Solar distillation is a good solution for places facing a shortage of distilled water. Solar distillation is a straightforward technology that takes advantage of the free solar energy, and is more cost-effective than other methods, especially in hot weather locations. When the summer sun is at its zenith, solar stills suffer from poor performance, especially at midday when solar radiation peaks. The present research aims to introduce a viable remedy that has been tested under the challenging summer climate of Iraq, which has been known to be one of the harshest in the world. A new design of solar still has been proposed and developed to work in the Baghdad atmosphere, which has a harsh climate. It is found that the simple solar cover glass high temperatures stop the distalation process temporarily between 12 AM and 3 PM. Evaporation energy decreased due to a decrease in energy loss to the air, especially between these hours. This problem was found to be significantly influenced by the solar air temperature in regions with harsh climates. A 120.8 productivity increase was achieved without any cooling assistance using the proposed system. The productivity improved by 337.36 after 4 PM when the fixed cover was cooled with a fan. The productivity increased by 403 when the lid was cooled with water after 4 PM. The studied system cost was reasonable and within the financial capabilities of families in remote areas. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd