We’re pretty sure that you’ve had one of those moments this summer where you simply wanted to convert your home into an igloo or a freezer! Not surprising because according to meteorological forecasts, the average temperature worldwide is rising by more than 1 degree Celsius every year.
Despite the bitter truth, we all hope to live in calmer, cooler spaces. But, how do we achieve that within our homes, when the temperature outside is soaring? That is when clever summer home decor comes to our rescue. Yes, you heard it right! Well-planned home décor on summer can help us in coping with the blazing heat of summers. Therefore, we have compiled a list of all-natural approaches that are not only effective at lowering temperatures but are also sustainable. These summer home décor ideas will answer your question of “how to reduce heat inside the house”.
Summer Home Décor Ideas to Keep House Cool
Here are top summer home décor ideas on how to keep house cool this summer
01. Summer Décor Ideas: Cotton Bed Linen to the Rescue:
This is one of the easiest ways to beat the heat. Our regional summer season is long and extreme, even when the sun sets, resulting in an uncomfortable sleep. Unsurprisingly, we keep tossing and turning in our beds during the night. So, what’s the solution? Your bedsheets need to be replaced!
With this, you may not be able to regulate the temperature of the entire house, but this will easily make you fall asleep. If you’re looking for summer bed sheets, opt for linen sheets. They are light, breathable, and one of the best choices to make. It is because linen has a more open weave than cotton, which prevents heat from being trapped. Even during ancient times, they were known to control the skin-air heat exchange, making them ideal for those hot Indian summers.
You may also choose bed sheets and other bed linen accessories to follow a uniform design theme. Changing bed linens not only helps to beat the heat, but also serves as summer home decorating ideas.
02. Home Decor on Summer: Indoor Garden:
If you have been wondering how to reduce heat inside the house, your search ends here! Indoor plants are a quick fix to keep the microclimate cooler, while also serving as one of the best summer house decorating ideas. That is why indoor plants are recommended by many design experts and interior designers for home decors.
Indoor gardens are the most environmentally friendly and simplest approach as they’re available in a variety of spices to appeal to any green enthusiasts. You can choose from pint-sized bonsai plants to all-season favourite aloe vera, all of which are indoor friendly and easy to manage. Below are some common indoor plants that can help in how to keep house cool in summer naturally:
- Money Plant
- Bamboo Plant
- Monstera
- Aloe Vera
- Peace Lily
- Ferns
- Areca Palm
Whichever plants may you choose, but creating an indoor garden will be an excellent summer living room décor idea.
03. How to Reduce Heat from Wall? Select Cool Color Palette for Home:
Updating the colour palette is the best approach on how to reduce heat from wall and keeping house cool in extreme heat. The dry summer weather is ideal for painting and this method has been passed on to us from our ancestors. So try this summer home décor idea and give your home a seasonal makeover with paint. So, here is your home cooling tip-start by picking light colours that work well and elevate the overall setting like a subtle yellow, aqua, millennial pink, beige, and white.
If you are looking for colour combinations for summer living room décor, then opt for fail-proof grey and blue that effortlessly produce a calming ambience that is important for Indian summer home decors. Both colours work together to produce a sense of tranquillity. While grey brings balance to the room, blue brings coolness.
If you want to rely on just one standard colour, it’s always safe to choose everyone’s favourite white because whites have the most summery vibe of all. It allows light to enter the room, giving it a light and airy feel. White is certainly a cool way to beat the heat!
03. Things to Do to Beat the Heat: Install Sun Control Film for Home Windows:
One of the things to do to beat the heat is to install sun control film on home windows. The heat from the outside can be absorbed by the windows, making your interiors hot. That is why installing window film to block heat is one of the most efficient home cooling tips.
There are many window films available in the market, like the solar control window film, which is the most popular summer option and one of the most energy-efficient. These films can help you decrease heat gain, and glare, and promote comfort during the warmer months. The alternative option can be UV protection window film to protect the occupants of the home from the damaging effects of UV sun rays, especially during the summer months when the level of radiation is higher. This is certainly one of the coolest summer decor ideas.
If you are looking for films in fabric choose breathable and light materials such as jute screens or bamboo shades, and white or pastel colours.
You can install solar control glass to reduce the heat incoming in the house. We have a detailed article on this:
05. How to Keep House Cool in Summer Naturally? Indoor Water Bodies…
One of the easiest ways to beat the heat is to incorporate water elements inside the home. By bringing fresh, cooling bodies into your interiors, you will be able to exchange the indoor heat built up. The water elements can also chill the air surrounding it by forming a microclimate, which means you’ll have a natural indoor air conditioner to assist you to get through the hot summer days ahead. Along answering the question “how to reduce heat inside the house”, it will also serve as an awesome summer home décor idea.
You can incorporate different types of water features in your interior design, so whatever you’re looking for, you’ll be able to find it. The following are some of the most popular summer water features for your homes:
- Indoor Fountain
- Bowl of water
- Indoor Water-based Plants
- Small Ponds
- Vertical Indoor Fountains
- Koi Ponds
Incorporate water fountains in your home office, read our guide to know further:
06. How to Reduce Heat from Ceiling? Replace Warm Temperature Lights:
If you are wondering how to reduce heat from ceiling, then the answer is here. All you’ve got to do is replace the ordinary light bulbs. You must have noticed how hot light bulbs are when you touch them, right? The same heat transfers into the entire room too. Replacing ordinary incandescent light bulbs that generate more heat with energy-efficient CFL or LED bulbs reduces the amount of heat. This will not only help the home stay cooler, but will also keep the energy expenditure low. This is because CFL and LED bulbs emit far less heat while giving the same amount of light as traditional lights. According to Golasi et al (Authors of article – Influence of lighting colour temperature on indoor thermal perception: A strategy to save energy from the HVAC installations), there is a possible decrease of 1.25o C in air temperature under cold lights. Additionally, they also last up to five times longer. That’s a bright way to cool down the house!
