Suggestions for surviving the summer heat in our golf cart
 

We just recently purchased our house in the villages, and this will be our first time coming back during July/August. We would really appreciate any suggestions from first hand experience of how to best cope with the heat and humidity while out in our golf cart. We will certainly try getting tee times early, but we’re afraid we will be really overheated out on the courses. We also especially enjoy the evening Square shows, but once again, hot is hot! Are there any fans/misters that you have been pleased with? What about cooling towels/bandanas/etc? We have a new Yamaha EFI gas cart if that helps. Thanks for any suggestions!

Physical acclimation to the climate is the only thing I can think of. There are golf carts that have A/C.

Leave golf cart at home, and use car, unless golfing, would be my choice

Keep the windshield down, keep the cart moving, and keep the cold water handy.

Riding in the cart never seemed hot. Even a 20mph breeze keeps things comfortable.

At the squares, shade is your best bet. The fans at Brownwood help a lot but aren't enough if you are sitting in direct sun.

I haven't tried one but my wife swears by her cooling towel.

You really dont need anything for the golf cart.
If you play championship, try to wait for your shot in the shade
Put the windshield down, youll be fine.

Stay hydrated, early or late T times. Over time , you will acclimate to the warm weather.

So I’m sorta new too - first full summer here - but I was here twice last summer on lifestyle visits. Even when hot, I find the breeze coming through the golf cart to be cooling and a welcome relief- not bad at all. I know it’s still early in the summer season, but so far I am digging this weather, and acclimating better than expected to the humidity. I do my physical activities first thing in morning. When music starts at the squares at 5pm, it can still be blazing hot. Make sure you have a shady spot to sit, and you will be OK, if not, I’d wait to show up later when there is more shade at the square.

Agree. We bought a windshield screen that helps keep bugs out too.

Acclimating to the heat will get you only so far down here. Some folks are simply not hot-weather people. Just like some folks are simply not cold-weather people. On especially hot, humid days, you will absolutely need:

Cold - but not ice-cold - water. Carry an insulated thermos with you. You want it between 45-60°F
A clean dry washcloth, or two, or a hand-towel.
A baseball cap, visor, or straw hat with a short brim. This is to shade your face and head.

You can both drink the water, AND pour a little on one end of your towel to wipe your face and neck and cool them off, and use the other end of the towel to wipe the sweat off the back of your neck.

Also, you could get a little personal fan; I recommend the O2COOL battery powered one that hangs from your neck, they're around $10-12 at Walmart and Home Depot. Lowes carries the same brand, but a misting fan, with a reservoir for you to put ice and water in, it's also very small. I have three O2Cool fans - two are 10" tabletop ones that will plug in or use 6 C batteries, and the other is a little 3" 2-speed one that plugs into a usb port.

You could get a USB port installed in your golf cart, and use one of the mini fans that way.

I have never got used to the humidity. The heat is bearable, but the humidity is a killer. On the other hand my other half loves the heat and the humlidity. When I travel it is in the car with AC blasting, or stay home with the AC up high.

We bought several small fans on Amazon. They have flexible legs which wrap around the bar near the top of the windshield. They recharge using a normal USB connection.

I played gold with a guy who had one of these. I was amazed how cool it made the air blowing out of it...

Not sure which one he had...

https://fresair.com/installations/golf-carts/

Golf Cart Air Conditioning | Kool Air Tops | Indio

You go out in the heat, enjoy it and don’t focus on it.

welcome aboard

we golf later....6pm. No waiting, no crowds, a little cooler. I also wet a small towel and put it on the freezer for about 1/2 hour, then put it in my cooler with a couple freeze packs. works great!

Buy an Atomic golf cart they are air conditioned

While moving, golf cart shouldn’t be problem. If out in sun doing something like putt putt or just walking trails, wear hat, sunscreen, cooling towel, clothes that are moisture wicking (no 100% cotton), and drink LOTS of water. My husband and I debate even wear long sleeves if made of right material (like landscapers). Shop Academy Sports on line for great clothes that won’t stick to you. Have both men and Siemens clothes. Best discovery I ever made! You will get use to it.

I find that I don’t get hot while the cart is moving. When I get out to hit the ball is when I get hot. Shade helps.

Another thing that causes people to suffer in our heat is excess weight. If you are overweight, losing the excess will help you shed your body heat easier. It’s all about your surface area to mass ratio. I know that’s not what people want to hear because it’s not an easy solution like using technology to stay cool. But, you will feel much better for it.

Do not wear black. White is best. Have you noticed long, white garments in the desert?
f you have long hair, put it up.
Cooling pulse points helps - thus a neck cooler (cools pulse in neck) or even putting wrists on a cool tumbler. Swallowing pride and wetting hair can make a huge difference. In a heat emergency - I once had one - find a restroom, soak your t-shirt (blouse, etc.) and put it back on. The greater the humidity the less water-based solutions will help, but we do not get 100% humidity here, so they do help.

Do not wear layers.

Also, you may know, wear cotton or linen. Do not wear fabrics such as rayon or polyester, or even a cotton/polyester blend.

Some swear by eating spicy (hot-peppers) food, but I have never tried it.

Battery clip on fan helps!

