Setting the Thermostat
By Jeff Moffitt
@moffittjc (121731)
Gainesville, Florida
January 19, 2016 6:40am CST
One of the greatest benefits of living in Florida is our subtropical climate and generally mild winters. But even Florida gets its share of frigid weather in January and February, and -- GASP! -- we sometimes even need to turn our heaters on!
I've had to deal with this situation over the past four days, as a cold front that blew threw on Friday/Saturday left us with overnight temps in the upper 20s/lower 30s.
I love the cold, and resist turning my heat on as much as possible. However, no matter how insulated my home is, 30 degree weather is going to eventually drop the inside temperature to the point where we need heat.
I have my thermostat programmed to keep the temperature between 65-67 degrees, depending on the time of day. I love it! I love being able to break out my super thick down comforter and snuggle under it at night! But others in my home think that is too cold and want me to crank the heat hotter (obviously they're not paying the bill!). The divide in my household over the temperature is evenly divided down the gender line.
What temperature do you set your thermostat at in the winter time? Do you keep it on the cooler side, or do you tend to move the dial more toward the toasty side? Is your household divided between the men and women over what the appropriate temp should be?
12 people like this
15 responses
@sgbrown (1638)
• United States
19 Jan 16
You men are all so "warm blooded"! Hubby wants to keep the temperature about 72 in the house and would really like it about 68. I, on the other hand am cold natured and want it around 74. We compromise, and the thermostat sets on 73 during the day and 72 at night. On really cold days, he will start a fire in the fireplace and I will "hover" in front of it most of the day! 
3 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
I know what you mean about the difference between men and women when it comes to temperatures. My girlfriend doesn't like staying over at my place during the winter, because she would prefer the thermostat to be set at 105 or something like that! lol When I go over to her place she has the heat turned up so high I feel like my hair is going to catch on fire or something!
3 people like this
@sgbrown (1638)
• United States
22 Jan 16
@moffittjc Hubby and I try to compromise. We keep it a bit warmer than he likes, but still to chilly for me. I wear a light jacket around the house most of the time.
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
23 Jan 16
@sgbrown I try to bundle up as much as possible before finally giving in and turning on the heat. I generally like the cold anyway, but it is also a strategy for keeping my utility bills affordable!
@DudeBaker (18)
• Aurora, Colorado
19 Jan 16
I've considered relocating to Florida because I experience physical aches and pains during the cold winter months. During winter, I typically set my thermostat at 65 or 66 during the day, and turn it down to 62 at night. We utilize space heaters where possible. The majority of my house has high-ceilings, which suck up a lot of the hot air. I find that convection heaters placed in the center of the largest rooms really help cut down on overall heating costs. We use a smaller electric heater with a fan in the bedroom at night.
2 people like this
@Elizaby (6902)
• Pensacola, Florida
19 Jan 16
The cold in that we get in Florida those it registers one thing may seem colder to those from north regions because of the high humility makes things feel colder than it is and add the wind in worse still, but at least there is breaks between each cold snap.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
That's what I do at night, since I have high cathedral ceilings in my house as well. Using a space heater in my bedroom at night instead of blasting the central heat all night long throughout the house definitely keeps my utility bills within reason!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
@Elizaby I think that is one thing many people around the country don't realize about Florida. The extreme moisture content in the atmosphere makes our mild cold feel so much worse than most other places' frigid cold. A wet cold is always worse than a dry cold.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
I try to strike a balance. I don't want overly outrageous electric bills, but I also don't want it to be freezing cold in my house. It's a balancing game!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
We have a low of 27 tonight. Probably not as bad as Ohio, but that's still pretty cold!
2 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
21 Jan 16
@KristenH But you're supposed to get those temperatures! You live in Ohio! I live in Florida...we're supposed to be laying out at the beach getting a tan in our bathing suits and enjoying the sunshine and gentle breezes with a cold drink in hand! We don't know how to handle this arctic cold!
1 person likes this
@KristenH (33393)
• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
20 Jan 16
@moffittjc That's not too bad. We're getting temps under 20 degrees this week with rain and snow.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (20039)
• United States
20 Jan 16
I hate the cold. I have a semi-new thermostat when I got my new unit about year ago. I love this one because it's digital, and I can leave it on auto. I don't have turn it when the seasons change. I keep my heat on 68, and in the summer 75.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
21 Jan 16
Digital thermostats are nice! I have one too, and it's nice to be able to set it to automatically change to different temperatures throughout the day.
1 person likes this
@Elizaby (6902)
• Pensacola, Florida
19 Jan 16
I think the central systems here in Florida don't know what to think this time of the year as one day they are blowing out warmth and the next cool air. Here the thermostat is set on 68 and may be notched up by the brother-in-law who gets chilled easily or at someone's bath time. Hope there is not a hard freeze where you are at as it is getting close to the peak of strawberry season and I am looking forward to those Plant City strawberries.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
There is a hard freeze here tonight, but it only extends south down to around Ocala, so the strawberries down in Plant City are safe!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
21 Jan 16
@Elizaby I was watching the weather report, and it was interesting that just a few interior counties in Florida had a hard freeze watch, pretty much from Marion County north to the Georgia border. Everyone else was not under the hard freeze warnings!
2 people like this
@Elizaby (6902)
• Pensacola, Florida
20 Jan 16
@moffittjc We are not expecting a freeze except for a light one in the northern ends of the county. About 35 here
1 person likes this
@Blondie2222 (28611)
• United States
20 Jan 16
Mine is always set between 65-70 that is plenty warm for me. If I get cold then I will just put a sweater on or wear long sleeve to keep warm.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
21 Jan 16
That's exactly how I approach it...keep the temperature on the cold side, and if it starts to bother me just put on warmer clothes, or cover up with another blanket! My wallet always thanks me when the electric bill comes each month!
