Red alert weather warnings

Yesterday we had 42 degrees Celsius on the south side of the house... Today we had 32 degrees Celsius at noon and it went up to 38 degrees Celsius mid afternoon.

Just two hours ago it started to rain. I've opened up all windows and doors to let the warmth leave the house. And now, it's much more comfortable.
Last night I've slept with a fan running and it was still very humid.

I didn't see this thread in time and found out the hard way what heat can do to you. I was with my 2 year old daughter trying to do the school run and collapsed with heat stroke. Campus security tried to call an ambulance and were told it was 2 hours. I felt like I was going to die but after half an hour of a water, fan and wet compresses on my neck (an Afghan veteran was on their staff and helped me out in the absence of the NHS), I recovered. I came home, saw my betta tank at 29.5 degrees, panicked and put in some ice cubes (wrong!), topped up with cooler water, put in an air stone (right!) and reading this, seemed I should have just left him. He is also dealing with fin rot meds so its not a good situation. I should have kept my kid off school.

I'm assuming this applies to tanks that aren't running chillers...which would also make the room absolutely awful during a heat wave but the tank itself might be fine lol.

Things I've done and am doing: open things up as soon as it gets cooler out than in, button the house up as soon as it's otherwise in the morning. Lights off, in the home and tanks. Lighting is a big heat source on some tanks; they can be dark for a brief bit or at least during the worst part of a heat wave. Cover windows from the outside if possible (often it's not, but it does make a difference). Close doors to parts of the house that get warm and open doors to places that stay cool. Go open top or put mesh over the top if you have jumpers. You can use something like small-spaced bird netting and tape in a pinch. Also, unplug your heaters! Sounds dumb and you might think they're not running when it's sufficiently hot to be above what you have them set to, but I have seen otherwise with a good many of the commonly available brands that will still flick on for a bit here and there when there is absolutely no reason for them to be doing so.

The ice bottle method may be controversial but I have used it in a couple of heat waves in the past to keep my fish from starting to lose it and drift around. All the stuff I wrote above won't do a darned thing in long heat waves when your place is worse than the outdoor temperature, has broken AC, not enough ventilation to even cool down to outside temp, and is unable to sufficiently dump heat at night. In that sort of horrible mess where it is impossible to cool a room, I have used half filled soda bottles of ice. It is possible to use them in a way that keeps the temperature pretty stable without rapid/large swings. A single 20gal is easy to moderate with a freezer full of small soda bottles of ice. However, rotating them to re-freeze will also stress your freezer and make more heat from that - so you cool your tank at the expense of dumping heat into whatever room the fridge is in. Cooling the room when possible is always a better option but sometimes it's just not an option.

Also I hate to say it but the best defense against sudden heat is...a well insulated house with thick walls and skimpy on the windows. Obviously that's hardly something you can run out and pick up at the store in an emergency, but it's worth thinking about for the long term if these events become more common. It was something I looked for when I moved a year and a half ago.

Donya said:

However, rotating them to re-freeze will also stress your freezer and make more heat from that - so you cool your tank at the expense of dumping heat into whatever room the fridge is in.

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Correct! - It will be (assuming equal heat pump efficiency) about the the same as running a water cooler. The laws of thermodynamics are a ***

Some related dark humor



From Dr. David L. Goodstein’s States of Matter (a book published in January 1985)

Nuff said...

On Tuesday afternoon it was 27.5 deg C/82 deg F in the house and 38 C/100 F in the shade outside. I know it's only 8.30 am, but despite having all the windows and doors open from the moment we got up yesterday till when we went to bed, it's now 24 C/75 F in the kitchen and 19.5 C/67 F outside. An 18.5 C/33 F drop outside and a 3.5 C/6 F drop indoors. That's what cavity insulation does.

You need a large window fan set to exhaust. Then open the window on the opposite side of house so you can get cross ventilation.

Just ordered a portable air-con, found a pretty cheap(ish) one with good reviews for £160 so should fix issues with my laptop and concerns about the tank + obvious comfort benefits to me lol.

Wills

Its very sticky today...might not be mega warm outside at 64 but there is no air, no breeze...and with an east facing lounge and a west facing bedroom, there is no escape from that orangey yellowy ball either

I have a 6ft tall ionising fan running and the dehumidifier running, windows open everywhere...stood under cold showers three time this morning so far and am still melting

Roll on winter...with wonderful frosts and snow....cos at least you can keep increasing layers of clothing then whereas with this humidity you run out of layers to remove (and you terrify the neighbours too)

wasmewasntit said:

Its very sticky today...might not be mega warm outside at 64 but there is no air, no breeze...and with an east facing lounge and a west facing bedroom, there is no escape from that orangey yellowy ball either

I have a 6ft tall ionising fan running and the dehumidifier running, windows open everywhere...stood under cold showers three time this morning so far and am still melting

Roll on winter...with wonderful frosts and snow....cos at least you can keep increasing layers of clothing then whereas with this humidity you run out of layers to remove (and you terrify the neighbours too)

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I have genuinely never missed a grey British sky as much as the last few days.

Wills said:

I have genuinely never missed a grey British sky as much as the last few days.

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Yeah I’ve been really struggling here in the north. I live in a new build house so on Tuesday my bedroom was at 34 degrees during the night. That is way to hot to sleep in. My dogs have became ill and had to be taken to the vet. Okay now though. Much nicer cooler weather here

Never thought in the uk ide be calling 24 degrees cool but never mind

I am fine with heat...having travelled extensively through out the Middle East, spent many summers as a kid in Morocco with my then aunt & uncle....no issues with 120 degrees in Dubai or Yemen or Saudi Arabia or Oman

Dry desert heat of 120 plus is not an issue at all.

It's the humidity that does me in...Far East is extremely humid and knackered me....the weather in the UK over the last few days, the humidity has caused more problems for me than the heat...its like trying to breathe whilst your face is wrapped in clingfilm

And forget about sleeping...even with the fan running, the cold gel pillows and the dehumidifier...nah...sleep is virtually impossible

Fishmanic said:

You need a large window fan set to exhaust. Then open the window on the opposite side of house so you can get cross ventilation.

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We were lucky that it was quite breezy yesterday (26 mph gusts at one point). The front window curtains were blowing inwards at a 45 degree angle, and the nets at the back had to be pegged together in the middle to stop them blowing outside.

AmyKieran said:

Yeah I’ve been really struggling here in the north. I live in a new build house so on Tuesday my bedroom was at 34 degrees during the night. That is way to hot to sleep in. My dogs have became I’ll and had to be taken to the vet. Okay now though. Much nicer cooler weather here

Never thought in the uk ide be calling 24 degrees cool but never mind

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Heat stroke. Quickest way to cool them off is put them in a bath of cold water or under a cold shower. Give them plenty of water to drink and don't let them run around too much.

Good to hear they are better now