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We have just built a home in a northern climate. Our source of heat is in floor heating tubes. The floor is bare concrete. I keep hearing urban myths that one should not lower the temp below 16 degrees C (60F) when we are away. Unspecified damage may occur.
If this is true, what are the downsides to setting the way temp to those levels?
In Northern Climates it's best to leave the thermostat, for any heating system, above 60 degrees. Leaving it lower than that is still going to use a lot of energy to bring it back to normal temperatures when you come back home and turn the temperature up. Also, if subzero outdoors and the heating system breaks down while you are away from home for an extended period of time, the water's temperature could reach a freezing temperature sooner. By leaving it above 60 degrees, all you are doing is extending the water temperature above freezing.
Most times it makes no difference whatsoever, specially if the house is well insulated. But in Fairbanks, Alaska where winters are extremely cold, the heater's water temperature a few degrees above freezing can make a difference of a few minutes to a few hours. It makes no sense trying to save a little $ compared to having the heating pipes freezing, since the latter can cost you a fortune.
What a lot of home owners do in this area is to have glycol in their boilers and heating systems in case that the water temperature drops below freezing when away from home for several days.
My folks, in Montana, keep theirs at ~63 through the winter (and have only left the house for an extended time in the summer). Actually, I think the garage zone is set to 55... No clue what they turn the different zones to in the summer as I only visit in the winter (they're my access to cheap skiing). 63 is PLENTY warm, too warm to sleep at night with anything more than just a sheet for me, though they get a lot of passive solar heat through the day too.
No clue about the minimum temp damage myth, I'd love to learn of it myself as I stand to inherit my parents house.
My folks, in Montana, keep theirs at ~63 through the winter (and have only left the house for an extended time in the summer). Actually, I think the garage zone is set to 55... No clue what they turn the different zones to in the summer as I only visit in the winter (they're my access to cheap skiing). 63 is PLENTY warm, too warm to sleep at night with anything more than just a sheet for me, though they get a lot of passive solar heat through the day too.
No clue about the minimum temp damage myth, I'd love to learn of it myself as I stand to inherit my parents house.
55 degrees is not bad. The temperature in my garage is around 55, and around 68 degrees throughout the house when we are awake, then the thermostats automatically adjust to 64 from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM.
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