for people with pre-existing health problems or for older people. So avoid anything (unnecessary) that increases the humidity in closed rooms .
Ideally, the relative humidity in the living room and office 40 to 60 percent.
The air should be moving. For energy reasons, a fan ultimately preferable to an air conditioner, even if it can regulate the humidity. air conditioning is of course helpful. Likewise: ventilate, yes, but also darken !
unnecessary sources of heat within rooms . In the end, this also includes electrical appliances. If not needed, turn it off. It's the better alternative not only in the heat, but also for your wallet.
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication
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were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )
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