Florida summers are no joke and, if you’re not careful, they’ll steam your glasses & soak your shirt—the heat goes beyond the simple “oh it’s hot” kind of hot. In Florida, the heat involves full-body sweat five minutes into walking your dog and mosquitoes that don’t know how to relax. Let’s not even get started on the humidity. If you live here or you’re visiting, you’ll need more than flip-flops and sunscreen to survive, so here are thirteen tips that’ll make the heat a little more bearable for you.
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Grocery Shop Early to Avoid Melting Pavement
Heading out for milk at noon is a rookie mistake because the blacktop turns into a frying pan and your flip-flops will practically glue to the parking lot—so do yourself a favor & visit the store before it gets too hot. Around 7:30 a.m. is the perfect time, as you’ll skip the heat and the long lines, so it’s a win-win. Beyond the discomfort, some car tires may soften when the asphalt gets scorching and there have even been reports of plastic bags melting on contact with car trunks.
Keep a Mini Towel in Your Freezer
Wet a small towel, throw it in a bag, and freeze it—when you’re sweating through your eyebrows, you can put that frozen towel on your neck to cool down in seconds. You should make sure to stick one in your cooler if you’re headed out for the day because it stays cold for longer that way. The smartest people keep backups in their car during soccer games or anytime they’ll be outside for more than 10 minutes.
Avoid Touching Metal Door Handles After 11 A.M.
Florida sun cooks metal and that means touching metal door handles can really hurt you, so you’re better off using your shirt or a glove to do so—don’t bare-hand it after late morning. It’s not unusual for metal surfaces to reach over 140°F in full Florida sun and that’s hot enough to cause mild burns in seconds. You should keep a rag in the car, especially if you have little ones or pets to worry about.
Spray Your Front Door Handle With Rubbing Alcohol
Speaking of handles, front doors get sticky and gross when it’s humid, but a quick spritz of rubbing alcohol right before someone knocks keeps them clean and gets rid of the slimy feel. It’s the kind of thing you don’t notice till someone else grabs it and pulls a face. Better yet, alcohol also helps kill whatever germs are clinging to the handle after dozens of sweaty hands have touched it. The stuff dries in seconds and doesn’t streak, so you don’t need to wipe it down.
Always Carry Two Shirts
Florida’s AC-to-outdoor transition is brutal because you’ll go from frozen meat locker to swamp in 3 seconds—that’s where a dry backup shirt comes in handy. It saves you from showing up to lunch looking like you ran a 5K, so just roll it up in your bag and keep it there. Cold air hitting sweaty fabric will make you feel clammy & uncomfortable rather quickly, while changing into something dry makes a big difference to your comfort levels.
Stick Dryer Sheets in Your Shoes
Your sneakers aren’t dirty, they’re just humid like everything else here, and that’s why you should put a dryer sheet in each one overnight. This way, you’ll wake up to something that smells like clean laundry instead of wet gym class—it’s low effort and surprisingly effective. It doesn’t matter if you’re just wearing sandals, either, because putting one in your shoe bin or gym bag will keep the whole area from smelling like feet. Try rotating them every few days for the best results.
Use Powder Deodorant On Your Inner Thighs
Chafing is one of the worst parts of summer, but that doesn’t mean you need to go overboard with some fancy creams—just put some powdery deodorant where your skin rubs. It’s especially handy if you’re wearing shorts all day since powder deodorant stops any rashes or stings. You should stick with unscented or baby powder formulas if you have sensitive skin and completely avoid gel or spray versions, as they just make things more slippery.
Eat Watermelon With Salt
Salted watermelon is a real thing, and no, it’s not weird once you try it—the salt helps your body hang on to fluids, which you’re sweating out constantly when you’re hot. Any Florida locals will know just how much better you feel after eating salted watermelon, just as long as you only sprinkle a little sea salt. It keeps you refreshed without the need for processed drinks like Gatorade that are full of dyes & sugar.
Never Park Under Trees That Drop Sap
Shade isn’t always your friend because some trees here drip sticky sap when they get hot and that can ruin your car’s paint, so either find a clean-shade spot or be ready to scrub for days. Trees like camphor & Australian pines are some of the worst offenders, as the sap bakes into your clear coat and becomes a nightmare to remove if you leave it for more than a few hours. Even car washes struggle to get it off.
Turn Your AC Off For 10 Minutes Before Arriving Home
While it might sound strange, if you leave the AC blasting while you’re unloading groceries with the door open, your system pulls in all that hot, wet air. As such, you should turn it off before you take your stuff inside, then turn it back on—your house will dry out faster and cool quicker this way. AC units work best in sealed spaces, rather than when every door and window’s wide open, while keeping it off during high-humidity entry time causes less strain on the unit.
Use a Hand Fan While Pumping Gas
Gas stations are where mosquitoes love to hang out because people are standing still there with their ankles exposed—they treat unsuspecting customers like a buffet. However, a small fan messes with their flight path and confuses them, so they can’t land or lock onto your scent, and you don’t go home itchy. Put that fan in your glove box and call it your mosquito shield.
Store Lotion In the Fridge
Getting an accidental sunburn from walking to the mailbox happens all the time and that’s why keeping aloe or basic lotion in the fridge is so useful. It cools way faster than gel alone and it doesn’t make your clothes stick like cold packs do, which is great for crispy skin. After-sun products usually have menthol or eucalyptus, which feel even better cold—just make sure to store them in a clear bin so they don’t absorb food smells.
Keep Your Phone in the Shade
Your phone has zero patience for heat and it’ll shut itself off if it hits 95°F, which is around 10 minutes in the sun in Florida. A towel or even your shadow could keep your phone cold, so don’t leave it on the dash or wait for the warning screen to tell you that it’s overheating. By that point, your phone is already slowing down and heat damages the battery long-term, too—use a sunshade or toss it under the seat when you’re parked.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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