As Britain battles to stay cool ahead of record-breaking high temperatures of 41C (106F) on Monday and Tuesday, sales of fans and air conditioning equipment are surging.
Building products company Toolstation reported a 641% increase in fan sales as a result of the heat wave, and John Lewis is selling 525% more air conditioners and 1,633% more parasols.
The cost of running an air conditioner might easily exceed £300.
If you use a portable air conditioner every night for a week, it will cost you about £19.60, or about 28p an hour, which works out to about £80 per month.
According to Uswitch, a normal 120w pedestal fan costs about 3.4p per hour on average, so leaving it on from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. would cost you about 33p.
Due to the increase in family expenses, this would equate to £2.35 over the course of a full week, or 75p more than last summer.
Interestingly, doctors advise against using mechanical fans at temperatures above 35C since they can exacerbate dehydration.
Level Four heat-health alerts have been issued by the UK Health Security Agency for both days, covering the entirety of England. The alerts state that “Illness and death may occur among the fit and healthy, and not just in high-risk groups.”
Tesco reported that sales of inflatable sprinklers and water activities soared by 1,568% while paddling pool sales increased by 14 times over the previous week.
More than 9 million iced sweets, 900,000 packs of BBQ meat, 2 million packs of sausages, roughly 3 million punnets of strawberries, and more than 5.5 million bottles of wine are also expected to be sold this week.
Due to an unexpected surplus of British-grown cherries brought on by the high temperatures, the grocery store is also offering cherries at a discount.
“As Brits try to cool down in the coming days, we’re forecasting record numbers of consumers adding ice cream and lollipops to their trollies — as well as BBQ favorites like sausages and burgers,” said Helen Sutton, Tesco’s buying manager for ice cream and frozen desserts.
According to John Lewis, sales of fans were up 256% from the previous year, while those of blackout curtains were up 193%.
Sales of sun care items were up 220 percent, ice cream sales were up 20% from the previous week, and searches for canned drinks on Waitrose.com were up 188% from the previous month, according to Waitrose.
As more people expected to spend nights outside, Lakeland reported that sales of a patio midge and mosquito repeller machine were up 53% from the previous week.
The shop also reported a 20% increase in insulated cooler bag sales.
Customers have flocked to us for the greatest summer products, from cooking outside to keeping bugs away, just in time for the heatwave, according to Lakeland buyer Rebecca Dudley.
Londoners have been encouraged to download an app that notifies users of the closest water refill point in the meanwhile.
The Refill app’s map displays the thousands of venues in the capital, including Costa Coffee, Greggs, and Morrisons stores that have joined on to give free drinking water, as well as the hundreds of public water fountains that are available in the center of London.
‘As the UK warms up this weekend, it’s crucial people know where to acquire free drinking water to stay hydrated and to be safe,’ said Steve Hynd, policy manager at City to Sea, the charity that created the app.
Small, frequent sips of water will be essential because temperatures may rise beyond 30 degrees.
By using the Refill app, users may avoid spending money and the environment on single-use plastic water bottles.
While the Met Office today issued its first-ever “red” extreme heat warning, health experts encouraged Britons to “watch out for others, especially elderly individuals, young children and babies and those with underlying health concerns.”
The potential of exceeding the UK record of 38.7C (101.6F), set in Cambridge on July 15, 2019, has increased to 80% from 60% earlier today and 30% on Monday, according to meteorologists.
According to BBC Weather, parts of London are now expected to reach 41C (106F) both next Monday and Tuesday.
Either would shatter the record, which was itself surpassed by a previous high of 38.5C (101.3F) in Kent on August 10, 2003.
For just the third time ever, forecasters issued a “amber” heat warning earlier this week for the majority of England and Wales from Sunday to Tuesday.
However, today this was expanded to include all of England, Wales, and southern Scotland – and for some of central and southern England, including London, it was upgraded to an unprecedented “red.”
As the nation braces for the record-breaking heat, schools are considering a number of measures, including early dismissal of students, the elimination of physical education classes, and the prohibition of youngsters from playing outside.