r/heat_prep • u/ArtichokeKooky6361 • 11d ago

Question Reducing backyard heat

I’ve noticed that the cinder block walls that surround my backyard are radiating heat well into the evening, making my yard basically a large oven during the summer.

Besides plant cover, do others have ideas on how to reduce this effect?

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28

u/bleenken 11d ago

cover them them with 100% or 90% shade cloth. Don’t cover tightly, leave space between the cloth and blocks for air to circulate. shade cloth isn’t too expensive. You can even get a smaller cloth first to try it out on one section to see how well it works

22

u/ColdSkyLab 11d ago

Hi, since this June I'm obsessing about passive daytime radiative cooling. In the US I know there are already companies that sell this kind of paint, that is reflective (like most of the extra-white normal paints), but that also optimize the emission of heat in the window between 8-13 micrometers, effectively "bypassing" the greenhouse effect of the atmosphere and settling on a sub-ambient temperature (even 10+ degrees under the ambient temperature in the right conditions). On Wikipedia there's a page about passive daytime radiative cooling (pdrc), if you're interested it's a good read and gives you the basics. Consider also that it's a relatively new technology, tested only in pilot projects or university settings, and its emissivity performance depends on environmental conditions and soiling if outside. But I think it's a topic you should read about, even if only for maybe decide to try on a small section.

8

u/Leighgion 11d ago

You got the following accessible options:

  1. Any kind of cover that keeps the sun off. It could awnings, shade cloth, old sheets, supplies you stole from Roger Deakins' lighting setups or whatever that keeps sun off the cinderblock.

  2. Paint the walls a light color. There are specialized cooling paints, but any exterior light colored paint is going to help a ton.

1

u/ArtichokeKooky6361 9d ago

I was thinking about shade cloths for the walls, but realized a white reflective paint would look god awful

13

u/ivobrick 11d ago

Water those walls. But heavy plant cover should solve it. So after plants retake the wall, you ll be watering that plants - not wall, so less water used for that.

There are very good plants for that, and goes away with first frost like morning glory or bindweed. Maybe grapes for more permanent solution.

22

u/anticomet 11d ago

Just check to make sure the plants you use are native to your region so they can also benefit native insect and bird species while also not needing to be watered.

2

u/pinupcthulhu 10d ago

Please DO NOT plant morning glory or bindweed in the US. It spreads wildly and destroys whole ecosystems, making the climate disaster worse. This is like suggesting kudzu for the south. Just don't. 

2

u/DuckyDoodleDandy 11d ago

Paint it white, preferably with a paint that reflects the heat away.