Freezing

[judecorp]

My apartment just won't get warm. I don't know what it is. The heat keeps coming on, and I'm assuming the area around the thermostat is occasionally getting to its listed temperature because the heat shuts off. But I am /freezing/ and my dinner cooled off way sooner than usual, and my bowl felt cold, and my chair feels cold, and I'm just so c-c-c-cold! I know it's like 2 degrees outside or whatever, but shouldn't my apartment still be able to keep warmth?

I don't think too much is coming from the windows because I hold my hands there and I don't feel a breeze, but I suppose it can't hurt to invest in some plastic this weekend like I've been saying I'm going to. I can't do the skylights that are /really/ high, though, unless I somehow come into a 20-foot ladder. Hrm.

I go into my clients' homes and their apartments are so warm - some of them are downright hot. How can this be? How can their apartments/houses be warm when mine is freezing?!???!?!

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

I lose alot of heat from the skylights in my house. The reason I know that it is the skylights is because I replaced all my windows this summer AND STILL my kitchen (where the skylights are)is soooo cold. Like you, I do not have a ladder to reach. Guess I will just have to snuggle to keep warm!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Some of my skylights are reachable but the ones up on the high ceilings are definitely not. Oh well, I'm afraid to see my gas bill! YIKES!

[oxlahun.livejournal.com]

Pester your landlord. And/or buy a room thermometer and leave it in one of the places that seems coldest to you.

There's actually a law about apartments having to be able to maintain heat, or something like that. But if he's a nice person, he'll probably help you out even without having to dig up that stuff.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I should totally get a room thermometer and check things out. That is so Encyclopedia Brown! :)

We're still working on my landlord fixing several roof/skylight leaks, so I guess the "maintaining heat" issue will come after that.

[oxlahun.livejournal.com]

Water coming in the skylights is a pretty good indication that hot air may be going out.

You may have to become sort of a pest about this particular issue.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I would be if my landlords were ever home. But I suppose we can try to call them /again/.

[thatpatti.livejournal.com]

i was at mayaaaaah's house yesterday and just about froze my ass off. i don't get cold easily, and i had to sit with a scarf, blanket, and hot cup of tea to keep warm! apparently it's because she's on a slab and there's no basement underneath for insulation.

are you on a slab, by chance?

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Oh no, there's a full basement, and I'm on the third floor. Shouldn't I be getting some of the heat from the second floor tenant. What is up with him?!?!? He needs to blast his heat or something and warm up my floor.

Although, half of my living room is over my 2nd floor neighbor's porch, so essentially half of my living room sits above the outside (probably with minimal insulation). I'm sure that doesn't help.

I need carpets.

[gimmeapony.livejournal.com]

my apartment is cold too. :(
you have your heat set to turn down low during the day, right? what time do you have it turn back up at? when it's this cold, it takes an ass long time for the heat to raise from, say 55 up to 65, so maybe you just need to change the times that you have the thing set for? like, ours goes down to 55 during the day (the cat loves us, really) and then goes up to 67 around 4pm. It's about that temperature when we get home around 6 or after.
Of course, that said it's fucking freezing in here right now. Drink tea and get a blanket and a cat and curl up on the couch!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

We have gas powered forced-air heat, so we don't have the big "heat lag" like you do, where you have to wait for the boiler to heat the water to make steam to heat up your radiator thingies. Our heat kicks in (from 60 to 67) at around 6pm. It usually takes 20 mins to hit 67 the first time, and it stays pretty consistant.

Still, we keep it set at 60 all night long, and the heat came on all freaking night last night. Usually the heat barely comes on at all overnight.

I fear the gas bill.

[geniusorafool.livejournal.com]

I'm just impressed that you have skylights and hardwood floors (derived from your "I need carpets" comment).

Here in the ghetto of Waltham, we still have old school windows complete with window weights buried in the sills.

As far as the cold goes, the plastic sheeting may help a bit...and, as you mentioned, any sort of barrier over the skylights would go a *long* way.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, the "leaky" skylights are way too high to plastic. (We'd need a 20-foot ladder, which we totally don't have.)

But yes, we have skylights and hardwood floors. And a jacuzzi tub. And you would know all of this if you ever came over for dinner! (Bring a sweater.)

[smurfbrother.livejournal.com]

You might also be losing heat just because you have such high ceilings. I bet that if you got on an 8 foot ladder, you'd find a band of very toasty air. It happens in our place now; the heat comes on and it's still a bit chilly on the first floor, then I go upstairs for something, and about 2/3 of the way up the stairs I hit the sauna zone.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you're probably right. Our old apartment was like that, too... the third floor was always nice and toasty.

Drat!

[gala.livejournal.com]

You might want to try turning on your ceiling fans to push some of the warm air down. I'll bet all your nice heat is hanging out up there.

[hoo.livejournal.com]

Also, we have a 20' ladder.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Hrm, I would love to borrow it but a) how would I get it to my house, and b) I don't know what we could lean the ladder against, since the skylights are in the middle of the ceiling. Is it one of those A-frame ladders? (But back to the 'it wouldn't fit in/on the car' issue...)

Thanks!

[hoo.livejournal.com]

We're sans roofracks at the moment, but Volkscirocco has moved it about on his Jetta.

No, it's not an A-frame, so it would have to lean against something. I do have a set of arms for it that hold it 2' off of a surface (they're so you don't have to lean against the gutters of a house.)

We shall have to visit and ponder.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yes! Do come visit!

[bingothemonkey.livejournal.com]

She's right - I have hardwoods and ceiling fans (yes, it's the south), but even in this "frigid" 20-something degree weather that everyone is freaking about down here, my house stays warmer with the fans on.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I had the fans on last night but I can't tell if it made a difference. Of course, it was like 2 degrees last night or something, so maybe it was just unavoidable to be cold unless I was willing to crank the heat up to like 72 or so.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I had the fans on low all last evening. I'm not sure if it made a difference. I tried putting them on a little higher (on medium) and it seemed to make the air chillier, but on low it might have made a difference a bit. (It was hard to tell.) When the heat was actually on (i.e. air was blowing), the fans seemed to push some air down. So we'll see.

[folkyboy.livejournal.com]

your apartment was chilly when i was there

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well, especially because we were sitting around not moving /and/ we were in the living room, which is the coldest part of the house (due to the second floor porch).

[carina-s.livejournal.com]

We're really freezing over here in our house too, if that helps.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I think you guys are cheap with the heat like me! Maybe it's because we're stingy heatmisers!!