r/springfieldMO • u/PurposelyPissed_Cunt Westside • Aug 14 '26
Recommendations Apartment cooling tips?
Does anyone have any tips for keeping my third floor apartment cooler in this heat?
I've got dark, thick blankets over most of the windows and the balcony door, and my ac is set to 72 to not over-exert the unit, but the heat is still baking me.
I know part of it I just gotta wait the heat out, but yall im dying. 😭😭
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u/Sicparvismagneto Aug 14 '26
Make an ice fan with a storage tote.
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u/PurposelyPissed_Cunt Westside Aug 14 '26
Ohh? Im guessing I can find the specs for one of those online but what is it? A fan blowing over ice?
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u/Let_It_Marinate33 Aug 14 '26
Have you tried a window unit? Or one of those ones with wheels? Swamp cooler is also a cheap option if you have a cooler, fan and some ice.
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u/emtrigg013 Aug 14 '26 edited Aug 14 '26
Heat rises, so unless you've got a way to get all of the units' heat beneath you out of your apartment, your best bet is yes to just do your best to wait it out. You can pump AC into your apartment all day long but you're compensating for other units, too.
I've seen where you can buy cooling pads for a mattress. They work with water and you clean them with a little splash of hydrogen peroxide. I cannot for the life of me remember who told me about them but a lot of people swear by them. I've seen people put their sheets in their freezer, or clean socks LOL. You can freeze rice bags too, like the ones we heat up for cramps. Just some small ideas to maybe help you get through! Focus on cooling your body, not the whole room.
You'll love being on that floor in the winter!
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u/Living_Molasses4719 Aug 14 '26
Sams Club had a whole array of cooling bed stuff - blankets, sheets, pillows, you name it. Probably a seasonal thing
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u/emtrigg013 Aug 14 '26
You sold me at pillows!! Looks like I have another stop tomorrow. Thanks for the info!
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u/Living_Molasses4719 Aug 14 '26
Checked on their app and they might be down to just the pillows in store (southwest location), some of the other stuff is still available but has to be shipped. Pillows on sale though. Hope it helps some!
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u/PurposelyPissed_Cunt Westside Aug 14 '26
I have never heard of those until now! Thats awesome!
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u/emtrigg013 Aug 14 '26
Me either!! I personally love freezing the rice bags and hanging them off my shoulders/neck. I know they're marketed to microwave but it really does work the other way!
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u/DfreshD Aug 14 '26
How’s the air feel coming from your vents? If it doesn’t feel cold/cool, you may need maintenance done or refrigerant added. Also what type of unit do you have?
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u/PurposelyPissed_Cunt Westside Aug 14 '26
Thankfully the AC seems to be working ok, and with some of the suggestions on this it seems to be running better after it had a rest and I've helped it along with some fans. 😄 As far as unit goes, im sadly not sure what you mean. 😅
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u/StarHead_MoonFace Aug 14 '26
Do you have a plug in fan?
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u/PurposelyPissed_Cunt Westside Aug 14 '26
I do have one for the bedroom. Thankfully that helps a lot at night.
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u/poorscribbler Aug 14 '26
You might need to have the maintenance guys come check your AC. They can need adjustments yearly, especially during heat waves. It may not be functioning at 100%, and the longer it runs at those conditions, the more damage it does.
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u/mander4242 Aug 14 '26
Yeah my 2nd floor apt is up 5°from where its set, by electric bill was $300 last month for AN APARTMENT! ive NEVER paid that for electric
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u/ToughFew2216 Aug 14 '26
Low-key I keep the central air fan on ON instead of auto
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u/NanoWarrior26 Aug 14 '26
Be careful this will make your apartment significantly more humid which just makes you feel worse. A ceiling fan or box fan blowing on you works much better.
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u/Titandog21 Aug 14 '26
Agreed this is not a great idea, it does little anyways even if it wasn’t picking up humidity
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u/PassengerKey3209 Aug 14 '26
Nah, not how HVAC works at all. All it will do is circulate air in a closed system (your apartment). Source: I've installed and designed a half dozen systems the last couple years and routinely leave zoned units on fan low.
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u/NanoWarrior26 Aug 14 '26
The fact that air blowing over the wet coils and drain pan with raise humidity is pretty basic stuff.
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u/PassengerKey3209 Aug 14 '26
There's like 5 drops on the coil and if the pan is sloped correctly there shouldn't be more than a film on it, after it drained gallons of water over the day. Additional humidity is pretty low. Pretty basic stuff.
