Friday, November 14, 2014

Comfort Levels In Your Home

O Happy Day!  It is clear and sunny out; there is still lots of snow on the ground, but there is a hope that much will melt by this afternoon.  I love living here with the beauty of the Rockies looming in the distance.  I love the seasons here, but for some strange reason-possibly our long, warm autumn, I'm just not ready for winter quite yet. I don't mind that our routines slow down a lot and it gives me plenty of time for sewing and reading plus visiting you all, but it just feels too early.  I was pleasantly surprised today to find that we didn't have any condensation on the windows this morning.  I will say that we turned our furnace a degree higher last night to see if that helped.  So my question for you today friends is if you live in a cold climate with snow, what do you keep your furnace at during the night.  Back in the late 70's, we were taught that it is healthier to have the furnace set at 55 degrees. So for the past 36 yrs, we have kept it that low; however this year we turned it up to 60-62.  Last night we left it at 63, just to see if it made a difference. I know that it is always the outside air being so much colder than inside that makes for condensation, but wondered if we'd sleep a bit better. 
I know some of you that live in snow country probably have a wood burning stove.  Here in Colorado-at least in our area, people just don't have them.  I know that wood burning fireplaces are outlawed; we have two gas fireplaces and several space heaters.  We will be getting a bigger, more efficient space heater tomorrow.  We do keep the house a bit cooler than some-generally the highest the temp goes in winter is 68 degrees. 
So tell me what your keep your thermostat at. I wonder if that info we got back in the 70's about keeping the temp down to 55 at night is really accurate, or maybe it was for those of us who suffered allergies, could it be that it was for those who live in California verses living in snow country?
I hope you have a fantastic weekend!!!
Enjoy every moment of life.
Noreen

15 comments:

  1. We keep ours at 64 however we live in a older mobile home and we get lots of continuous winds, it isn't ever over 68 during the day and when we leave we always turn it down.

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  2. Oh my, ours goes on at 10 centigrade or it will go on automatically if it goes below zero. However lucky us we don't need it at the moment as still mild here. Have a fabulous Friday.
    Best wishes Molly

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  3. We live in California so our heater is always OFF at night. It goes on automatically from about 8 a.m. to 10 a.m and then in the evening for a couple hours. We set the temp to 68.
    I think you are smart to set the temp to 55 at night. The less we use heat and A/C (which we don't have) the better for the environment :)

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  4. Growing up our house was warm near the stove and cold in the corners or bedrooms. We keep our thermostat set at 68....we burn wood here I Indiana and it gets plenty warm when a good fire is going. Today was had a pretty day with sunshine and blue skies. I love it. Although it stayed cold all day for the traces of snow did not melt. Blessings, xoxo,Susie

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  5. We live in upper Midwest and we have our furnace at between 69-71 in day mostly due to my creaky bones that have not healed....yet. Also tile floors are cold in iowa! At night down to 64. I sleep under a wool comforter to stay warm when temps dip to way below zero in our corner....our kids keep theirs all around 68 and 63 at night.

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  6. Don't fall over but my computer seems to be working again. Fingers crossed, prayers said and whoop do do.
    The wood stove was started tonight; this morning it was 20 and supposed to go down to 18 but it'll be lower in my valley. I'm expecting 12 or thereabouts. I always stay warm because 3 dogs let me sleep with them and they keep me warm. -lol-

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  7. We live in a 100 year old 2 story farm home. We only have heat downstairs in one room- and that heat is a pellet stove. It neds electricity then wood pellets fall and burn. We do not leave it running at night- unless the temperatures are like in the 20's or teens,,, we need to keep the pipes from freezing. We can warm one room up to around 72.
    We usually are at 68 degrees in the day.
    The heat stretches out a little,,,, but no heat at all upstairs where the bed rooms are.
    love
    tweedles

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  8. 55? I'd be covered in frost. As I get older, I'm finding I have less and less tolerance for cold ... or even chilliness. We keep the furnace set at 71 at night and 74 during the day. And even so, I'm usually bundled up under a quilt (either one In progress or one already finished). We keep the A/C set at 77.

    I researched condensation on windows and it's usually caused by energy-efficient houses that keep the warm moist air inside. In older, less energy efficient homes, the warm moist air would escape through small gaps, thus no condensation.

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  9. I like the house to be on the cool side, and don't mind wearing a sweater, so we keep our thermostat set at about 65-67, never any higher than that. And if I feel colder at night, I just throw another dog on the bed, I mean blanket! :-)

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  10. We keep our house at 67 during the winter days and drop it to 65 at night. We generally increase it when we have guests who prefer a warmer house.

    A heavy comforter on the bed and warm fleece during the day works for us. We have throws to use when we are sitting to read or watch TV and I have shawls over my shoulders when I am knitting.

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  11. Well here in California our heater is rarely even on. But then I am always hot...body just runs warm I guess. But in the winter the heat goes off at night, and during the day I set it at 65 and honestly it rarely runs after it warms up in the morning. I turned it up to 68 when mom was living here as she was always freezing, lol, and I could barely stand it. I like to bury myself in blankets and have my nose chilly when I sleep. I always heard that was better too, but don't know if it's true. My windows have been wide opened around the clock for the last couple of weeks as the air conditioner is FINALLY done running I think, lol. I am loving it. Enjoy your week-end!

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  12. I never turn the heat on unless the house gets down in the mid 50's (almost Never). I think I turned it on twice last winter just to take the morning chill off. Now, summer is a completely different story! My son is home all day! I set the AC at 76 in May and don't touch it until October! Whew...I'm glad it is Finally off for the year!!! Blessings for a super weekend!

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  13. Hi Noreen! We keep ours at 59 at night and 62 during the day. We live in a rather large house and the bills were just getting to be out of sight! So, we have gotten quite used to having it a bit chillier than some people. If we have company, it gets turned up! Actually, then I am TOO warm!! With my asthma, I feel better when it is cooler. Enjoy your weekend! xo Jeanne

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  14. Hello dear friend. I am envying your snow and cold weather. I so would love have it here!!! But, I can go to Big Bear for that too.
    I can't imagine now having a wood burning fire in the winter. I love it!!! I know that is not so healthy for our environment though.
    Have a wonderful weekend!
    xo Kris

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