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Old 12-02-10, 11:05 AM   #41
osolemio
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This is not entirely up to date but shows part of my system:



Here you can see part of the underfloor heating, before the concrete was applied. Those two wooden square things are actually two of the three openings down to the 290 USG tanks, as they are located below the floor you see here. The light tone is because I used this picture for printing, to see where the tubing is. Carpenter needed to drill fasteners into the floor and it is not really helpful if he perforates the underfloor heating pipe!



And in the existing floor, which was there already, awfully hard concrete had some canals made for the tubing:



I am not sure if this is getting off topic or not, but I really think the actual temperature one keep does depend on how you get the heat. Even if the air is measured at 70F, then cold walls, drafts and even the humidity means something, as well as what activity level is performed. Doing office type work requires more heat than if running around and cleaning the house and so on ...

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Last edited by osolemio; 12-02-10 at 11:10 AM..
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Old 12-02-10, 04:09 PM   #42
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A bit of an update here. The first year I was in the house I ran 68F while at home, 63F at night and while away. I have since changed to 68F while at home in the evening, 60F at night and in the morning before leaving for work, and 50F while away for more than a day.

I am thinking of changing it yet again to 68F while at home in the evening, 55F at night, bumping it up to ~63F in the morning, back to 55F while we're gone till the evening, and 50F while away for more than a day. This would make it more comfortable while we are awake and at home, yet potentially save some more energy. Anyone think there is any savings to be had there? I'm not sure how often the furnace kicks in overnight...
I think you would see some savings by turning it down to 55 at night, especially if your home isn't perfectly insulated , and you live in a cold climate.
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Old 12-02-10, 08:13 PM   #43
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Left the Sanyo set to 21C (69.8F) overnight last night and the master bedroom stayed around 19 to 20C all night.

I found it very pleasant getting up and making my Inka beverage in a warm kitchen.

Earlier, (at 5AM) I stood in the kitchen, barefooted for about 10 minutes,
looking out the window at the fingernail Moon with Venus beside it.
Amazingly, Venus looked like small but brilliant moon .
& it was nice to be warm, while moon watching.


Averaging about 7.5kWh($1.57) per day. We seem to be about 1 kWh higher per day than in 2009 on similar days.
If it's only going to cost us 21 cents a night, I'm going to try it for a few more nights..

Maybe letting everything cool down at night, and then trying to heat it back up (fast) in the morning,
isn't really that efficient.?.


Cheers,
Rich
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Old 12-03-10, 01:34 AM   #44
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Maybe letting everything cool down at night, and then trying to heat it back up (fast) in the morning, isn't really that efficient.?.
I've started a new thread to answer your question.
Does cooling your house down at night really save energy?
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Old 03-03-11, 11:21 AM   #45
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This relates to the thread's title:
How warm is your home? - BBC News
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Old 03-03-11, 03:08 PM   #46
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Interesting article, a good read. I always thought people normally kept their houses around 68(20c)-70 degrees with a few at 72(22c). It is interesting to read the average is 17.5C(63.5f) because other than myself and people on this site, I don't know anyone who keeps their house colder than 65 degrees. I don't think it would be too hard to get used to 60 degrees for someone young and in decent shape.

Personally, I've got things setup a little different at my place and during December had the house at 50 degrees (10c) and then ramped it up to 55 degrees when I was home but not sleeping or on my days off. In January I kept the house at 50 degrees with no setback and ran it up only when people were over, I got used to it. After some testing to be sure the pipes weren't getting close to freezing I ended up keeping the house at 40 degrees when not home and temps above zero and 45 degrees when sleeping and 50 when awake by the end of January.

All of February if it I was away from home and above zero outside 45 degrees and if below zero at 50 degrees, home 40 degrees unless below zero outside, I'd run the furnace for 30 minutes when taking a shower, and would only run 50 degrees when out and about with activity in the house. One day in February I used a -10 degree night as a test for design load sizing and raised the house to 80 to at least partially emulate a -20 outside and 70 degree inside temperature, I could live with a 40k 90+% efficient furnace based on the runtimes in my 2200sq ft house at those temps and if I got a 40k 2-stage I'd probably never leave lower stage unless its below -10 and I've got the temp above 60 degrees.

As far as getting used to the temperatures I've become used to 45 degrees as being 'a little chilly' with a t-shirt but comfortable to sleep in or with a sweatshirt and pants on, 50 degrees as being comfortable enough with a t-shirt and pants, 55 degrees feels like summer at 70 to me now. Going to work I'm feeling a little extra on the warm side but comfortable. I don't mind walking around the house at 40 degrees with a sweatshirt on but am comfortable in bed. ...Using a heated mattress pad and two thick comforter blankets stacked will make you sweat even at 40 degrees inside.

The article says -9 or lower, hypothermia. My house is currently 45 degrees (7c) and was 40 degrees(4.5c) earlier this morning. I'm still alive but I think that spending 4 months at consistently low temperatures is required to get used to this and also to survive in it.

...for the record, next year I'll have the ceiling/attic up to R-60+ cellulose and will probably keep the house at 65 degrees the whole winter. This year is mostly a test to see how low the bills could be for a 1 year period(probably $250 including fees and taxes for a year for the furnace and water heater). If I get a new condensing furnace(all 90%+ furnaces), I can't set the temperature below 55 degrees on setback or 60 degrees continuously according to their manuals so if I upgrade efficiency, I might be required to keep the temperature warmer just to allow my heat exchanger to operate at a safe temperature to prevent it from condescending in the primary heat exchanger. ...at least that's why I think the minimum is 55 degrees on setback or 60 continuous, not completely sure.
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Old 03-03-11, 06:49 PM   #47
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The thermostat is at anywhere between 65°F and 68°F.
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Old 03-30-11, 10:36 PM   #48
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Quote:
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The thermostat is at anywhere between 65°F and 68°F.
+1 to this.
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Old 05-21-11, 10:29 AM   #49
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We spike it up to 68 mornings and evenings, and keep it at 60 through the night and during the day while we are away.
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Old 05-21-11, 06:30 PM   #50
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Forget the winter, we are still using the heat almost all the time and it's late in May..
Today, it got warm out. At long last. But, the temp just dropped pretty quickly to 57F.



I just ran around shutting all the doors and windows.
At least we had a few hours of fresh air.

We keep the house at 20 to 21 C.. (68 to 69.8 F).
Since we are retired now, there's almost no time of the day, when the house is unoccupied.
If we both go out, we leave it at 19 or 20, if we plan to return within a few hours.
If it's mild out and looking like it might warm up, it goes off when we leave.

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