I've just moved into an apartment without an air conditioner in Sunnyvale, California. The weather is not too hot, but there are going to be some pretty warm days in the summer, especially since I'm on the second floor of two. The temperatures at night should be cool enough to manage quite well – if I can get enough cool air in here!
There's no house fan, and it being an apartment, there's not much I can do about that. So what's the best way to circulate air with standalone fans?
Added fun: a neighbor smokes near my main windows, so I'd really prefer to pull air in through a screen door instead.
(I'm from Texas originally, where no one would dream of building anything without air conditioning, so I have absolutely no experience with this!)
Best Answer
Ideally, you would blow warm air out of your apartment. Cool outside air will naturally take its place. If you can take advantage of prevailing winds by having open windows on opposite sides of the apartment, do so. Otherwise, use a box fan blowing out of the screen door (assuming it's not in a bedroom -- they can be pretty noisy) and smaller fans pulling air in through other windows.
You can also keep the apartment cooler during the day by closing blinds. If you have a balcony that gets sun during the day, consider getting some large plants: they'll provide some shade, and they'll need watering, which will also help to bring temperatures down.