Look for CFL or LED bulbs in the 2700K to 3000K temperature range for a warm glow of light. Incorporating LED bulbs in aesthetic ceiling lights in kitchen and dining ceiling can also give you one of the best summer kitchen décor ideas.
07. How to Remove Hot Air from a Room? Declutter it!:
Summer gives you the perfect opportunity to declutter your home and make space to create ideal conditions for airing out rooms. Another crucial reason for you to declutter your home is to create a dust-free and breathable environment for yourselves. Whether it’s summer, winter, or spring, having a breathable environment for yourself is a must. Decluttering not only helps to purify the air around you, but it also helps to centre your mind and body.
Another great reason to declutter your stuff is to boost your productivity and efficiency. Decluttering will also contribute to your summer living room décor.
Here’s a video to sum up all the points mentioned above & below :
08. Hanging Biophilia:
Who said plants are only restricted to horizontal space?
Try verticality with a fresh biophilia approach. This will help develop a link with seasonal changes by adding life to any place. Plants are not only just ornamental, but they also perform a variety of tasks in interior spaces. They keep your house cool by losing water through transpiration, which cools the air around them and leaves it cleaned and fresh, contributing to summer home décor.
But note that some plants are better suited to particular environments than others, so check for information on sun and water requirements, as well as other crucial details. You can choose the ideal plants for your vertical garden once you know what you’re working with. Hanging plants vertically is one of the best home cooling tips for people living in small apartments, who do not have more horizontal space. So, going green is one of the simplest ways to beat the heat.
09. Smart Tower Coolers:
The smart tower coolers are an inexpensive and equally efficient counterpart to the air conditioners without burning holes in your pockets. These towers can help to lower the temperature around you and can be utilized by homes in extremely hot, dry climates. Moreover, if the air quality is poor, an air cooler is likely to be a better and more environmentally friendly solution, as it tends to function better and endure longer under harsh weather conditions and unbearable temperatures. Hence, if you have been wanting to know how to remove hot air from a room, well, install a smart tower cooler.
5 Extra Home Cooling Tips to Make Your Microclimate a Bliss to Be In
01. To enhance efficiency, the air conditioners in the house should have a maintenance check-up regularly. The filters must be cleaned regularly by hiring professionals like HVAC Sunrise.
02. Open your windows at opposing ends to allow cross ventilation and create a breeze inside your home.
03. Turn off lights when you are not using them, as they emit a lot of heat.
04. Place plants, shrubs, and vines at strategic locations as they can act as living air conditioners and effectively cool a home.
05. Even when electronics are turned off or idle, most devices utilize electricity and create heat. Always unplug electronic equipment.
What to Avoid When Looking for Summer Home Decor?
- Avoid using a dark colour on walls or any other areas of your space, as it tends to absorb more heat instead of reflecting it off.
- Upholstery sofas made of rexine, leather, or other synthetic materials should be avoided. Rather, choose cotton and linen.
- Remember to keep the curtains and drapes shut while you’re out to keep the room from heating up like a greenhouse.
If you’re looking for easy ways to stay cool at home, these summer home decor ideas will help you in your never-ending battle against the oppressive heat and humidity. Carefully curated home décor on summer can efficiently help you cool down the home, and its atomic changes, rather than fully renovating the house. As much as we love to follow the trends, it’s equally important to choose the pieces that hold equal functionality.
FAQs on How to Keep House Cool in Summer
01. How Can I Keep My House Cool Without AC?
You can open the curtains at night in addition to closing them on a hot summer day. The night usually brings the cool wind that can be enjoyed, but not if the curtains are drawn. As a result, you should always open your windows or any other partitions at night. By doing this, you can create a cross breeze, which will fill your room with cold air.
Note: We have a detailed article on how to keep house cool without AC, make sure to check it out:
02. How Can I Reduce the Electricity Bill During the Summer?
Consider turning off your television, computer, and kitchen appliances rather than leaving them on standby. This will prevent them from overheating and warming the rooms in which they are placed and help you in reducing your electricity bills in summer.
Similarly, be cautious when charging devices such as your phone or tablet. These, too, emit heat and consume more energy.
03. What are the Indoor Water Body Ideas for Summer?
Efficient lower temperatures can also be caused by indoor water bodies that you incorporate into your home decors. Create a little indoor plant garden with a waterfall that recycles the water, if you have the space. The chamber will be kept cool by the running water. Moreover, plants can help to reduce the temperature even more.
We have also created an infographic, which compiles this article and is easy for you to save. Please click on the link below:
https://gharpedia.com/infographic/summer-home-decor-ideas/
Read More:
How To Spruce Up Your Garden This Summer? | Learn By Our Expert’s Tips!
How to Keep Your House Ready for Texas Summer?
Image Courtesy: Image 5, Image 10
Author Bio
Saili Sawantt – She is an Architect and Interior Designer by profession. Writing is what she treats as her passion. She has worked as an Architectural Writer, Editor, and Journalist for various design as well as digital portals, both national and international. Formerly she has also worked with Godrej Properties Limited (GPL) Design Studio, Mumbai, due to her keen interested in learning about Sustainability and Green buildings. Apart from this, she runs her blog ‘The Reader’s Express’ and is a practicing Architect & Interior Designer.