apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Here are just a few ideas you might want to try, depending on your apartment or house setup in each room:

• Move your desk near an intake vent: Usually hot air seems to just be sent out of a computer and recirculated back in. If your computer is already in the living room and you have the space, try moving your desk near an intake vent to let it circulate around your house when you have the A/C or heater on.


• Have a self-cooling desk or cabinet: If your computer is within a cabinet, make sure you have some extra holes in the back with a fan for all the hot air to get sent through. A good DIY example can be found here.


• Set the computer to hibernate/stand by: We've debated it all before, but what we've concluded is that settings send your computer into a low-power consumption mode, lowering the heat production while you're away or sleeping. Then again, it'd be an even better idea to turn the computer completely off while you sleep, but that kinda just depends on how green you wanna be...


• Better yet, put it near a window: If you're not afraid of the elements, place your PC or Mac laptop or desktop near a window. It doesn't matter if the air is blowing in or out because either way it'll be doing its job cooling down your computing area. A great example can be found at the Soho Hideaway Office.


• When passive doesn't work, get aggressive: If you've got a dedicated computer office with 2-3 computers, you know it gets hotter than the Sahara during those humid Summer days. Sometimes the A/C isn't even enough to keep the heat down in these rooms. When you've got nothing else to work with, just invest in a floor fan. When air molecules get circulated, even if it's within itself, the room will end up coming at least a few degrees.

Have a great tip to share? Let us know in the comments!

[Image: Katy's Tidy Brooklyn Home Office]