1 person likes this
@infatuatedbby (94914)
• United States
20 Jan 16
I totally know what you mean! I live in California and say what? All the heaters on the shelves are sold out! We have our home thermostat to 67-69 also.
1 person likes this
@infatuatedbby (94914)
• United States
20 Jan 16
@moffittjc I walked through Target and saw one or two heaters left. But I do see fans being stocked.. but it's still cold, lol! 
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
@infatuatedbby I'm willing to bet our stores here in Florida don't have enough jackets and coats in stock either! We are always utterly unprepared for winter!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
Although I haven't checked lately, I'm willing to bet there weren't that many heaters on the shelves here in Florida to begin with! Stores were probably already starting to stock fans and a/c's in preparation for the upcoming summer season! lol
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (472087)
• Switzerland
20 Jan 16
@moffittjc I remember four years ago, in February, we left for a 7 days vacation, of course we set the whole house on 60, to be sure not to find it cold. There was a problem and the furnace shut off. When we were back the temperature inside of the house was 46 F... freezing! It took a full day to get back to a bearable temperature.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
@LadyDuck The same thing happened to me a few years ago when we went on vacation, except when we left it was nice out, so we had all the windows open in the house. When I left for vacation, I shut all the windows. Well, I forgot about one, and while we were on vacation a big cold front blew threw. Needless to say, when we returned home (at midnight no less), it was about 40 degrees inside our house. That was definitely a memorable night trying to sleep and praying that our heater would hurry up and heat up the house!
2 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
Usually it is the opposite for us here! Florida is a hot state, so we normally are worrying more about keeping our houses cool! We're definitely not used to this frigid weather!
2 people like this
@lokisdad (4226)
• United States
23 Jan 16
@moffittjc you kind of feel bad but you know that it sometimes is the only way you can do it you have to sometimes make sacrifices like not being really warm and have to wear extra clothing so you can have some money for other things.
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
22 Jan 16
Yeah, I did the same thing when my kids were younger. We'd keep it warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer, for their sake. But now that they are teens, I definitely keep it colder now in the wintertime. It's like you said, the utility bill can get sky high otherwise.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
23 Jan 16
@lokisdad In the wintertime, it's somewhat easier to keep utility bills down, because you can always bundle up more. Living here in Florida, we don't have that same option in the summer, as you can only take off so many clothes before you have nothing left to take off! It gets so brutally hot and humid here during the summer that we have no choice but to run our air conditioners. My electric bill during the summer is not pretty by any means! lol
1 person likes this
@garymarsh6 (23404)
• United Kingdom
21 Jan 16
@moffittjc It is horrible getting out of a nice warm bed first thing in the morning and having to go to the bathroom. I get up at around 05:30 and our house always feels cold even with the heating on. I think it is because it is an old victorian house with very high ceilings so I guess the heat rises to the top of the room.
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
23 Jan 16
@garymarsh6 It's worse if you have ceramic tile floors, especially in the bathroom! I think tile always stays cold no matter how warm it is inside the house!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
21 Jan 16
I almost bumped my temperature up to about 72, it was so cold last night! But, instead, I added another blanket to the bed and just kept my thermostat at 65. Once I'm settled in under the blankets it's not so bad, but if I have to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, or when I get up for work in the morning, that's when the cold bothers me!
2 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Jan 16
I like the way you think! My girlfriend is always complaining about being cold, and I always tell her to put on a jacket or cover up with another blanket!
2 people like this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
21 Jan 16
@JudyEv We had a training class at work today in a different building than where my office is located, and when I walked into that building, it felt like a raging inferno inside! Somehow must have turned the heat up to about 110! I just couldn't stand it being that hot inside the building!
2 people like this
@JudyEv (342179)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 16
@moffittjc I've been in houses in winter where it is so hot everyone is in shorts and T-shirts. It's just crazy.
2 people like this
@BethieAnnie (818)
• Dayton, Ohio
26 Jan 16
Jeff, I am in a thermostat pickle. The house I bought has radiators and a boiler. The thermostat is one of those old circle once where you set one temperature. Goes a little something like this, too hot, too cold, too hot, too cold, too hot, too cold. I really need a programmable thermostat. I am just worried because I don't know if I have to buy a special one since I have a boiler.
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
27 Jan 16
I work in an old historic building that still has radiators and boilers like your describe, as well as the old circle thermostats. My office is like that...it is either burning hot, or freezing cold. There is no in between, no matter what I adjust the thermostat dial to.
@VivaLaDani13 (60794)
• Perth, Australia
5 Feb 16
We don't have a thermostat. Just air con and a heater. I miss the cold. Can't wait until summer goes away... like far far away.
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Feb 16
After complaining for months that we were having such a warm winter, the cold finally made it's way to where I live, and now I'm complaining that it's too cold and I want it to warm up again! I am very much looking forward to spring! I used to love the winter, but I don't anymore. Spring and Fall are my two favorite seasons, since the temperatures are generally very mild and nice! When does winter actually start for you?
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121731)
• Gainesville, Florida
12 Feb 16
@VivaLaDani13 It is just so hard for me to fathom that your seasons are the opposite of what our seasons are here in the US! It just blows my mind!
1 person likes this
@VivaLaDani13 (60794)
• Perth, Australia
14 Feb 16
@moffittjc lol I know. It's like when I talk to my friend in Texas. It can be hot here and just pouring with rain there and being very cold.
@whiteream (8567)
• United States
21 Jan 16
I am not one for the cold. I like it warm in the house. Lucky for me my husband and I like it about the same. Our son on the other hand likes it colder. He shuts the vents in his room.
