Heat rises – Blame physics: hot air rises while cold air sinks. That means your upstairs typically gets hotter than your lower levels, even if your air conditioner's working in overdrive. Your roof's hot, too – Unless you have shady tree cover, your roof absorbs a ton of heat from the sun.
Poor Sealing, Insulation, and Ventilation
In order to cool the upstairs in summer, it's important to know why these hot spots are present. One of the biggest reasons the upstairs gets so hot is that the current sealing, insulation, and ventilation systems are not working correctly.
Similar to the wet towel trick, ice is another expert-approved way to cool your room effectively. To do so, Beatrice explains that you should place a bowl of ice in front of your fan. 'The air will circulate through the ice, and as it does, it will pick up the cold temperature of the ice,' she says.
Adjust the dampers.
If the second floor of your home is warmer in the summer months, keep the dampers on the second-floor vents fully open and only partially open the vents on the first floor to force more of the cool air to enter the second-floor areas.
Poor insulation and/or ventilation
The number one reason why it is hot upstairs, cold downstairs is that the attic is poorly insulated or ventilated. It might seem counterproductive to add insulation for warmth and then circulate cold air through it, but the combination actually works together in a very important way.
Install a Ceiling Fan
A ceiling fan is a very cost-effective tool to increase airflow. At a minimal energy cost as compared to an AC, a ceiling fan keeps the air fresh and moves heat across the house very effectively. Although fans cannot introduce cool air, they spread the air to a wider area.
Ceiling fans in upstairs rooms can make a significant difference in temperature in the summer.
If you're facing this issue, there could be several reasons for it, including outdated air conditioning systems, blocked vents, dirty filters, leaking air ducts, or inadequate insulation.
It's normal for the upper floors of a home to be hotter and more humid than the lower ones simply because hot air always rises up.
Set the first floor's thermostat to your desired temperature, and then decrease the temperature setting on your thermostats by two degrees as you go up. Warm air on the first floor will rise and make the upper floors more comfortable.
What Makes the Top Floor Apartment So Hot? The answer is quite simple - the sun. As the sun beats down on the roof, it heats up the shingles and transfers that heat to your apartment below.
During the summer, set your upstairs thermostat to your desired temperature, and the downstairs unit two degrees warmer. During winter, set the downstairs temperature to the ideal level, and upstairs two degrees colder. During the winter, this isn't as much of a problem, because you want a warmer home.
Dirty air filter—A dirty filter restricts airflow, not letting your home get enough cool air. Closed vents—Closed vents in rooms can cause them to be hotter than other rooms. Open windows—Your conditioned air can flow out of open windows, leaving uneven temperatures in your home.
You might be low on refrigerant or have a worn out motor or a dirty evaporator coil. Not all AC problems demonstrate themselves with loud sounds or funny odors coming from your system. Some of them simply reduce the AC's ability to run, and all you notice is less cool air in the house.
Perhaps the most common cause of AC issues is clogged filters. Dirt, pet hair, pollen and dust can clog your filters. When filters get clogged, they begin to restrict the flow of air through your AC. The result is that the AC doesn't cool your indoor air effectively.
According to the GHI, placing a bucket of ice in front of a fan as a homemade AC unit is just as effective. 'As the air passes over the ice it will be chilled and will circulate refreshingly cold air around the room,' they explain.
Place bowls of water around the house
Water can also be used to cool your home down. Yep, really. Place bowls of cool water around your home, and you should notice that the temperature starts to decrease. Just make sure to keep them away from any electrical outlets.