If you’re located anywhere in sunny South Africa at the moment, you’ll know just how intense the combination of heat waves and load shedding can be to endure. The moment the power cuts, fans, air conditioners and coolers are rendered useless unless you’ve got backup power solutions.
After our fair share of load shedding sessions spent in the spotlight of the sun, we’ve found a few clever ways to keep cool during a heat wave. Let’s get into it!
Get yourself a battery-powered fan
Battery-operated fans are portable devices that run on batteries rather than electricity from the grid. Charge your battery-powered fan up when you’ve got power, and it can see you through an unbearably hot two-hour load shedding stint. Some may last even longer, depending on the quality of your fan, and the batteries used.
You can find battery-operated fans available for purchase online, ranging from R500 to R3000.
TRY: Milex, Rechargeable Floor Fan 12″ for R 1,999.95.
Invest in a cooling towel
Frequently used by athletes who operate outdoors, cooling towels are one of the simplest solutions to grappling with a heat wave when you don’t have power at home. Made with synthetic fabric, a cooling towel works by soaking in and absorbing cold water, which catches and cools air. These towels stay cold for a good while and are easy to ‘replenish’ with a quick rinse under the cold tap.
We’ve found that rinsing under cold water, ringing out, and then airing in the breeze for a few seconds before using is the best method to cool the air the towel catches, resulting in extra frostiness. Try it!
TRY: Takealot, Instant Cooling Towel for R149.00
Don’t be shy with the ice
Apart from expertly chilling a drink, there are several ways ice can be used to cool you down when you feel you’re overheating. In 38-degree weather, it would be a good idea to make use of ice packs, especially if you are worried about heat exhaustion, or even worse, heat stroke.
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Once sanitised, ice packs can be applied to the neck, underarms or back to provide instant, chilled relief. You can also place bowels of ice water or ice packs in front of a battery-powered fan to chill the air even further.
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Feature Image: Unsplash
