What Does Your Thermostat Say?

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eldragon

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In the last month or so, it's dawned on me that heating our house at night is a waste of money.

I mean, we're all snuggled in our beds, why heat up 3000 square feet of space that nobody is using?

In the morning, we turn on the gas fireplace and whatever room heat we need.

Last night I set the thermostat to 55 degrees, and the main heater never came on, even though it dipped to 31 degrees outside.


What is your thermostat set on?

I would appreciate hearing other people's stories on how they heat their homes, how much they pay for heating per month in the winter, and any alternative sources of home heat they may be using.

We use electric blankets and space heaters as well.

Thanks!
 

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eldragon said:
In the last month or so, it's dawned on me that heating our house at night is a waste of money.

I mean, we're all snuggled in our beds, why heat up 3000 square feet of space that nobody is using?

In the morning, we turn on the gas fireplace and whatever room heat we need.

Last night I set the thermostat to 55 degrees, and the main heater never came on, even though it dipped to 31 degrees outside.


What is your thermostat set on?

I would appreciate hearing other people's stories on how they heat their homes, how much they pay for heating per month in the winter, and any alternative sources of home heat they may be using.

We use electric blankets and space heaters as well.

Thanks!

I keep the thermostat around 68 in the daytime; down to about 62 at night. The heat seldom comes on at night unless it is very cold which it has been. Our home is all electric and the other night during a winter storm (ice and snow), we lost power for about four hours. Even snuggled in bed, it got cold very fast but I'm not complaining. I'm glad the power came back on so fast - we've had experiences where it was out for several days in both summer and winter.

If it's too warm,I don't sleep well. In fact, when I was in the hospital after having one of my children I had to beg the nurses to turn down the heat because I was about to roast!
 

Unique

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eldragon said:
What is your thermostat set on?

I would appreciate hearing other people's stories on how they heat their homes, how much they pay for heating per month in the winter, and any alternative sources of home heat they may be using.

We use electric blankets and space heaters as well.

Thanks!

We don't use our house's heating system. It's an electric heat pump and it's expensive to run and doesn't get us warm anyway.

On sunny days we lift the shades on the southwest side of the house to capture the radiant energy. We keep them closed on the northeast side to keep the cold out.

We have 2 convection space heaters if it gets too cold. What's too cold? 50 degrees inside. Yeah, it's dang chilly but any electric bill at or over $100 starts cutting into my food budget.

The attic fan gets switched off in October.

(Oh yeah. My cats and my heating pad help, too. :D)
 

kristie911

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My thermostat is set on 69 degrees all the time, though because of the sun today, it is currently 71 degrees in my house. I have a geothermal system so it costs me about a $70 a month to keep my house at that temp all winter long.

In the summer when it's really hot, I keep the air conditioner set at 70 or so, and it costs me about $50 a month. Of course, I have the windows open when I can.
 

eldragon

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50 degrees? You're my kind of woman, Unique!

When our main heater comes on in the middle of night, I wake up. I can't sleep thinking about the money that is being burned up by that hog. Our ceilings are 12 feet high, and the vents are in the ceiling. Who thought up this design?


I bought a hydrosil heater for my office, and it works great as long as all the doors to the room are shut.

I grew up in an 18 room house. There was only a floor furnace in the main living room, no other heat. Needless to say (this was in Kansas,) our house was pretty chilly in the winter.

I think I'm going to turn off the main heater, too.
 

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Eldragon: Maybe you should get a quote from an HVAC company to put in zone dampers, each with their own thermostat, so rooms not being used turn the air flow off and allow the furnace to heat the rooms you use.

It would pay for itself in a few years with energy costs going up.
 

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Mine doesn't say anything.

You have to read it.
 

Jongfan

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Thermostat is OFF... windows are open.
Everyone can wear a sweater if they become cold.

The thrermostat only goes up to 62 when a shower is needed.

I LOVE WINTER,....
 

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until we did our remodel, our upstairs and master bedroom had no heat at all. We would bundle up in the blankets at night and it would dip down into the 30's or 40's. If your hands were out of the blanket at night they would go numb ;)
We added in a gas fireplace but we still keep our room at about 58 to sleep.

Our regular downstairs heater is usually set to 50. However, now with a child in the house we've resorted to jumpers and the heat at 68 to keep her warm.

We prefer the cold. She's a summer baby born during a 100 degree heat wave. She kicks off the blankets if it's over 68 in her room at night.
 

eldragon

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Rllgthunder said:
Eldragon: Maybe you should get a quote from an HVAC company to put in zone dampers, each with their own thermostat, so rooms not being used turn the air flow off and allow the furnace to heat the rooms you use.

It would pay for itself in a few years with energy costs going up.

We've put close to $30K into this house in the past year. I'm going to wait awhile before I get anymore quotes.
:)
 

eldragon

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I'm encouraged by all the people who admit that they basically aren't using their heaters.


That's awesome!
 

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I live in a ranch home built in 1955. It uses an oil fed furnace and is about 1300 square feet in size with 8 foot ceilings. When I'm not home the programmable thermostat keeps the house at 68. An hour before I usually arrive home it bumps itself up to 72. Afterwards, I turn on a small oil filled electric radiator in the dining room and the house stays between 72 and 74 degrees if the outdoor temperature is at least 32+. This keeps my heating bill (oil/electric combined) to $50.00 per month.

I noticed Home Depot has a new version of the radiator with a built in fan now which chould be even more efficient. Since my radiator is 5 years old I think I'll buy a new one.
 

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I use the oven a lot more in the winter, too. Baked chicken or 'whatever' instead of stiry-fry or on top of the stove cooking.

When the cook time is up, I shut off the oven and leave the door open so the heat can move throughout the room. I find excuses to stand there until it cools off. :D
 

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I live in a ranch style home built in '52. It's heated with gas, which is $7.831 per dekatherm, according to the bill on my desk at the moment. We average both the gas and the electric bills, so my gas is about $54 a month and my 'lectric is about $120. We keep it at about 71, year round. My computer room is hot in the summer and cold in the winter, so I have a space heater in here as well as a window unit. Ol' Girl likes to be comfortable (not too hot!) or she gets cranky. Ol' Boy spends most of his time bundling up.
 

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I crank it up to the highest setting for warmth during day, til hubby gets home then it goes down...now at night all the family likes it very cold...snuggly cold.
I am on an estimated plan in my city...pay the same price all year round and when the anniversary date comes around the electric co. adjusts it (the next years monthly price )either up or down, for another year...that way, no surprises!
 
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