How to stay cool when your AC goes out
Extreme heat can be hard to take. If you're outside, you can do yourself a favor by keeping in the shade and staying hydrated. When things heat up inside your home, because your air-conditioning unit suddenly gave out, the steps to take may not be as obvious. After all, we expect our homes to be our shelters from heat waves and other unpredictable things happening outdoors.
Fortunately, regaining your cool at home can be as simple as contacting a reliable heating and air-conditioning professional. However, when you call your local expert, you may find that they're not able to immediately get out to your house. Because this might be the case if the weather in your area is really hot, we've outlined tips you can use to keep comfortable while you wait for help to arrive.
Get help from a reliable expert
The first thing you can do when your air conditioner goes out is contact a professional who can either fix the unit or install an AC replacement. If you're unsure of a person to call, you might ask your neighbors and friends who they use for their HVAC services.
Thinking about calling a Lennox® Dealer? Every one of our dealers across North America has expert HVAC professionals on staff who are trained to take care of any comfort issue you may have. Dave Lennox Premier Dealers are the best of the best. To earn and maintain their "Premier" status, Dave Lennox Premier Dealers are regularly evaluated through an independent customer-satisfaction review process. If you'd like to compare reviews of dealers in your area, you can visit our Dealer Locator pages.
DIY steps for the short term
As you wait for your local HVAC professional, and possibly an emergency air conditioner replacement, there are some simple tips you can follow to keep your house and your family comfortable. Staying cool without AC is not impossible, so long as you have a good plan in place. A cool head can help, as well.
- Pull down the shades on all exterior windows in your house. This can keep the sun and heat out of rooms.
- Turn on all ceiling fans or add portable fans to rooms that could use extra ventilation.
- Dampen a kitchen towel and drape it around your neck, or use cooling towels that are available from sporting goods stores.
- You've heard the saying "cool as a cucumber." Treat yourself to tall glasses of ice water or seltzer water filled with thin slices of cucumber as a refresher. Another option is to add fruit to your water.
- If you have kids, be sure to keep a close eye on them to make sure they don't become overheated, as children tend to be more vulnerable to hot conditions than adults.
- Put off any household chores that require a lot of bending and lifting. Give the family a free pass to be a little lazy.
- Avoid using your oven or stove to cook meals.
- Limit use of your dishwasher and clothes washer to nighttime hours.
- If you have upstairs bedrooms, consider sleeping in downstairs areas, which tend to stay cooler.
- Strip your bed down to lightweight sheets only.
- Crack open windows at night if the temperature outside isn't significantly warmer than the air inside.
- If you're feeling crafty and ambitious, you can make your own temporary air conditioner out of an inexpensive ice chest. Money Talks News offers an instructional video you can follow on YouTube.
Consider your product options
If you think you might need a new air conditioner, you can do some research before the technician arrives at your door. Lennox offers a full lineup of residential air conditioners and heat pumps for emergency replacement, and a variety of budget cooling options are available. You won't find specific prices for home cooling products on our website, as your dealer will give you a quote based on your needs and a variety of other factors, but you can learn more about our product lines. You might also ask your Lennox Dealer about financing options available for emergency replacement air-conditioning products.
