This year every city is experiencing unprecedented high temperatures even before summer has officially set it. Many states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telengana are reporting extreme water shortages. It seems like we are looking at a few tough months of summer before us. Given the present scenario, Apartment Complexes must be geared up to handle the torrid heat wave and water shortage too, which will last until the rain gods shower some love.
Here are some tips on how you can beat the summer heat wave in your home and apartment complex:
Table of Contents
1. Gearing up at your Apartment Complex
a) Implement methods to deal with the water shortage:
What residents can do: One of the major sources of water wastage in apartment complexes is leakage of water. These leakages are often overlooked. It is time that we take a stock of all such points from which water is leaking in our apartments and fix them. As residents we can also take some voluntary steps like installing water flow reducers in taps to prevent wastage of water.
What Management Committee members can do: If you are a managing committee member of a housing society, then your responsibility becomes much more to tackle this heat wave and water shortage. Do a check of the overall building plumbing to prevent water leakages. Check your water tanks to see that water does not get wasted because of seepage.
b) Methods to tackle the heat wave
Firstly, if possible, conduct housing society meetings in the evening as opposed to noon. Keep the swimming pool well maintained so that residents can beat the heat by taking a dip. Also, have fixed timings for pool usage, to prevent water from getting wasted. Encourage the children to make most of the indoor games facility at your apartment complex. Make sure that your support staff like security guards, housekeeping, etc have areas of shade to operate out of. Keep a first aid kit in the security guards cabin for emergencies.
2. Make adjustments to your room
If you are not someone who has an AC to tackle to the heat wave, then you have a big task ahead of you. Small and minute changes in and around the room should help you deal with the heat menace. You will have to ditch the satin, silk and polyester sheets and replace them with cotton instantly. If possible, take a mat and sleep on the floor. Warm air rises upwards so the lower you sleep, the colder the air. Wear loose clothes made of cotton, if possible. Use less lights as all of them give off heat. Always use the exhaust and ceiling fan for ventilation. If your home experiences warm winds during the day, keep the windows shut. Open them only early in the mornings and post sunset. Hanging a wet sheet in front of the window is a great idea to keep the wind pleasant. It is vital that your apartment is summer ready.
3. Taking care of the young ones
For most children, it is still vacation time and it would be quite a task to keep these bundles of joy indoors. Now to protect them from this heat wave, one can make them wear a cap when they step out but it is certainly not enough. Firstly, increase their water consumption. Give them a bottle of cold water when they step out. Also, instruct them to constantly use wet tissues on face and neck, splash water on their head and play in shade whenever possible. A damp, cold cloth should also be handy, if you are overlooking when they play. Playtime should be from 9 am to 12 pm and 4 pm onwards. Both children and adults should stay indoors during afternoon since the heat is at its peak.
4. Food Habits
This is irrespective of your age and gender, one has to watch what they eat during this season. Add fruits which are rich in liquid content like watermelon to your diet. It keeps you hydrated. Also, apart from increasing the consumption of water, one can add liquids like juices to their routines. Ditch hot beverages with cold ones, if possible. Also, if you love your alcoholic drinks, restrict them to only at night. Avoid binge drinking. It is a known fact that alcohol dehydrates you. Spicy and oily food must be avoided too. Also, restrict eating non-vegetarian meals to once a week. Your stomach is at its weakest during such extreme temperature conditions.
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