Comments on Crunchy Chicken: Negotiating the thermostat wars

well..a longer then expected run of unemployment h...

2010-01-20T09:24:44.703-08:00

well..a longer then expected run of unemployment has me notching down the temp to 55. You know what...because we were accustomed to 58-59 this isn't bad. You really do get used to lower temps. My daughter was helping a friend with homework and because that child's house runs a steady 80 ( I kid you not..it's like a dessert in there) I upped it to 65. I came home and nearly suffocated when I walked into the house and the poor kid was wearing gloves!!!

There are no arguments here about the lack of heat...

2009-12-16T11:26:41.921-08:00

There are no arguments here about the lack of heating. Again, we don't actually believe the heater still works, but even if it does it's unnecessary. The coldest it ever gets here in Houston is in the high 20s, which makes it too warm for me to feel anything other than blankets, a small space heater with the door shut, and thick socks are a necessity.

Keep the thermostat low. Did you know that being a...

2009-12-14T16:17:36.888-08:00

Keep the thermostat low. Did you know that being a bit "chilled" actually burns more calories? So you can eat more, but not stay as toasty warm. Just a tip for anyone concerned about weight (as we all usually are to some extent.)

we purchased a wood buring fire place insert last ...

2009-12-14T14:21:03.774-08:00

we purchased a wood buring fire place insert last year...saved lots of money and feels good to tell the oil producers, sffb (shit for brains bush) and the rest of the worthless politicians,and speculators to go to hell!

dougdigiacomo@sbcglobal.net

We had a few skirmishes here (generally, me in fav...

2009-12-14T04:27:36.804-08:00

We had a few skirmishes here (generally, me in favor of less warm, J. in favor of more) until we reorganized the household finances such that J. pays the utility bills. Now, we seem to be astonishingly in sync. We don't have a furnace or thermostat, though, so that limits the potential for bickering over one or two degree margins.

The great peace-keeper here, also, is the electric blanket. Last night we went to bed at 47ºF/8ºC in the bedroom, but were cozy. 53F/12C in the kitchen this morning...

2009-12-13T10:11:20.543-08:00

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Glad to hear that U.S.A. Today contacted you. I wa...

2009-12-11T22:55:57.929-08:00

Glad to hear that U.S.A. Today contacted you. I was also interviewed for that article and told the writer about your "freeze yer buns challenge."

This is the second year that I have done a "No Heat Challenge" on my blog, "The Non-Consumer Advocate." People are excited to take control over their utility bills and energy usage.

My family keeps our thermostat at 64 degrees during the day and 57 degrees at night and nobody complains. And let me tell ya', Oregon's chilly temps have been testing our resolve.

Keep cool!

Katy Wolk-Stanley
"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."

My husband likes it warmer only because of the kid...

2009-12-11T06:24:08.533-08:00

My husband likes it warmer only because of the kids. But if the kids keep stripping their clothes off at 68 then clearly the temperature in the house is not affecting them.

That is what I said the other day and he hasn't complained since. The house hasn't gone lower than 67 degrees. Mostly, this isn't because of the furnace because I have only heard it go on twice since Thanksgiving. We are still trying to get the house cold enough to adjust the thermostat to its winter setting.

Good lord, I just walked out of my bedroom and was...

2009-12-10T23:40:57.459-08:00

Good lord, I just walked out of my bedroom and was blasted with heat from the rest of the apartment. Checked the thermometer in the living room and it was 69. Funny that that felt so darn hot to me!

Can't complain too much because with the heat on, he actually cleaned.

FPF - Keep yer panties on, darling. I was just kid...

2009-12-10T23:35:53.633-08:00

FPF - Keep yer panties on, darling. I was just kidding about the Snuggie :)

A nice thick sweater, a warm quilt, fuzzy slippers...

2009-12-10T23:22:13.486-08:00

A nice thick sweater, a warm quilt, fuzzy slippers, yes. Snuggie? No way, man. Those things are a total waste of money. Cheap polyester fleece that feels yucky. Thin. And keeps falling off. My dad sent me one for Christmas last year. My kitty attacked it and tried to eat it. (She's addicted to eating plastic of all kinds. Ironic much!) After giving it a try for half a second, I put that thing in the Goodwill box and never looked back.

Just saying.

No wars here. I am the one that wants to keep the ...

2009-12-10T19:02:34.926-08:00

No wars here. I am the one that wants to keep the temps down, but I am also the one that gets the coldest. However low I can go tends to work for everyone else. We keep the house at a constant 55 but because we have three heating zones, we are able to warm just the family room area to 65 in the evening for a few hours.

In order to handle the colder temps in our house, I tend to wear a thin down coat and scarf...sometimes even a hat in the morning while my son and husband manage in thin fleece sweaters. Yesterday when my husband came home from work and looked at me wearing my coat inside, he remarked that he can't tell whether I am coming or going now that I am wearing my outerwear nonstop.

Luckily for me I have control over the heat output...

2009-12-10T18:22:58.173-08:00

Luckily for me I have control over the heat output- except martins room. One time I went in there he had the heat full blast and his A/C on at the same time. I went ballistic. Hasn't happened since.

