Home heating, thermostat settings?

[compleckz]

hey all,
first off my mom and i live in a 2 story 3 bedroom house.. the upstairs is completely unoccupied currently. It contains 2 bedrooms, and a small full bathroom., with a small little hallway.

the downstairs is 5 rooms, with 1 bedroom, 1 full bath kitchen/dining room, living room (where i like to sleep), and the laundry/computer room.

so its winter now, we have an oil furnace, and 2 thermostat controls, one for upstairs, one for downstairs.

65 seems like a prime temperature, and thats what the downstairs was set at, and the upstairs was off (it never got below 50 due to heat rising, all 3 doors remain closed upstairs).

my mom recently has been upping the downstairs thermostat to 75 or 85, because she was cold at 65 somehow. with the upstairs thermo off, it never got above 70 downstairs. she figured out the upstairs was off and set BOTH to 75. now i can barely sleep, and am hot just sitting here in a t-shirt and shorts. (i love the cold) its hard to say which way the furnace runs more, i havent paid that close of attention to is.. (btw, its been about 25-35 lately, so not wicked cold.)

so now that you have a ton of useless background info, what is the best setting for both of our thermostats? i'm the only one that goes upstairs (to my bedroom, and shower). it can be as cold as is economical. a few online sources have stated 64-68 is an economical temperature for when you are home and active. and turn it down to 55 for sleep or when you leave. i have found much info on what the best solution is for dual thermostats.. i dont know if having the upstairs off will cause the furnace to run constantly trying to heat the downstairs to 75.

i'm looking for a compromise, and i want facts. when i confront her about this, i know shes just going to say "i want it at 75, i dont care if it costs more".. i dont pay for the heat, or the house.. but im all about saving money, and she sucks at it.

currently i have the upstairs off, and the downstairs set to 65.. according to what i've read online, the longer you keep it colder, the more you save. and it costs more to maintain a higher heat, than it costs to set it lower while away from home, and heat it back to a comfortable habitable temp when you get back.

 

[Dave R]

Heat loss is directly related to the temperature differental between the inside and outside of your house. If it's 45* outside and you keep it at 65* inside you won't use(loose) much heat if it's 20* outside and you attempt to keep it at 75* inside your heat loss would be about 3-4 times as much.

Basically in your case leave the upstairs off and the doors closed and keep the downstairs thermostat as low as you can comfortably stand it. Though 55* seems a bit cold for sleeping. If your Mom thinks 65* is cold, suggest a sweater. But, if she's paying then she can set it anywhere she wants.

 

[compleckz]

If your Mom thinks 65* is cold, suggest a sweater. But, if she's paying then she can set it anywhere she wants.

i am super-human, as i wore a t-shirt and shorts outside all day (high of 37).. i do like it cold, but 65 is NOT COLD.

but if i can do that and be comfortable washing my car, i think she can handle 65 inside with no wind, and with a sweatshirt on.

and in response to the last part, i knew everyone was going to say that, but still im trying to do a good thing here and save her money. (i'm the geek kid that keeps track of his mpg, bank accounts/transactions, etc... in an excel spreadsheet)

 

[Jspafford]

We keep ours set on 71 in the winter and 75 in the summer. We have a programmable thermostat.. Our furnace was just installed last march along with a new A/C.. Wuhoo... A/C is the best.. Anyway....

I would mention to her how much extra she is going to use by cranking the temperature up so high. Of course, once she gets the first gas bill, she may be turning them both off...

 

[97RangerXLT]

LOL it is your mom's house....

That being said, I would set the thermostat upstairs to the lowest temp possible to keep your downstairs temp at the temp your mom is comfortable with.

After she gets the heating bill, she might lower it a tad.

If the upstairs is still to warm for you, you can crack a window in your bedroom when you sleep.

Your only other course of action is to plead with her that you are burning up and maybe she will turn it down a bit...

AJ

 

[chico4554]

haha i keep my mpg and all my credit cards and checking account in a excel spreadsheet too. You are not the only one. When i get my own place, the heat is going to be set at its lowest setting possible. I like it cold. Warm enough to keep the pipes from freezing. I would like to heat my home with a wood stove mostly.

