DIY Cooling

I live in the DC metro area where summers can be hot and humid. Prior to having cats in my life, I tried to keep AC usage to a minimum; mainly due to cost and environment concerns. Well now that I have two cats and we are entering our first summer together, I leave the AC on all day. I have it at about 80F. It's fairly comfortable now, but from July to September, temperatures can soar into the 90's with 90 percent humidity.

So I have hatched DIY ideas on how to supplement the AC to keep the cats cool and comfy in my apartment. One idea is to use freezer packs. I would stuff a few of them in waterproof bags and the kitties would have places to lay on and cool off. At least that's the idea...

Well, the problem I've run into is that the waterproof bags (they are thin cooler bags) sweat or condense so of course the cats and carpet would get soaked. I wrap them with towels but that would lessen the cooling effects plus, I'm a little worried about having moist/wet items around the carpet and who knows what health issues would pop up.

So any tips on how to fix this problem? Or how about what has worked for you?

Eighty degrees is plenty cool enough for a cat, I think.

Yes and since the weather has been fairly mild, the AC only kicks on periodically. Once it gets very hot and humid here, I'm tempted to raise the temps a bit because to keep it at 80 could become pretty expensive.

Put some ice cubes in their water as well because i find it encourages them to drink more