It has been so cold here this week (-20C) but we h...

2009-12-10T16:55:46.767-08:00

It has been so cold here this week (-20C) but we have managed to keep our thermostat on its normal schedules (70 when we are home, 68 in the evening, 65 at night)

I actually am having a war with the thermostat. I...

2009-12-10T14:34:28.731-08:00

I actually am having a war with the thermostat. I live by myself, but the crummy old thermostat that's been there since the building was built in the '70s doesn't function very well. The colder it gets outside the bigger the discrepancy between the actual temperature and what I set the thing to- so I just have to guess, if I set it to 65, will it stay at 62 in here?? I'm thinking of asking the management, if they will install a programmable thermostat for me if I buy it.

Jen, our pipes froze one time when it was (i think...

2009-12-10T13:33:40.353-08:00

Jen, our pipes froze one time when it was (i think) -20 for several evenings in a row. They run up an uninsulated North wall and we keep our thermostat at 55 or 58. It's only happened that one time in 7 years - and it caused no permanent damage, but we had to buy a hair dryer to thaw them.

We have been luring our little boy out of bed in the morning by warming his clothes by the space heater in the bathroom, but in general I'm the one wanting to turn the heat up to 62. We do turn it up a little for guests, and when my folks come to stay we put it all the way up to 65!

The lower temperatures are fine when it's just...

2009-12-10T13:17:15.265-08:00

The lower temperatures are fine when it's just my husband. I usually turn it up for company but this year I forgot over Thanksgiving. One morning my Dad got up early and when I came down commented, "the thermostat said it was 59 when I got up. I thought the furnace was broken." For some reason I found this amusing.

In the past someone would have turned it up, even if I had turned it up some myself, but this year everyone came with sweaters and down vests and blankets, and though some comments were made, no one touched the thermostat. Of course my native Texan in-laws would not have fared so well (I don't fare well in their summer heat either) - but mostly people just seem to need time to adjust to the idea. We are, in the end, creatures of habit.

I'm renting a room in a house with random room...

2009-12-10T13:00:12.274-08:00

I'm renting a room in a house with random roommates, so for the sake of harmony and getting along with people that I haven't known for very long, I'm keeping quiet and deferring to the wishes of my roommates. I did, however, buy some air vent covers for my own room so theoretically to reduce my own personal energy use as much as possible. An imperfect solution, but it's the best I can do for now.

This is our second winter with the thermostat at 5...

2009-12-10T12:51:44.894-08:00

This is our second winter with the thermostat at 58F, and the family seems to be taking it well. DH likes it cold; one of my sons complains a bit yet refuses to do anything other than walk around in a t-shirt and shorts(!), so no one is too sympathetic. My daughter, who was the worst complainer last year, is now married and can pay her own heating bills now :)

I would say knock her up! :) It's usually me ...

2009-12-10T12:42:19.121-08:00

I would say knock her up! :) It's usually me that's too cold, but I'm willing to bundle up in the house because of the environmental aspects. But since getting pregnant, I'm HOT!

I keep the heat at 60 only when I am gone, otherwi...

2009-12-10T11:55:32.507-08:00

I keep the heat at 60 only when I am gone, otherwise it is 65 at night, warmer in the day (between 70 and 75). Even wearing layers, sweaters, socks, and slippers, I am still cold at 70 and will visibly shake. So warm it is :)

We keep the thermostat right below 60 if/when it g...

2009-12-10T10:48:04.301-08:00

We keep the thermostat right below 60 if/when it gets super cold. Both my daughter and I love putting on warm pajamas and snuggling uner blankets, but those days are few and far between in Houston.

no arguments here. this is our first year with oil...

2009-12-10T10:03:45.514-08:00

no arguments here. this is our first year with oil heat (=P) and we have well insulated windows and house, even in the cold we've been getting in Oregon we keep it at 60, I think my partner could be fine at 55 but I get too cold when not moving around much. there is a space heater in the bedroom for dressing and stuff and the dehumidifier in the bathroom doubles as a heater too.
OF course 60 is plenty warm when you get home after biking home from work in the teens so that's a bonus.

We have been keeping the thermostat at 68 when we ...

2009-12-10T09:41:38.634-08:00

We have been keeping the thermostat at 68 when we are home and awake (which is about 4 hours in the evening and an hour in the morning), and 58 when we are not home or asleep (we have a cat). I have to admit that I find 68 to be cold for getting out of the shower, so I do turn it up to 70 for about 20 minutes so I can shower and warm up again after. Then I turn it back down.

This is such a hard one. I'm cold all the time...

2009-12-10T09:10:31.466-08:00

This is such a hard one. I'm cold all the time, but I'm more committed to keeping it low than my husband. And we have young children who either can't have blankets yet, or don't keep them on. We have a space heater for the girls' room and my husband built a "canopy" in our room over our bed, made of sleeping bags etc. to keep our warmth concentrated. And yeah, it looks like hell. We keep it between 62 and 68 during the day (depending on the wind, a little lower at night.