The call for collective cooling: Urban Heat Project in Windsor, Ont.

Over the course of six weeks this summer, CBC News deployed 50 sensors in the homes of people either wholly or partly without air conditioning in five different cities, including Windsor. The sensors, installed directly in participants' homes, took temperature and humidity readings every 10 minutes, providing a rich set of data to show the conditions people were living in, often without any relief. Those who agreed to host the sensors were chosen based on their willingness to participate and share their experiences with CBC News.

Summertime in Windsor is often characterized with sticky humidity and soaring temperatures, a feature that comes with being surrounded by bodies of water and being Canada's southernmost city. For some, it's a point of pride. For others, it's the source of their suffering. 

With thick air that makes breathing feel like you're in a steam room and pulsing temperatures often worsened by the humidity, air conditioning is a staple necessity for many Windsorites to maintain a consistent night's sleep and to prevent exacerbating health problems. Still for others, it's an option out of reach, or not an option at all. And more people than expected are stuck in this very situation, with temperatures in their homes and apartments creeping even higher than what's recorded outside.

For seniors and those with health conditions, studies have shown that being in conditions at 26 C or higher for extended periods of time can have a negative impact on overall health. For all people, it is dangerous to be in spaces above 31 C for prolonged periods. 

In Windsor, more than 50 per cent of households examined were consistently above 26 C indoors, with one household that never went below this threshold temperature. 

One of the Windsor participant's apartment readings is shown above, in comparison to the outdoor temperature and the added heat index reading. It is one example of a household that was rarely below 26 C. 

The majority of participants in the Windsor group were living in high-rise apartments, often in older buildings, where air conditioning either was a cost barrier or, in some cases, disallowed by the landlords. 

Gregory Walton, 50, is getting ready for date night with his fiancee, who lives in Michigan. An already hot day, he has planned to come home to take a cold shower before he drives across the Ambassador Bridge after work. 

"I've dried off, I'm getting dressed and I'm already starting to wet my shirt — I'm sweating profusely," he said in a self-made video. 

This is typical in Walton's unit, especially on a humid day when the air is still and viscous. Despite it being 11 p.m. at the time of filming, having all of the windows being open and three fans running, he can't escape the heat.

"It's absolutely sweltering in here."

During the course of six weeks, Walton's home never once fell below 26 C.

The above graph highlights where the temperature surpassed 26 C inside of Walton's apartment.

Walton's biggest challenge, he shared, was getting a good night's sleep that was uninterrupted.