<p>My last roomie was kinda like that but we worked it out. I don’t mind heat during the day but can’t stand it at night when I’m trying to sleep. So since I usually went to bed a little later than she did and got up earlier I’d turn the heat off when she left to shower, so she’d be asleep before the room cooled off, then turn it on when I got up so the room would be warm when she woke up.</p>
<p>It’s harder to compromise during the day, since sometimes cold can be hard to function in (speaking as someone whose hands get cold really easily, I can put on a sweater but I can’t exactly work with gloves on) but I think it’s silly that they can’t pile on a few more blankets to sleep in a slightly colder house. Heated blankets are great.</p>
<p>My roommate and I were opposite on this matter as well - she liked it super hot in her room, and I left my room heater off all winter every year. I would just keep the window open to get a good temperature, and I keep my apartment at 65 when no one is around but me. People complain when they come over my apartment, so I try to have it warm when I am expecting guests… Basically they like it too warm and you like it too cold and most people like it 68-70. If they a great roommates otherwise and you don’t have to pay your heat bill, make it work. If it is a dealbreaker, it is what it is. OTOH winter is almost over here in the south, it’s been in the 70’s in VA. Depending on where you are, it might not be an issue much longer.</p>
<p>Why on earth do some people insist that colder indoor temperatures are healthier? If you’re comfortable with that, fine, but don’t pretend it’s about anything other than comfort. The “flu” comes from the Italian phrase “influenza di freddo” or “influence of the cold” because the virus is more prevalent in winter because of the cold temperatures. </p>
<p>So crank up the heat and maybe throw in a humidifier too!</p>
<p>^Ummmm, as far the flu goes, they’re referring to the colder outdoor temperatures. Having your house at 60 vs 70 is not going to increase transmission of the flu virus.</p>
<p>It is so silly to wear flip flops and shorts around during the winter, unless you live in Florida, of course. They are being ridiculous by thinking that it is OK to turn up the thermostat past 70. I wonder what you guys do when it gets hot outside, if it ever actually does. It sounds like they need to put on more clothes and you need to wear less.</p>
<p>Why not give them some suggestions about typical cold weather helpers that they might not even know about. Electric blankets and electric throws will keep them warm throughout the night. They should both have one of those for sleeping comfortably. The electric throw blankets that are out now are super soft and cuddly and will work perfectly to cozy up on the couch with.</p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with opening your window a bit to allow for fresh air if you block the drafts going out of your room it will keep the cold in your spot. Also maybe you could close the vent that sends heat into your room. Keeping the heater below 68 would probably be too much for them to handle, even with extra clothes, but with some help about ways to get warm from an expert, maybe they will get better about it.</p>
<p>Various energy efficiency articles will site 68 in winter, 72 in summer as good thermostat settings, or you could compromise on 68 at night and 72 in daytime. (also a set back thermostat is cheap). I would have a meeting and try to agree that these would be reasonable levels. If they want to have it warmer in their rooms, space heaters would do that, and they can pay the added electric bills (or for electric blankets etc.) Someone with some math, and watching the meter when they are on can help figure it out. If you need to open your windows to cool your room down (adding to the heat running,) then the extra expense might be a wash. Maybe they don’t mind the extra cost of high heat. When the apartment gets hot in summer months, reverse the extra climate costs for those who want a different temp. Being aware of the cost can be convincing.
At least you have seperate rooms. My student had the same problem in a triple room!</p>
<p>DD spent a year with two apartment-mates who were from Chicago. She was from California. They lived in New England. They routinely let the temperature drop to 50 degrees in the apartment and refused to let her turn the heat on although I think most of the time it was in the high fifties or very low sixties. DD dressed in the apartment like she was on an Arctic expedition. It rankled me no end because she had chronic anemia related to an autoimmune disorder and that can make you feel cold more. She never felt like coming out of her room because the living room/kitchen was colder. There was no way they were giving her an equal vote. It is true that they make good space heaters now, but they still tend to only heat up a small area.</p>
<p>I do 62-65 in the day and 58 at night. If one of us feels cold for the moment, we turn it up bit temporarily. We have gas forced air, and I feel like I’m cooking in my bed if it comes on at night much. How about roommate gets a little ceramic space heater for room? Or do you have seprate vents that you can open and close in different areas?</p>
<p>You think that’s bad? On more than one occasion my roommate has turned the temperature up to 85 degrees at night and routinely puts it into the high 70’s. We live in Miami.</p>
<p>This reminds me when we were back east for DD’s graduation in May. My elderly mother-in-law made the trip. We stayed in on-campus housing and she froze the entire time. I finally ascertained that the school turns off the heat in April and there is no heat after that! I was kind of stunned as the nights were still quite cool.</p>
<p>I think that it’s legally required, at least in Massachusetts. You can’t charge someone for heat separately and not allow them to adjust it themselves.</p>
<p>There also needs to be a way for their heat to be totally separated from the rest of the apartment. I have my own thermostat, but my building isn’t set to measure the heat separately (even though I can adjust my own) so it’s included. My landlords are lucky that I’m used to keeping the temperature low in the winter.</p>
<p>I also have this problem (anemia due to Crohn’s disease), and I really feel for your daughter in that situation. </p>
<p>I think that given my anemia, coupled with my fairly low BMI, the fact that I’m still hot indoors at most peoples’ “normal” temperatures, is a testament to how much my internal thermostat was messed up from my “58-degree childhood.”</p>
<p>I don’t believe there were thermostats in any of the older apartments I lived in in NYC. You just pretended to turn on and off each radiator. However with steam heat it made no difference. I like to be warm, but I used to have my window all the way open all winter long.</p>
<p>Agree on the lack of thermostats in older NYC apartments. However, the high levels of heat depend on the building, landlord/co-op/condo-management company, and fellow building residents.</p>
<p>In my building, the heat ranges from good to being too much because there’s a sizable chunk of seniors and families with young children. In a friend’s apartment, he and his neighbors have had the opposite problem and were freezing because of a lack of adequate heat.</p>
<p>You have to try and learn from every situation that comes your way. When i hear kids complaining about some jerk in class that drives them crazy or a teacher that is really not fair, i tell them that it is training for your future life. You will work with people that have annoying habits and have a variety of bosses, some of them unfair and mean.</p>
<p>Sometimes what you need to learn from a situation is the fact that it is time to make different choices. You will eventually live with a spouse(most people do) and might discover that you both have very different ideas on many things, jut one being how the thermostat will be set.</p>
<p>That is when you will draw on those skills previously learned, in such annoying situations, about whether it is time to compromise or break ties. It really all depends on how annoying it is to you. If you just can’t live with people that want 5-10 degree’s different from you, then move out. Find a new situation. The problem is though you could be moving into something that has many more annoyances than you could have possibly imagined before.</p>
<p>anongrad: your comments about being anemic, having a low bmi, and Crohn’s disease make me wonder about your overall health. While it is true that having the thermostat consistently set low could cause you to develop more brown fat (which activates at low temperatures) than most people, that should not cause you to develop cold insensitivity, which is what you are describing. Cold tolerance, yes, insensitivity, no. Have you discussed this issue with your doctor?</p>
<p>The supply air grill in your bedroom should have a damper on the back of it. On the front of the grill there is a handle that goes up and down. Figure out which way the handle moves to close the damper, and close it. Problem solved!!!</p>