This Traditional Japanese Yoshizu Is the Secret to Cooling Down Without AC

I live in New York City, and every summer it feels like the heat gets more and more sweltering. My efforts to beat the heat when I’m at home are pretty straightforward: I run the air conditioning unit, plug in one of my multiple fans, and close my interior curtains to shield me from the bright sunlight.

In particularly brutal heat waves, which have become more common as the years go by, this setup only works to a certain extent. Because I live in an apartment above the first floor, there’s not much I can do about the sun besides interior shades — but if I did live on the ground floor I’d be using a yoshizu, a traditional Japanese screen, which I learned about on Instagram. 

Japan-based content creator Richelle Matsukawa recently posted a video with text over it that reads, “Japan’s secret to surviving summer isn’t AC. It’s this … ” In the video, Matsukawa shows how she sets up a yoshizu, or a traditional Japanese screen made of woven reed or bamboo, in front of a window. “Instead of blocking windows with heavy curtains, you hang this outside,” she writes. “It acts like an umbrella for your house. It blocks harsh UV rays & absorbs heat before it hits your glass.” I had never seen a yoshizu before, but it felt not unlike exterior shutters on a home’s window, and it makes complete sense that it’s super-effective to block UV rays before they hit your glass windows, not just after. 

I was immediately intrigued, so I did some research; according to a blog I found by a Japanese local, yoshizu have been used in Japan for centuries and can even be seen in art from the Kamakura period, which spans the years 1185 to 1333. In the comment section of the video, people from all over the world chimed in, and some had window-cooling methods of their own. “I’ve covered my windows from outside as well,” a Dutch commenter writes. “No drilling required: Hang a suspension rod (IKEA sells them) with simple white curtains. White works best for keeping cool. Works brilliantly. The difference inside is massive.” This could also be a good option if you don’t live on the ground floor, like me. 

While the use of yoshizu originated in Japan, there’s no reason you can’t beat the heat with a bamboo screen of your own. Finding an authentic yoshizu will require you to head to Japan or use an international retail site, but you can also find yoshizu-style screens elsewhere.

Over at The Home Depot, there’s a natural bamboo reed fence panel that very much resembles Matsukawa’s yoshizu. It’s $25.16 for a roll measuring five feet high and 14 feet wide, and can also be used to cover fences and railings.