America is in the middle of another scorcher. As a brutal heat wave continues to send temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit across huge stretches of the country, millions of people without reliable air conditioning are going back to a decades-old trick: taping aluminum foil over their windows. It sounds like a joke, but Ready. gov, the federal government's own emergency preparedness site, states that "window reflectors" made from reflective material are an actual recommended strategy for keeping a home cooler during extreme heat.
So is your kitchen drawer secretly holding the answer to this scorching summer, or is this just another internet trend with more shine than substance?
Why is everyone suddenly reaching for aluminum foil?
The foil hack has been making the rounds on social media for years and tends to pop up whenever a heat wave strikes somewhere. The appeal is obvious. Foil is already in most kitchens; it is cheap, and it can be taped up in minutes. Earlier this month, according to USA Today, one woman riding out a heat wave in Germany said she and her husband used foil on their windows because they were desperate for even a one-degree difference for their toddler, who kept waking up drenched in sweat. That’s the sort of story that keeps the hack trending.