You will eventually acclimate to the weather here. Most folks wind up adjusting their schedules to go along with the weather, doing outdoor activities either early or late in the day. Spend the hottest part of the day indoors or at the pool. I would not recommend getting in and out of air conditioned space (such as an A/C equipped golf cart), as that only confuses your body and makes it worse. Perspiration is your body's way of regulating temperature, and riding in your cart with the windshield down is actually a good thing.

After a summer or two here, you will figure out what to do, and what time of day to enjoy your activities. The heat of the summer here is a small price to pay for the other 8 months of terrific weather.

First summer you will def feel the heat. Next summer not so much as you acclimate to the heat. That said, drink PLENTY of fluids. When I play 18 hole championships in the summer I drink about 64 oz of fluids during the round and rarely have to pee...that's how much I sweat. Also, be out and about in the mornings, and hole up inside in the afternoons. Not much different than surviving winters up north...just heat instead of cold. Eventually you'll feel cold when its 50 degrees...then you'll know you acclimated.

Welcome and being from NJ you will be fine. (What exit ??). 98 here.
We found having a beach towel on our cart seat helps with the “Icky Stickys” and light and light colored clothes make us more comfortable.

Stay hydrated and get used to sweating a lot. If you find you're feeling overheated then stay indoors except for early mornings.

Welcome to TOTV. It really isn't that bad in the mornings and early evening. Pretty breazy while hauling around in the cart. We don't drop the rear side panels like a lot of others do on the cart.

Do an internet search for cooling towels and hats and be sure to check the reviews. Have heard good things about them but never used them myself.

I bought two 8” fans from Amazon that clip on. After I got mine my golf buddies thought they were great and bought some too. We all got various brands but all the exact same fan. So it doesn’t matter the brand, they’re all made by the same factory (probably China) Just look up 8” cooling clip on fan. They’re about $35 each, usb charge, 3 speed, and work great. Charge lasts about 5 or 6 hrs with fan on high.

I am assuming, yes I know, that you are from New Jersey. We are from Philly area and the heat and humidity are no worse here than July and August in philadelphia. It’s like being in PA.

Google golf cart fans. I have a three speed fan mounted over the windshield to the roof that runs off the cart battery. Looks like the old car AC.

Ahhhh. Have to completely disagree. Never wear cotton. I ONLY wear sports wicking 91% polyester/9%rayon fabrics. This always stays cool and you don’t get soaked in sweat. Cotton is horrible in the heat. Sold by all the sports and golf stores or amazon.com. Most have UV protection also.

We have a Breeze easy in our 12 yr old Par Car and on our 2 yr old Yamaha we have a ceiling fan by Climate Caddy which shuts off every time you get in and out of cart. Ck out both on websites and they both work great. Also drop the front windshield while you are playing.

Hot golf carts
 

Go to Walmart to the auto section they sell fans for the car that plug into a cigarette lighter. We found someone to put in a cigarette lighter, plugged the fan in, and YIPPEE it was nice and cool.

Cooling towels work for me plus a small fan and plenty of water. I landed in the hospital from dehydration my first year here so I try not to go out golfing during midday.

As someone born and raised right here in Central Florida. My suggestion would be use your car unless it’s before 9am or early evening and even then, you still might want to use your car.:)

Yes my husband installed two fans in our golf cart directly wired to the battery and they help a lot. We also have those rechargeable fans that look like headphones fans that go around your neck.. they also work well .

Also, don't forget salt intake. I keep salt in my golf bag. Drinking lots of water or sport drinks help but replenishing salt is needed as well. The amount of salt a person sweats out can be far more than an electrolyte drink replenishes. An emergency nurse friend of mine once told me that treating heat stroke and de-hydration was one of the most common emergencies they saw and that just drinking water or sports drinks did not prevent but combining with salt with drink did. I will wash down about a 1/2 a teaspoon of salt prior to playing golf or being in extreme heat where I know I will be sweating a lot. Makes sense because the 1st thing ER will do is a saline drip.

Is this a joke? I got a good laugh when I read it. This is Florida. It is hot and humid and rainy in the summer and paradise in the winter. Of course, that’s also true of Tahiti, Jamaica, Mexico, China, Washington (well, NOT Washington, and only parts of China). I love it here in the summer, but then I don’t drive a golf cart, my car is air-conditioned, I’m rarely outside in the day except to walk from my car to wherever I’m going, and I don’t go to the town squares. That’s how I deal with it. Perhaps you should consider, say, Phoenix or Palm Springs, where it may be 115° at 10 a.m., “but it’s a dry heat.” That’s 25° hotter than what it probably is here.

Fans
 

Everyone in our golf group have rechargeable fans we clip onto windshield. It is also freestanding so you can take it to the square or bars. Found on amazon. Sold under many names just make sure its rechargeable and 10000mAh

Koonie 8-Inch Clip & Desk Fan, 10000mAh Battery Operated Rechargeable Portable Fan, USB Fan with 4 Speeds, Strong Airflow, Sturdy Clamp for Golf

https://a.co/d/aUEWTKh

https://a.co/d/92uvAwx

I got a coupe of little fans and mounted the on the roof. Best arrangement I have seen was a cart that had a 12 or 15 inch automotive radiator fan mounted to the roof.