If you chop your own wood it warms you twice.

I think your mom will learn on her own the consequences of turning the heat up higher. I was told a story of some people who got their own place and didnt understand the concept of heat and oil, after the heat stopped working they found out they ran out of oil. 700 bucks later they kept the heat as low as possible.

 

[compleckz]

the only thing about the fuel bill that would change her mind, would be a LOWER bill from turning the heat down.. we've lived here for 12 years, so she (should) know how much it costs to heat it to 75...

the only reason this came up is cuz i am downstairs a lot more now, before i controlled my heat upstairs, and didn't have to deal with it being hot down here.

thanks for all the responses

 

[JohnnyO]

I'd say just leave the heat off upstairs or set it to what you want, buy a TV, and stay up there more.
Noting what DaveR said, it might depend on the temps where you live and how weathertight your house is, but a friend of mine in the HVAC business told me that turning the thermostat down more than 6 to 8 degrees ends up not saving you anything because the furnace, boiler, whatever, just runs longer when you turn it back up.
Being that my gas bill is double what it was four years ago, I'm all in favor of global warming.

 

[80351]

That's where tour wrong Chico, Wood burns 3 times....
Once when you split it, Again when you stack it and finally when you burn it.

 

[Evan]

Noting what DaveR said, it might depend on the temps where you live and how weathertight your house is, but a friend of mine in the HVAC business told me that turning the thermostat down more than 6 to 8 degrees ends up not saving you anything because the furnace, boiler, whatever, just runs longer when you turn it back up.

Really??

Sure, the heater is going to need to use more energy in order to bring the temp back up rather than maintaining an existing temp, but isn't the net amount of energy used still lower?

In most of the houses I've lived in, the furnace can bring the temp up 6-8 degrees in a matter of a few minutes. Turning the temp down 6-8 degrees results in a greatly reduced run time during the day.

EDIT: I'd do some calculations, but my thermodynamics skills are a bit rusty. I haven't used them much as a Business Analyst...

 

[JohnnyO]

Sure, the heater is going to need to use more energy in order to bring the temp back up rather than maintaining an existing temp, but isn't the net amount of energy used still lower?

There's a lot of variables and it depends on a number of factors but for any house there is a break-even point for turning down the heat. What you save versus the extra time it runs to bring it back up.
Anyway, I said MORE than 6-8 degrees. A big old uninsulated brick house like mine, it isn't worth turning the temp down a lot because the boiler runs forever to heat the place back up. Also the cast iron radiators continue to throw off heat long after the boiler shuts off.
On the other hand, at one of my offices we turn the heat completely off on the weekends because it's insulated enough that nothing freezes and it's small enough that it's up to temp in less than 10 minutes when you turn it back on.

 

[ashleyroachclip]

An unheated building , can be colder inside than the outside .
I am a builder , and can tell you this first hand .
I tell people to never turn the thermostat below 55 , and keep it @ 68* when home .

 

[Dave R]

There's a lot of variables and it depends on a number of factors but for any house there is a break-even point for turning down the heat. What you save versus the extra time it runs to bring it back up.
Anyway, I said MORE than 6-8 degrees.

The 6-8 degree temp for heat cycling is about right. There is a lot of interior mass(rugs, furnishings, walls) and air that you have to bring back up to temp. The trick is to leave it at the lowest temp that your comfortable with. Over winter the main section of my house never gets much above 55*. The upstairs bedroom generally has the heat turned off and the door closed when we don't have house guests, it's currently 48* in there (I just looked). The master bedroom and living room cycle between 55* and 63* (note the 'magic' 8* difference). So basically, my furnace really only heats one room in a normal 24 hour day and on day's where the sun is shining it won't even run much during the day.

 

[skippy]

you might check into a humidifier for mama,keepimg the humidity up to snuff helps feel warmer at a lower temp.75 is a bit warm,85 is outrageous.we tell people to drop back to 68 for energy savings and comfort.however,it is up to the individual comfort level of the homeowner.humidifier incorporated in the furnace w/adjustable sensor in the return air duct is the way to go.call your local heating contractors for brocures,options and prices.

 

[Will]

Turn both thermostats up to 85. At some point she'll take charge of reducing the heating costs.