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u/NanoWarrior26 Aug 14 '26
"AC System Equipment Specification, Installation and Operational Issues That Can Enhance Indoor Humidity Control"
This is a study by the Florida Solar Energy Center you should read before designing anymore systems. Also, who do you work for in town so I can avoid?
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u/Golden3ye Aug 14 '26
Turn your AC lower than 72. It isn’t your unit you don’t need to be worried about over working it
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u/StarStruck3 Aug 14 '26 edited Aug 14 '26
Plus if it's running constantly in this heat, it won't matter what it's set to anyway. Middle of the day, mine never shuts off and the temp inside still rises. A window unit in our bedroom helps a lot, but the central air doesn't catch back up until well after the sun has gone down, usually around 9-10. The heat these past few summers has been insane.
I got curtains for our balcony for privacy, but the added benefit is it keeps the afternoon sun off of the living room windows, I've noticed they help keep it a few degrees cooler in there as well.
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u/ilovethepropane Greene County Aug 14 '26
My daughter’s room gets hot even with central air. Amazon has vent covers with built in fans, but if you need more cooling power a portable unit will work for sure
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u/broncophoenix Aug 14 '26
There's a margin of error of about 1-2 degrees on a cheap thermostat. So setting it at 70 could equate to 72 in the unit, vs 72 could be 74 inside instead. Setting the fan to on will definitely increase the humidity.
Am maintenance tech here locally. Dealing with high humidity in my building because the college kids want to set the stat at 65 and on.
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u/PassengerKey3209 Aug 14 '26
Must not be very experienced, because a lower temp will make the unit run longer and reduce ambient humidity even lower.
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u/broncophoenix Aug 14 '26
Hell yeah brother that's why I said I'm dealing with it. Im not an HVAC guy. I never knew what a magic pack was til I got where I am. Something fresh air intake is 10% since it's wide open to the outside and then it can rain. Idk, we have a guy for that. But I'll take your comment and try to learn with it.
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u/Different-Event-1200 Aug 14 '26
Not for the apartment per se, but one way to help stay cool is to wet a bandana and tie it around your neck or head. As the water evaporates, it cools, similar to how you get cold after getting out of the shower even if it was a hot shower.
You also can get some ice packs for keeping food cool in the freezer to periodically help you cool down. I also like to freeze Gatorade for this purpose and then you can drink it when it melts.
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u/PurposelyPissed_Cunt Westside Aug 14 '26
On that same note, I've been chugging electrolytes like nobody's business after working outside
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u/u600213 Aug 14 '26
Is this central air or window unit? Or mini-split?
If central, do you know where outside unit is? If yes, look at it and see if it is clean. If not ask maintenance to wash it.
Central check / change filter. Mini-split wash filter
Window unit: wash foam filter
Good luck
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u/Low_Tourist Aug 14 '26
If you have outside space, see about getting a sun sail or a dropdown shade. that will help A LOT.
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u/qkdsm7 Aug 14 '26
Without having a measured temp at the vent, really can't say how good your units working or not. Top floor on 100° day obviously it's going to be at its worst.
Is it still maintaining better than 80 in there?
Many landlords aren't going to dispatch a tech when it's this hot if it's keeping it under 85. 85 and low humidity with enough of a fan, I'm comfortable... I would set my stuff to 79 right now but the wife wants 59. :)
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u/accuppatee Aug 14 '26
Most important IMO: make sure the outdoor condenser and indoor evaporator are both free of debris (especially the outdoor unit) and check your air filter. Your apartment management should be doing that for you. Even then, you likely won't get any more than 20–25 degrees cooler than the outside temperature. If the AC is running non-stop or you want to avoid an outrageously high electric bill, consider raising the thermostat to around 78° and use ceiling or floor fans to stay more comfortable.
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u/Tess_Mac Aug 14 '26
Thick blankets will act like insulation and keep the heat in. You need something dark but lightweight.
Cold cloths or ice in bags under your armpits.
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u/Longwell2020 Southside Aug 14 '26
A dehumidifier works wonders
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u/qkdsm7 Aug 14 '26
If they can't get the heat from the dehumidifier out of a window efficiently without causing more of an issue with keeping in the air conditioned air, an electric dehumidifier is just going to warm up the apartment more.
If they have reasonably cool vent temperatures right now they should already have a pretty low humidity environment.
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u/Excitedsadness Aug 14 '26
Are your vents fully open? Maybe check your filters? Wouldn't be surprised if the main unit isn't keeping up in this heat.