By Alison R., Teen Portal Staff Writer
This summer hasn't been too hot...yet, but I'm sure most of us are spending a lot of time -- and wasting a lot of energy -- trying to stay cool. Whether you think cranking the AC is the only way to get a good night sleep or feel like you'll sweat more on your bike than in your car, you could be wrong. You actually can beat the heat this summer by helping the planet – and your wallet.
Don’t Use a Car
Apart from directly adding to global warming and swallowing your gas money to boot, cars are not exactly the most comfortable of rides during the summer. Even with air conditioning (which takes too long to work for short rides anyway), the sun let in by all those windows heats up your car just like a greenhouse, making front-seat rides especially uncomfortable behind those windshields.
Arlington has many alternative transportation options, including the Metrorail, Metrobus and our very own ART Bus systems, all of which are bike-friendly. Metro fares are anything from $1.35 to $4.50, and regular ART Bus fares are $1.35, but only 60¢ for teens with a valid school ID and completely free on Code Red days. In addition, most of the county is both walk-able and bike-able (and skateboard-able, if you really wanted to). Visit the Car-Free Diet site for first-timer help, the Way to Go Arlington site for info on different transit options, and the iRide site, created especially to help teens who want to go places by themselves without a car.
Use the Air
What do clothes dryers, hair dryers and air conditioning all have in common? They are expensive and largely unnecessary energy hogs. The high temperatures of clothes dryers are especially damaging to elastics, T-shirt lettering and knit items, and blow-drying hair can lead to, well, dry hair and cause split ends. All this extra heat in your house might make you want to turn that air conditioning up, but please reconsider: Instead of using more energy to combat the effects of already using a lot of energy, why not just use less in the first place?
Both cooling and drying can be accomplished by simply using the air. You can hang dry your laundry with virtually no effort (or money) on your part by putting up a clothes line in your backyard or by getting indoor and standing racks, which work just as well. If you don’t care about going places with wet hair, you won’t have a problem with air drying it; if you do care, it can still be accomplished during those hours when you’re at home – watching TV, on the computer, reading, doing summer assignments – or even right before you go to bed.
As for that air conditioning, here’s a little secret: Open your windows. House fans, installed in the attic, can bring cool air into your home overnight; ceiling fans are an easy and affordable alternative for apartments and other small spaces; and natural ventilation – using pressure differences to bring fresh air inside – needs no fan at all. Just remember that you’ll get a more powerful airflow if you increase the pressure by opening the window less, to about six inches.
Chill at Home
Have you ever looked at a package of non-perishable food and read the following: “Store in a cool, dry place”? Well, what’s good for food is good for you.
The best way to keep your house cool when it’s already hot outside, aside from using fans, is to put the blinds over the windows that are letting in direct sunlight (during the day it’s those windows facing the south), but don’t overdo it or you might find it too dark to see. Also, if you have a dehumidifier (most likely in your basement), use it on especially humid days to decrease the perceived temperature – that is, what temperature your body thinks it is – because increased humidity reduces the efficiency of your cooling system, making you sweat more.
Speaking of basements, they happen to be the coolest place in the house during the summer both because the ground they’re built in doesn’t change temperature as much as the air outside, and because hot air rises. So another thing: Stay away from your attic and upstairs floors. Hang out downstairs or in your basement as much as possible.
Cool Off Outside
If you still like going outside, don’t think you have to confine yourself indoors. Arlington has tons of great parks and hiking trails that are shaded and have benches. And if you like to go running or on long walks, just do as most joggers do and run in the evening or early morning on roads that run north-south, perpendicular to the sun’s rays. In fact, these times of day are the best for going outside in general, so a good way to get yourself to walk or bike somewhere is to time your trek accordingly.
Then there’s that other thing: Water. Yes, in the good old days before air conditioning this was the primary way to keep the kids from whining about the heat: Go swimming. Arlington has three indoor pools, all accessible for under $5, and just $1 for high schoolers and 50¢ for middle schoolers. With timing in mind, try for the early hours of the afternoon, as these are the hottest. There’s also the Upton Hill Park pool, which is outdoors and more expensive, so remember to wear sunscreen to this one and try for the late morning or late afternoon. Another way to use water to cool down is to take a cold shower, especially right before bed if you find your room too stuffy, so that your body temperature goes down and you’ll find the heat much more welcoming.
