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Although slightly off topic, why is it people who don't pay the utility bills want the house cooled to 68 degrees in the Summer but heated to 72 degrees in the Winter? I argue with my wife about this year-round and don't understand why if 72 degrees is comfortable in the Winter it's not also comfortable in the Summer. I mean, a ton of feathers weighs as much as a ton of bricks, right?
The humidity is much less in the winter, so you feel cooler than the higher humidity summers. In fact an air conditioner does more to remove humidity than heat. That's why ceiling fans (or any fan) are good, the airflow over your body doesn't cool the air, but draw away body humidity (sort of simplified)
Although slightly off topic, why is it people who don't pay the utility bills want the house cooled to 68 degrees in the Summer but heated to 72 degrees in the Winter? I argue with my wife about this year-round and don't understand why if 72 degrees is comfortable in the Winter it's not also comfortable in the Summer. I mean, a ton of feathers weighs as much as a ton of bricks, right?
I've seen this question often posed in a "duh" kind of way.
Drafts, and the sun beaming in through windows. Temperature and "feels like" are 2 different things for a meteorologist report isn't it?
In our old drafty Levitt house we had the thermostat up at 72 and it would constantly run and we'd still feel cold. We are much more comfortable now at 68 in the middle of winter in a different house.
I hope it's not too late to jump in on this thread. I too have a Nest thermostat (love it), and I was also wondering how much heat usage others are experiencing. I don't know how my house compares to others, or if there is a need to make it more efficient.
Here's my house info: Philadelphia, PA, 1650 sf. 3 BR ranch with oil-fired forced air heat. When I bought the house in 2012, it needed a ton of work. I had every wall replaced with new drywall, and R-15 insulation put in the exterior walls. The attic and crawl space were also insulated to R-30. The ductwork was replaced and insulated to increase airflow. I had the hardwood floors redone to seal everything up. Six of the 9 windows were replaced, including a large sliding patio door. I would say the house is now mostly air-tight.
I keep the house at 67* when home, 64 when away, and down to 63 at night. Last winter when the average temp was 29* or colder, the heat was on for 223 hours in January and 190 in February. This was before some of the above work was done. I was burning through 150 gallons of oil a month! Last month, after all the work was done, it was on for 119 hours. The average daily temp here was roughly 41*.
For those of you with a similar home and in similar environments, how does your heat usage compare to this? Thanks for your input.
For what it’s worth, here’s my usage compared to last year
Dec 2013/2014: 143hrs/117hrs
Jan 2014/2015: 187hrs/TBD
Haven’t done much to improve insulation or efficiency. Did we have a milder December than last season?
For what it’s worth, here’s my usage compared to last year
Dec 2013/2014: 143hrs/117hrs
Jan 2014/2015: 187hrs/TBD
Haven’t done much to improve insulation or efficiency. Did we have a milder December than last season?
I believe we did as my Dec 14 gas bill showed fewer therms than Dec 13.
We have had a warmer December this year compared to last year.
ATphilly....your 5 gallons of oil a day seems excessive. Do you know the size of nozzle on the burner? Did you look and see what insulation you have in the attic? That is the real culprit of heat loss.
Kayo, thanks for the numbers- that's helpful. Mine appears to be running a bit more than yours, but I do have forced air versus radiator. Yes, this past December was milder than last.
Rocafeller, I think 5 gal/day is high too. I don't know the nozzle size, but can check. I've had the nozzle out a couple times to clean it- is it printed on it? I've read that it can vary from .67 gal/hour to 2 gal/hr. Based on my home size (1650 sf), what size should I have?
Yes, insulation was added to the attic last year to bring to R-30 or a bit higher, I can't remember the exact value.
Im running a .68 nozzle on my Riello burner. Did have a .85 but read that burner should be at that size so changed it.
The first thing I would do is make sure your furnace is firing properly. A poor firing burner can waste a lot of oil. Have a good, experienced guy come look it over and analyze the stack temps and smoke amount, etc.
What manufacturer of burner do you have? And what is the BTU rating of furnace?
Thanks for the advice. I'm going to check my nozzle this weekend. My brother is an HVAC tech, so I'll have him check the system over really well (he lives far away though). Stay tuned.
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Nest usage
