How people in India escape from the heat: a life hack with water evaporation

The methods of cooling rooms have remained unchanged for thousands of years: creating a draft, using curtains or drapes to darken windows from sunlight, as well as using fans. It is also important to wear lightweight clothing and ensure adequate water irrigation.

Read also: How to fall asleep quickly in the heat: from the Egyptian method to the correct position

However, there are interesting and unusual ways too. For example, in India, they use special mats made from a plant known as vetiver. These mats are constantly moistened with water, which evaporates and cools the room.

Wet sheets are sometimes used to cool rooms. But in India, they have developed a more efficient system using "khus ki tatti".

Two water tanks can be added to this system: an upper and a lower one. Water from the lower reservoir will rise up the mat due to the capillary effect and drip up into the upper reservoir. When the upper reservoir is filled with enough water, it turns upwards and the water flows back down again, starting the process again. This is a way to create an almost endless moving mechanism, the key of which is to remember to refill the water.

The use of water evaporation for cooling has been known from the past. Ancient refrigerators had a design in which a small pot was placed inside a large one. The space between them was filled with sand, which was then moistened with water. As the water evaporated, it lowered the temperature inside the small pots by 10-15 degrees, which allowed to store the perishable food.

As a reminder, we have already written about how to improve the comfort of your sleep.

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