As the UK braces for its third heatwave of the year, a property expert has shared a simple yet effective hack for keeping homes cool: covering windows with light-coloured fabric. Laura de Barra, a property portfolio developer and author, demonstrated the technique on Instagram, where she has 200,000 followers.
Third heatwave to bring temperatures of up to 35°C
According to the Met Office, the heatwave will bring extensive sunshine and light winds to many southern areas, with temperatures building steadily through the week. Temperatures are expected to climb into the low 30s across much of southern England from the start of the week, with some areas potentially reaching highs of 34-35°C later in the week. While not expected to reach the exceptional levels recorded in the June heatwave, many parts of the country are likely to experience several consecutive days of hot weather.
Expert recommends fabric hack to block sun
With the majority of UK homes lacking air conditioning, millions of Brits are searching for ways to keep their homes cool. Laura de Barra shared a video on Instagram showing how to use old cotton bedsheets or duvet covers to block sunlight from heating up windows and rooms. In the caption, she wrote: "Today’s heat hack! Prevent sun heating up windows and in turn heating up rooms by using a natural light colour fabric that can be looped on and removed as you wish."
In the video, Laura explained: "Today's heat hack is for windows that are in the sun all day. This is for my balcony where there are four panes of glass. The sun is coming in here all day, the room gets so hot. It is unbearable." She emphasised that placing the fabric on the outside of the window is far more effective because the glass cannot heat up as much.
How to implement the hack
Laura demonstrated the simple process: "You can use old cotton bedsheets, duvet covers etc. I cut two panels to size. It looks a bit insane but it is pretty effective. I took a strip of the fabric and then safety pinned it on and just looped it over the top of the door." She noted that using large strips of fabric allows it to be reused: "Because I'm using large strips of fabric and I'm not damaging it too much, I'm gonna be able to use this fabric again which I love. I can take it off whenever I wish and fold it up."
